A FUZZY DELPHI-BASED APPROACH TO DEVELOPING EVIDENCE-INFORMED ANGER MANAGEMENT GUIDELINES: ACHIEVING EXPERT CONSENSUS FOR BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTION

Author: Malaysia

Abstract

Anger, as a complex and multifaceted emotional construct, poses significant challenges to individuals, families, and communities when dysregulated. Despite the proliferation of anger management interventions in clinical and educational settings, the field lacks a standardized, evidence-informed framework that consolidates expert perspectives into actionable behavioral guidelines. This study employed the Fuzzy Delphi Method (FDM) to systematically elicit, consolidate, and achieve expert consensus on the core components of evidence-informed anger management guidelines for behavioral intervention. A purposively selected panel of 8 experts drawn from clinical psychology, counseling, psychiatry, social work, and behavioral health education participated in the study. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire based on a triangular fuzzy number (TFN) scale across two FDM rounds. The FDM analysis incorporated key thresholds including a threshold value (d) of ≤ 0.2, a percentage of expert agreement (A) of ≥ 75%, and a fuzzy mean (m) value of > 0.5 to determine consensus and item acceptance. Findings revealed consensus on 38 items across six guideline domains: cognitive-behavioral strategies, emotional regulation techniques, social skills development, psychoeducation, self-monitoring tools, and relapse prevention protocols. Items related to mindfulness-based anger reduction and culturally responsive intervention emerged as the highest-ranking consensus items. The study concludes that the FDM offers a robust, rigorous, and transparent methodology for synthesizing expert knowledge into practical behavioral intervention guidelines, thereby contributing to the standardization and evidence base of anger management practice