Anger is a basic component of the criminal personality. Angry thinking and behavior is a fundamental element of the criminal’s thinking process; whether expressed outright or seen beneath the surface, the criminal is angry.
Fear, especially the fear of being put down, is the most common source of anger in the criminal. They perceive their own mistakes, or those of others, as an attack on their own identity. This type of thinking breaks down the criminal’s expectation that everything should go smoothly for them. A criminal’s reaction to such a putdown is aggression – a response intended to re-establish control. They use anger to gain control of others, whether these others are in a position of authority or submissive to the criminal. Aggressive anger often takes the form of intimidation, a method employed to gain the upper hand in a disagreement.
Anger brings out a vulnerability in the criminal to what is called the zero state, or depression. In this state, they develop inflamed irrational thinking about the unfairness of a situation, person or life in general. Part of this thinking involves getting even. A violation, or some form of irresponsible behavior, are the basic strategies by which the criminal re-asserts themself as a powerful person. This is the key, in the criminal’s thought process, to escaping the zero state.
A criminal may become angry during periods of self-restraint, as in therapy or treatment programs. Restraint by others, such as in imprisonment, can also escalate angry thinking. This anger is a result of the boredom these situations tend to produce. The criminal does not necessarily seek out confrontation with others, but this is often the result of their anger. This anger can arise from the interference of others in the criminal’s operation.
Often, the criminal attempts to define themselves as a rebel, justifying their angry behavior in this manner. Their behavior is not in fact rebellious, however, because there is a lack of concern with principles, they are a rebel without a cause. The criminal thinker is primarily concerned with getting what they want, and opposed to interference. Angry thinking can produce irresponsible decisions and violations. All this being said, anger is a serious threat to the criminal’s rehabilitation.
A criminal can alter this mode of thinking, in spite of everything. They must learn to deter angry thinking and angry behavior. This is important, because when a criminal expresses their anger, they experience an increase in the angry response itself – not a reduction in it.
The changing criminal must be aware of the irrational thinking of poor decision making processes which arise out of angry thinking. The result of angry thinking on responsible performance and positive goals must also be examined. As a criminal changes their behavioral patterns, they must be aware of self-defeating judgment toward themself and others. Eventually, they will learn to accept the imperfections that are intrinsic in their own self, other people and their environment.
A list of potential replacements for angry thinking includes:
1. Tell yourself you cannot afford to be angry.
2. Remind yourself of how it has gotten you into trouble in the past.
3. Ask yourself: Am I expecting too much?
4. Ask yourself: What did I contribute to this situation?
5. Prepare yourself for disappointments. Remember if anything can go worng it will
6. Ask yourself: how else can I handle the situation?
7. Do something else. for example listen to the radio
Check out our other criminal thinking error related articles.
Building self-esteem and developing a positive view of oneself is the goal of many therapeutically sound programs. There are numerous assessment tests that measure self-worth, self-esteem and positive self-image including 
Positive self-perspective can be viewed on a continuum for the criminal thinker with self-hate on the far left and narcissism on the far right. Self-disgust is the result of an honest and balanced self-assessment developed with the help of responsible ‘others.’ The change agents role should be to consistently hold up a mirror to the offender so they see a true and undistorted vision of themselves. The offender will begin to identify the thinking patterns that have caused others harm and the replacements to those errors in thinking. As a result, they will begin developing the skills to hold up the mirror for themselves. Over time, looking into the mirror of self-disgust will motivate change and begin replacing a distorted sense of self-worth with a healthy self-perspective. The negative ripple affects of a life of crime will begin to fade and new ripples of healing and hope will become stronger.
The essence of criminal thinking is the closed channel. Criminal thinkers are closed off from being receptive, are closed to any interest in being self-critical and also shut down from disclosing the truth about their destructive behavior. These three components of criminal thinking must be replaced with their natural corollaries, i.e. receptivity, self-criticism and self disclosure.
Receive, Read, Research, Remember, Reflect and Respond. The second “R,” in this list of actions to become inspired with the truth, is “Read.” In Rick Warren’s book, the Purpose Driven Life, this second “R” is about reading the bible. However, reading many positive, life-affirming books can help us understand the truth about living a responsible and victim-free life. One of the benefits of reading for an addict and criminal thinker is that the book can’t be interrupted. When criminal thinkers hear something that they dislike or disagree with they tend to cut the conversation short or interrupt and argue their point of view. Reading the printed word allows distorted thinking to slowly be replaced with positive concepts. A book can’t be interrupted unless it is closed so challenge yourself to pick up a book and read daily!