A Study on Perception Types of Anger Emotion in Early Adulthood Workers

Objectives This study aimed to categorize the subjective perceptions of anger among early adulthood workers and to present the characteristics of each type. Methods The study was conducted using the Q methodology with 25 workers who had experienced workplace anger. Results The analysis identified four perception types: Passive Avoidance Type, Aggressive Retaliation Type, Internal Conflict Type, and Tense Hypersensitivity Type. The Passive Avoidance Type tended to avoid anger-inducing situations and suppress emotions, suggesting the need for interventions that challenge negative beliefs about emotional expression and enhance self-efficacy. The Aggressive Retaliation Type perceived anger as hostility and a means of retaliation against others, highlighting the necessity of support measures for expressing anger in a healthier way. The Internal Conflict Type viewed anger as an emotion that must be controlled but also experienced stress due to emotional suppression. For this type, enhancing psychological safety in the workplace and increasing perceived organizational support (POS) were proposed as effective strategies. The Tense Hypersensitivity Type associated anger with physical tension and heightened sensitivity to work-related stress. In this case, relaxation techniques such as meditation programs and improvements in workload distribution were suggested as effective interventions. Conclusions This study is significant in that it classifies and analyzes the subjective perceptions of anger emotion in early adulthood workers. The findings suggest that emotional support strategies in the workplace should adopt differentiated approaches tailored to individual perception types. However, as the study focused solely on early adulthood workers, the findings may primarily reflect the perceptions of employees in relatively lower job positions, which could be a limitation.