The dark side of instruction: Teacher anger as classroom norm violations

Based on norm violation theory, we examined students' reactions to teachers' normative and nonnormative expressions of anger. College students (N = 301) judged the appropriateness and intensity of teachers' anger in the classroom for four modes of expression: Distributive Aggression, Passive Aggression, Integrative Assertion, and Nonassertive Denial. Students rated both types of aggressive expressions as highly intense and inappropriate (or nonnormative), but assertive displays as appropriate and less intense. Additionally, aggressive expressions were negatively related to students' affect, whereas assertive expressions were positively related to affect. Findings extend norm violation theory by identifying how teacher anger should be expressed and when during the semester anger is more likely to be perceived as inappropriate. Moreover, this study illustrates how normative violations of anger are associated with negative evaluations of the teacher and course.