Name: Why some anger can be good for you
Uploaded: 2018-09-11T16:00:49Z
Duration: 13 min 9 s
Description: Anger researcher Ryan Martin draws from a career studying what makes people mad to explain some of the cognitive processes behind anger and why a healthy dose of it is, in fact, useful. "Your anger exists in you because it offered your ancestors an evolutionary advantage," he says. "It's a powerful and healthy force in your life."

Anger researcher Ryan Martin draws from a career studying what makes people mad to explain some of the cognitive processes behind anger and why a healthy dose of it is, in fact, useful. "Your anger exists in you because it offered your ancestors an evolutionary advantage," he says. "It's a powerful and healthy force in your life."

Ryan Martin: Why some anger can be good for you

Why some anger can be good for you

Anger, when interpreted through cognitive appraisal, can reveal insights about our perceptions of fairness and our coping abilities.

Evolutionary psychology suggests anger served an adaptive function, alerting us to injustice and energizing us to confront it.

Channeling anger into constructive actions can fuel social change, turning feelings of injustice into movements for equality and rights.