Dr David Allen on Shame Anger Violence

Category Video

Co-organised by:
Faith and Global Engagement, HKU
Department of Social Work & Social Administration, HKU
Visual Psychophysics and Neuroimaging Laboratory, HKU

Anger is often associated as one of the major faces of shame in society. The word shame' has been traced to the root meaning to cover or to hide, exemplified in the Biblical narrative of Adam and Eve. Shame is a deep, hidden feeling produced by the shattering of cherished dreams, wishes and expectations. Because of its hidden nature, the faces of shame in society are anger, violence and abusive relationships. Our research has shown that when a person who is angry and shamed is further hurt, the anger explodes into toxic rage, developing the Evil Violence Tunnel, where a person becomes destructive. The lecture will discuss the brain mechanisms of anger, its different presentations in our lives, and the stages of the Evil Violence Tunnel vignettes of persons who have been the victims of widespread shame and anger. We will conclude by presenting a format of anger management that has proven effective in our research and work.

Dr. David Allen was trained in medicine at Saint Andrew s University, and in Psychiatry and Public Health at Harvard. He has taught at Harvard, Yale and most recently held a clinical professorship in Psychiatry at Georgetown Medical School, in Washington, D. C. He was voted as one of the most outstanding psychiatrists in America, 2002-2003 and 2011-2012. He is a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association for his innovative scientific research, and has been given numerous awards including, the Bahamian Icon Award for Humanitarianism and the RB Bennett Commonwealth prize by the Royal Society of Arts for his international contribution in the field of cocaine addiction research and treatment.

Admission Free. Registration required.