Opening Insights
A New York Times article written by Penelope Green, dated August 9, 2017, highlights the growing problem of anger within our society and the creative, yet concerning way some people are attempting to let the anger go.
Research shows that venting anger doesn't extinguish the flame, instead it increases physical arousal and keeps anger alive[1]. Despite the research, seeking ways to express anger continues to grow in popularity. The demand for these anger rooms highlights the immaturity of our culture who seek momentary relief or catharsis (that in the long run perpetuates and grows the anger), rather than long-term solutions.
The question is not what is right or what is wrong, but rather what happens (not if, but...) when the catharsis of beating and destroying TV's, computers and mannequins (representing people) are no longer enough to relieve the pain?
Informational Insights
Smashing things may not seem at first blush to be a winning idea to wrap a business around. Since March, however, nearly 1,500 people have shown up to break housewares, electronics and furniture at the Wrecking Club, two reinforced rooms in the basement of a building in the garment district of Manhattan.
Many of this number are couples looking for something more piquant than the usual date-night fare, said Tom Daly, the Wrecking Club’s proprietor. But rage is not confined to matrimony and other romantic unions, as Mr. Daly has also found.
“That’s the cool thing about addressing an instinct,” he said on a recent steamy afternoon. “Everyone’s got it.”
The Wrecking Club is not the first rage-based enterprise. Last fall, politics drove the business at the Anger Room, which opened in Dallas in 2008. Clients showed up by the hundreds to batter human effigies of Hillary Clinton and Donald J. Trump. Three Trump mannequins and two Clintons were utterly destroyed, according to the owner, Donna Alexander, and had to be replaced.
The Rage Room, which first opened in Toronto in 2015, now has licensees in Budapest, Singapore, Australia and Britain. “We’ve helped a lot of angry couples,” said Stephen Shew, the owner. (His date-night package, $70 for two electronic devices and 20 items of crockery, from lawn gnomes to ceramic vases, is wildly popular on Valentine’s Day.
For those who would rather act out at home, the online marketplace presents an armory’s worth of what are known as therapy tools. Foam anger bats, for example, start at about $10. At the high end, a pair of well-padded, cherry-red canvas, German-made, jumbo encounter bats cost about $210 and look like something the performance artist Leigh Bowery might have designed as a special kind of evening wear.
[..]
Most people are hesitant at first,” Mr. Daly said. “They’re a little timid. They say, ‘Can I break that?’ I’m like, ‘Yeah, you can break that.’ Usually after the first hit, they go crazy.
[..]
From my very humble and limited education, I think that part of what’s going on here is that breaking stuff gives people back their edge,” he said. “It lets people take their power back. Imagine getting fired. It sucks. It’s defeating. Or you got dumped, or you didn’t get into the college you wanted, or imagine whatever it is that makes you feel weak. This is a place where you can get back your power.
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/09/style/anger-rooms-the-wrecking-club.html
Possibilities for Consideration
Beating and trashing TV's, computers, dishes and mannequins may be fun in the moment, however, we need to question whether this physical act really elevates the stress and the root cause of anger or merely masks its effects momentarily? Do places like the "Wrecking Club" help people solve the problem, or just provide another "anger management" tool to alleviate the symptom, instead of treat the dis-ease?
- What if there is a way to find resolution for anger?
- What if there is a way to deal with our anger instead of act on it?
- What if there is a way to take charge of our issues (anger) rather than manage them?
- What if there is a way to curb the growing anger and rage within our businesses, organizations, schools and communities?
Add Your Insight
“Angry people are not always wise.”
JANE AUSTEN
[1] Bushman, B. J. (2002). Does venting anger feed or extinguish the flame? Catharsis, rumination, distraction, anger, and aggressive responding. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 28, 724–731.