Recognizing Anger in Clinical Research and Practice

Cassiello‐Robbins and Barlow (2016) offer a long‐overdue critical analysis of the nature and function of anger in emotional disorders and their treatment. If not unrecognized, the basic emotion of anger has certainly been underemphasized in the prevailing diagnostic classification system and focus on diagnosis‐specific treatments for single disorders. In this commentary, I briefly highlight a few examples of complementary clinical resources where anger is more consistently and explicitly addressed. The chosen examples are intentionally selected from multiple theoretical orientations to demonstrate that anger has been unrecognized primarily within a specific context, and that there is considerable convergence in how anger is being considered across seemingly divergent approaches. Finally, I offer some of my own recommendations for practice and training.