Recently, with the extension of the average life expectancy and the arrival of the 100 - year - old era, the proportion of the elderly population among the total population has surged, and elderly issues are frequently appearing in the news.Many elderly issues are raised, but the concern is that the emotions of the elderly are progressing very aggressively and destructively unlike in the past.There is anger about social injustice and anger about being alienated economically and socially, but the expression of anger in daily life, which seems trivial, receives harsh stares from the surroundings.In the case of male seniors, emotional alienation resulting from alienation or reduced roles appears as anger, and female seniors experience various psychological changes as they experience rapid hormonal changes after menopause, and their anger deepens.
Choi Kwang-hyun summarized the causes of anger in old age into several categories. First, it is due to economic difficulties. Anger caused by economic difficulties affects all generations, but it comes as a bigger problem especially for the elderly generation. Elderly people who experience more serious economic difficulties than when they were young can easily feel feelings of anger.
Second, it is due to health problems. When one becomes old, one goes through primary and secondary aging processes, and physical, psychological, and social functions decline, which entails various health problems. In the case of male seniors aged 65 and over, the prevalence of chronic diseases is 84.4%, but in the case of female seniors, it is as high as 95%. Therefore, the health problems of female seniors are more serious. Elderly people experience difficulties due to high medical expenses along with physical diseases. Health problems should be noted as they can cause feelings of anger even over small things.
Third, it is due to the loss of roles in society and the church. As they pass through old age, their roles and status change significantly, and the elderly experience difficulties in adapting anew within society and the church. As a result, social activities decrease, and they feel alienation, loss, and helplessness. These social characteristics make the elderly generation feel loneliness psychologically and deprivation socially, making their position more unstable. In particular, loss of roles becomes an emotion that is easily felt even in the church, and the anxiety or psychological alienation of the elderly generation can create anger.
Psychological changes appear in middle age and continue into old age. In particular, Korean elderly people who have lived in a society dominated by Confucian values in the past often have 'Hwabyung' (anger syndrome), which occurs uniquely in Korean culture, because they cannot express their emotions and have to maintain authority or status within the patriarchal social structure, or because they have lived with sacrifice and patience as virtues and failed to express anger properly. Hwabyung is a characteristic emotional reaction that appears when suppressed anger is not properly managed, and is an anger-related syndrome that presents various psychological, physical, and emotional symptoms.
Anger is a natural reaction to inevitable events in daily life and is one of the basic emotions that provide adaptive functions to overcome obstacles and solve problems. It is an unpleasant emotion with various intensities ranging from mild irritation or embarrassment to strong fury or rage. When people experience anger, not only do physiological reactions such as blood pressure and pulse increase, but aggression also increases, and impulses to express unpleasant emotions physically and verbally arise. As everyone has experienced, anger is one of the very intense negative emotions experienced by humans, and it is an emotional state composed of subjective feelings such as tension and fury, and an emotion defined by the activation of the autonomic nervous system, inducing behavioral patterns unique to the individual.
Experiencing anger and expressing anger are different concepts. Experiencing anger is an emotional state felt along with physiological reactions, but the way of expressing anger refers to the behavioral dimension of an individual's response style to the feeling of anger. Therefore, even if they experience a similar level of anger, the way each person copes with anger may be different. Anyone can be angry, and can be angry at social absurdities or unjust things found in the surroundings. The problem is that when anger goes beyond the range of control, it sometimes develops into an accident. Even in the case of the elderly who are experienced in conflict, who have spent time like the younger generation and experienced a lot of patience, uncontrolled anger causes conflict and becomes a reason for crime.
In particular, 'Hwabyung', a culture-bound syndrome of Koreans, has been reported to be highly related to feelings of anger. 'Hwabyung' is an aspect that appears when negative emotions such as anger are suppressed and attention is turned to one's inside, and various physical symptoms appear when psychological conflict situations cannot be resolved. When the level of anger is excessively high or continues for a long time, it develops into hypertension or cardiovascular diseases. If various physical problems or the cause of anger are not resolved, it causes psychological health problems such as depression. In addition, continuous expression of anger damages interpersonal relationships and ultimately has a negative impact, such as lowering life satisfaction.
Anger management problems do not appear only in the form of crimes. According to a 2015 survey by the Korean Neuropsychiatric Association, more than half (52%) of adults in Korea are in a state where anger management is not working properly. The high-risk group for impulse control disorder (1%) requiring treatment is also more than 1 in 10. If you look around, you can often meet people who are worried about whether they have problems with anger management, although not enough to go to the hospital. The anger experienced by the elderly is natural, and anyone can be angry. But while some people can control it appropriately and resolve or suppress it through communication, others cannot control it and express anger using negative communication. You can easily meet such elderly people in the church as well. Everyone needs it, but saints who want to have a happy and satisfying faith life must learn communication to control anger.