NEW YORK (Reuters Life!) – Furious about an unkind comment? Angry about a social snub? Say a prayer, even if you’re not religious.

New research from American and Dutch scientists shows praying can help ease anger, lower aggression and lessen the impact of provocation.

“People often turn to prayer when they’re feeling negative emotions, including anger,” said Brad Bushman, a professor of communications and psychology at Ohio State University and a co-author of the study.

“We found that prayer really can help people cope with their anger, probably by helping them change how they view the events that angered them and helping them take it less personally.”

In research published online in the Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, Bushman and his colleagues found that prayer helped to control anger regardless of the person’s religious affiliation, or if they attended church or prayed regularly.

In the first study they asked 53 U.S. college students to complete a questionnaire that measured levels of emotions such as anger, depression, tension, fatigue and vigor and then put them in a situation that could elicit an angry response.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110323/lf_nm_life/us_anger_prayer