Novaco Anger Scale and Provocation Inventory (NAS-PI)

Initially developed in conjunction with the MacArthur Foundation Network on Mental Health and Law, the NAS-PI helps clinicians and researchers evaluate the role of anger in various psychological and physical conditions.

Brief and easy-to-administer, this self-report questionnaire is an excellent way to assess anger in clinical, community and correctional settings.

The NAS-PI is composed of two parts:

• The Novaco Anger Scale (60 items), which tells you how an individual experiences anger
• The Provocation Inventory (25 items), which identifies the kind of situations that induce anger in particular individuals.

The entire questionnaire can be completed in just 25 minutes by anyone with a reading age of 8 or above. (It can also be administered to clients who are mentally disordered or developmentally delayed, though items may have to be read to these individuals.)

The NAS-PI produces the following scores:

Total

General inclination toward anger reactions, based on Cognitive, Arousal and Behaviour subscales.

Cognitive

Anger justification, rumination, hostile attitude and suspicion.

Arousal

Anger intensity, duration, somatic tension and irritability.

Behaviour

Impulsive reaction, verbal aggression, physical confrontation and indirect expression.

Anger Regulation

Ability to regulate anger-engendering thoughts, effect self-calming, and engage in constructive behaviour when provoked.

Total

A reflection of five content areas: disrespectful treatment, unfairness, frustration, annoying traits of others, and irritations.

In addition, a validity index helps identify inconsistent responding, whether intentional or inadvertent.

The NAS-PI can be administered as a whole, or the two parts can be used independently. Normative data are based on an age-stratified sample of 1,546 individuals, from 9 to 84 years of age. Separate norms are provided for pre-adolescents and adolescents (9 to 18) and adults (19 and older).

The test has shown good test-retest reliability in nonclinical, clinical, and correctional samples. Studies reported in the Manual demonstrate that the NAS-PI can distinguish between assaultive and non-assaultive forensic inpatients and predict assaultive behaviour in institutions as well as violent behaviour in the community following hospital discharge.

The NAS-PI is an excellent way to assess anger reactivity, anger suppression and change in anger disposition.