RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 A Pilot Study of Motive Control to Reduce Vengeance Cravings
JF Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online
JO J Am Acad Psychiatry Law
FD American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law
SP JAAPL.003792-18
DO 10.29158/JAAPL.003792-18
A1 Michael Rowe
A1 James Kimmel, Jr.
A1 Anthony J. Pavlo
A1 Kimberly D. Antunes
A1 Chyrell D. Bellamy
A1 Maria J. O'Connell
A1 Luz Ocasio
A1 Miraj Desai
A1 Japjot Bal
A1 Elizabeth H. Flanagan
YR 2018
UL http://jaapl.org/content/early/2018/12/18/JAAPL.003792-18.1.abstract
AB Violence is a serious public health problem in the United States, and a common risk factor for many forms of violence is the perpetrator's motivation to achieve personal justice for past wrongs and injustices. Using a fictional transgression scenario to stimulate revenge feelings, we studied the preliminary efficacy of an intervention designed to mitigate revenge desires among victims of perceived injustice. The intervention consisted of a guided role-play of key figures in the justice system (e.g., victim, prosecutor, defendant, judge, etc.) in an imaginary mock trial of the offender. Study participants' revenge desires toward the perpetrator decreased significantly immediately after the intervention and at a 2-week follow-up interview. Benevolence toward the offender increased immediately postintervention and at a 2-week follow-up interview. These results suggest that the intervention has promise to decrease revenge desires in people who have been victimized, and it potentially opens the door to behavioral health motive control approaches to violence prevention. Findings on the roles of vengeance and the desire for retaliation in relation to violent acts, as well as neuroscience research that suggests a connection between retaliatory aggression and the neural circuitry of anticipated reward and cravings, are discussed. Limitations of this pilot study are also discussed, and recommendations for future research are provided.