# Treatment Development of Yoga for Anger Management in Incarcerated Adults

> **NIH NIH R34** · BROWN UNIVERSITY · 2021 · $244,895

## Abstract

In the criminal justice (CJ) system in the US, there are high rates of mental health and substance use
disorders. Although prisons must provide treatment, the CJ system is resource-poor and the presenting
problems of prisoners are diverse. To maximize efficiency in the CJ context, recent efforts focus adjunctive
interventions on symptoms that are most detrimental to prisoners, and that are shared across diverse
conditions. Of particular interest has been anger dysregulation, as this is prevalent in CJ-involved populations,
contributing not only to distress and exacerbation of other mental health problems, but also to risk of
aggression. Overt aggression further increases risk for prison behavioral infractions or placement in restraints
or seclusion, and may delay parole or release decisions. There are many limitations to existing approaches to
anger management in prison. We propose that hatha yoga could serve as a useful adjunctive treatment for
anger within prisons. In addition to preliminary research showing that yoga programs may improve anger
regulation, research has also demonstrated benefits of yoga for related symptoms of depression, anxiety, and
trauma-related emotion reactivity and arousal. Yoga may be delivered in a relatively low-cost fashion. Finally,
prisoners may view yoga as less stigmatizing than more traditional anger management interventions,
particularly given its focus on physical body awareness/movement and on overall wellness. Despite a recent
proliferation of yoga programs for various problems in prisons, empirical research on this topic is minimal, with
a small number of studies limited by significant methodological concerns. We propose to conduct systematic
treatment development research that would prepare us to study whether yoga (vs. a health education control
group) is an effective adjunctive treatment for prisoners with anger dysregulation. In Phase 1 (Treatment
Development Stage 1A) of the proposed project, we will refine our current manualized Hatha yoga intervention
and health education intervention for specific use with prisoners with high levels of anger dysregulation. We will
conduct focus groups with prisoners and prison administrators, and solicit feedback from relevant experts, in
order to make modifications to our yoga and health education treatment manuals. In Phase 2 (Treatment
Development Stage 1B), we will conduct a pilot randomized clinical trial (n = 40) of Hatha yoga vs. a health
education group (attention control) for prisoners high in self-reported anger dysregulation. Participants will be
enrolled in the active intervention for 10 weeks, and then followed for 8 weeks. We will assess feasibility and
acceptability of the yoga program, the health education control group, and research procedures. To assess
safety, we will track all adverse events in a structured fashion. We do not expect to see any serious adverse
events definitely or probably related to study participation. We will iteratively revise ...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10069302
- **Project number:** 5R34AT010172-03
- **Recipient organization:** BROWN UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Lisa A Uebelacker
- **Activity code:** R34 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $244,895
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-01-10 → 2023-12-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10069302

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10069302, Treatment Development of Yoga for Anger Management in Incarcerated Adults (5R34AT010172-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10069302. Licensed CC0.

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