The Anger Self-Management Training Program (ASMT) is an 8-session, 1-to-1 psychoeducational treatment program designed for people with problematic anger/ irritability following moderate to severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). The idea and general structure of the program were conceived by a workgroup led by Tessa Hart, PhD, within the NIH-funded TBI Clinical Trials Network (Award #U01 HD042738). A subsequent 3-center randomized controlled trial funded by NIH/NCMRR (Award #R01HD061400, Hart PI) tested the efficacy of the ASMT against a structurally equivalent control condition. Internal funding from the Institute was used for pilot work and for a follow-up study on treatment enactment, as well as a study examining the predictors of success in treatment.

The pdf file below contains the ASMT treatment manual and materials to be used with patients. If you download and use this material, please read the Introduction carefully, as it contains recommendations for the ethical use of this program in clinical settings and information on how to cite its use. We also urge you to become familiar with the empirical articles (references below) on the ASMT before using it clinically.

• Download ASMT Manual (PDF)

Questions and comments about this treatment program may be addressed to Tessa Hart, PhD, Tessa.Hart@jefferson.edu.

ASMT references:

• Hart T, Vaccaro M, Hays C, Maiuro R. Anger self-management training for people with traumatic brain injury: A preliminary investigation. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, 27:113-122, 2012.
• Hart T, Brockway JA, Fann JR, Maiuro RD, Vaccaro MS. Anger self-management in chronic traumatic brain injury: Protocol for a psycho-educational treatment with a structurally equivalent control and an evaluation of treatment enactment. Contemporary Clinical Trials, 40:180-192, 2015.
• Hart T, Brockway JAB, Maiuro RD, Vaccaro M, Fann JR, Mellick D, Harrison-Felix C, Barber J, Temkin N. Anger self-management training for chronic moderate to severe traumatic brain injury: Results of a randomized controlled trial. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, 32:319-331, 2017.
• Hart T, Vaccaro MJ, Fann JR, Maiuro RD, Neuberger S, Sinfield S. Psychoeducational interventions for problematic anger in chronic, moderate to severe traumatic brain injury: A study of treatment enactment. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 26:119-129, 2020.
• Hart T, Maiuro RD, Fann JR, Vaccaro MJ, Chervoneva I. Predictors of treatment response to a psychoeducational intervention for anger in chronic moderate-severe traumatic brain injury. Journal of Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 35(2):158-164, 2023.