‘It’s You and Your Stupid Rules’
[ The University of Melbourne Voice Vol. 3, No. 5
14 July - 10 August 2008 ] By Sally Beadle
Michael Currie is a clinical psychologist and psychoanalytic psychotherapist. His speciality is working with adolescent boys who have chronic anger and aggression problems. Doing Anger Differently, Helping Adolescent Boys brings together 20 years of experience and is written for parents, teachers and other professionals so that they can understand – and respond to – adolescent anger and aggression.
The book is particularly relevant in contexts where increasing uncertainty and risk are associated with adolescence. Alongside rapid social change, young people have to negotiate challenges different from those of their parents’ generation. The absence of clear-cut lines between the dependence of childhood and the independence of adulthood makes adolescence a confusing time for many and can be more of a challenge for some than for others. It is not uncommon to hear reports of road rage, violent crime and expulsion and suspension among youth in schools for violence. As Currie points out, anger and aggression can be a common response of teenage boys to the confusion of growing up.
Published by Melbourne University Press, the first part of the book discusses the complex nature of anger and aggression in adolescent boys and the thinking processes that can lead to outbursts of anger, frustration and rage.
He argues that anger mismanagement commonly leads to difficulties at school and may lead to involvement by the justice system and marginalisation of the young person.
Part two outlines ideas for addressing anger and aggression in the family and school context. Importantly, the techniques advocated in Doing Anger Differently go further than simplistic solutions of anger management. As anger is serving a function in the young person’s life (no matter how dysfunctional the outcome may be), the key is to assist them to reflect on their anger, find the root of the problem and guide them in the right direction. This is particularly important when anger is often masking sadness and depression.
This book distils complex theoretical and empirical issues from the existing adolescent and aggression treatment literature into a set of clear, practical principles and techniques, which may be adapted or utilised by readers whatever the basis of their contact with angry or aggressive boys. Throughout the book, we meet several of Currie’s past clients whose experiences contextualise his ideas.
This content may provide comfort for parents who may identify elements of their own sons in the case studies. It is always reassuring to know that other parents are going through the same traumas.
Some readers may find Currie’s psychoanalytically oriented explanations of behaviour problematic. He often attributes behaviours to the young person’s underlying or ‘subconscious’ wishes and motivations. Nevertheless, the author’s views and recommendations are backed up by considerable experience and offer valuable advice for those who may find themselves in a vicious cycle of conflict. Currie’s experience working with young boys gives him the unusual ability to stand in their shoes and explain certain situations from an angle to which adults are often blind.
This book is an essential for teachers, carers and most importantly parents who are confronted with aggression and anger problems in young men. The appendix provides advice on where to go for further help.
Sally Beadle is a researcher at the Australian Youth Research Centre, University of Melbourne. She has qualifications in sociology and psychology and has a particular interest in youth health and social service-delivery.
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