ANGER is an emotion consisting of antagonistic, displeased, attacking feelings toward an offending person or thing. Some psychologists have attempted to distinguish anger from rage by supposing that true anger occurs only when the sex or love emo tion is opposed, as in the sex combats of rival males among animals and human beings. It is said that anger, at such times, contains a self-abandonment never found in the rage accompany ing struggles for food. In popular parlance, however, anger and rage are practically synonymous. This emotion has been found in the behaviour of very young infants (J. B. Watson). It occurs when the baby's spontaneous movements are hampered or inter fered with by the experimenter, and is expressed by crying, holding the breath and threshing wildly about with arms and legs. Experi ments on animals (W. B. Cannon) also have shown that anger or rage causes increased secretion of adrenalin, with heightened blood pressure, dilation of the pupils of the eyes and increase of blood sugar. Experiments on adult human beings (W. M. Mars ton) have shown that anger is accompanied by increased systolic blood pressure, more rapid heart beat and quicker and more ex plosive responses to questions or association words. The be haviour of both animals and human beings, during anger, always shows a certain element of wildness, or lack of voluntary control. For this reason anger is psychologically defined (W. M. Marston) as an abnormal, conflict emotion, consisting of interrupted or thwarted dominance, aggressiveness or self-assertion.
See J. B. and R. R. Watson, "Studies in Infant Psychology," Scientific Monthly (1921) ; W. B. Cannon, Bodily Changes in Pain, Hunger, Fear and Rage (192o) ; W. M. Marston, "Sex Characteristics of Systolic Blood Pressure Behavior," Journal Experimental Psy chology (1923) ; The Emotions of Normal People (1928).
(W. M. M.) ANGERBURG, chief town of the south-western sub-divi sion of the district of Gumbinnen, East Prussia. Pop. (1933) 7,819. It lies at the northern end of a long series of lakes, and serves as a road and rail centre. It makes small machinery and clay-products.