No full-text available
To read the full-text of this research,
you can request a copy directly from the authors.
"Lachen ist gesund, das ist kein Witz!" - Eine Einführung in den Zusammenhang zwischen Humor und Gesundheit
ResearchGate has not been able to resolve any citations for this publication.
Background
Pain is common in children receiving medical procedures, and there is a lack of adequate awareness and management. In addition, children who undergo medical procedures involving pain may also experience stress, crying and prolonged hospitalisation. Clown intervention is a promising nonpharmacological intervention. However, studies on the effectiveness of clown intervention in pain management have reported conflicting findings.
Objective
To evaluate the effectiveness of clown intervention in relieving pain in children, as well as its effects on cortisol levels, crying duration and length of hospital stay.
Design
Systematic review and meta‐analysis of randomised controlled studies.
Data sources
PubMed, Web of Science (SCI), Embase, PsycINFO, the Cochrane Library, Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Weipu (VIP), Wanfang Data and SinoMed were systematically searched from inception date to December 31, 2020.
Review methods
Two reviewers independently used the Cochrane risk of bias tool to assess the risk of bias of the included studies. Meta‐analysis was conducted when data were available, otherwise, a narrative description was provided. Data were analysed using Review Manager 5.3. The review process is reported according to PRISMA.
Results
Nine studies including 852 children met the inclusion criteria. The results showed that compared with standard care, clown intervention was beneficial for relieving pain. Further subgroup analysis showed that it was more effective with children aged 2–7 years. The duration of crying after the procedure and the length of stay were shortened, but there was no significant difference in cortisol levels.
Conclusion
Clown intervention may be a promising way to relieve acute pain in children, especially those aged 2–7 years. It also seems to shorten the duration of crying and the length of hospital stays, but the effect on cortisol levels is still uncertain. More high‐quality randomised controlled trials are needed to confirm these results and take into account different age groups, cultural backgrounds and specific populations.
The media increasingly speak of a care crisis. Systematic support is needed to prepare nursing apprentices for the high demands of their profession and to reduce the number of nurses who finally quit. Particularly in stressful jobs like nursing, humor as a coping strategy can have a beneficial effect on perceived stress and overall work enjoyment. In this study, we used a humor intervention among nursing staff in training and evaluated its effects on humor, stress, work enjoyment, the meaningfulness of work, and flow experience. The sample consists of 104 nurses in training. The intervention group received a 3-h humor intervention, while the control group received no intervention. Positive and negative affect were measured immediately before and after the intervention. Humor was measured before the intervention (t0) and again 6 months later (t1); at t1, we again measured humor and also stress, work meaningfulness, work enjoyment, and flow experience. Our analyses showed a beneficial change in positive and negative affect right after the intervention. By means of repeated measures ANOVA we could further confirm an effect of the intervention on reported humor 6 months later. Humor mediated positive effects of the humor intervention on perceived meaningfulness of work, work enjoyment, and on the frequency of flow at work. Also, we found a significant negative relationship between humor and stress measured at t1. The results of this study confirm the effectiveness of humor interventions in promoting humor, and, through this, the meaningfulness of work, work enjoyment, and the frequency of flow experience. Implications of the use of humor interventions in the nursing profession are discussed.
Background: The central goal of palliative care is to optimize the quality of life of patients suffering from life-limiting illnesses, which includes psychosocial and spiritual wellbeing. Research has demonstrated positive correlations between humor and laughter with life satisfaction and other aspects of wellbeing, and physiological symptoms can be improved by humorous stimuli.
Objectives: The aim of this review is to evaluate humor interventions and assessments that have been applied in palliative care and to derive implications for future research.
Methods: A systematic review of four databases identified 13 included studies. Criteria for inclusion were peer-reviewed English-language studies on humor interventions or assessments in a palliative care context.
Results: Two studies on humor interventions and 11 studies on humor assessment were included in the systematic review. Most of these studies were about the patients' perspective on humor in palliative care. Findings showed that humor had a positive effect on patients, their relatives, and professional caregivers. Humor was widely perceived as appropriate and seen as beneficial to care in all studies.
Conclusions: Even though humor interventions seem to be potentially useful in palliative care, descriptions evaluating their use are scarce. Overall, research on humor assessment and interventions in palliative care has remained limited in terms of quantity and quality. More research activities are needed to build a solid empirical foundation for implementing humor and laughter as part of regular palliative care activities.
All published research examining effects of humor and laughter on physical health is reviewed. Potential causal mechanisms and methodological issues are discussed. Laboratory experiments have shown some effects of exposure to comedy on several components of immunity, although the findings are inconsistent and most of the studies have methodological problems. There is also some evidence of analgesic effects of exposure to comedy, although similar findings are obtained with negative emotions. Few significant correlations have been found between trait measures of humor and immunity, pain tolerance, or self-reported illness symptoms. There is also little evidence of stress-moderating effects of humor on physical health variables and no evidence of increased longevity with greater humor. More rigorous and theoretically informed research is needed before firm conclusions can be drawn about possible health benefits of humor and laughter.
Conversation analysis is employed to examine transcribed excerpts drawn from a subsample of 75 naturally occurring and video recorded interviews between cancer patients and 30 doctors. Close examination is provided of how cancer patients initiate, and doctors respond, to laughter and humor during oncology interviews. Interactions demonstrate that communication about the disease "cancer" shares qualities similar to other medical areas (e.g., primary care): the tendency for patients to initiate laughter or humor to address troubling and challenging circumstances; and that during moments when patients address personal matters, doctors are not invited and do not reciprocate with shared laughter and humor. Prominent in talk about cancer are various precarious circumstances, awkward and delicate moments mirroring the lived experiences of cancer patients (e.g., when patients attempt to minimize fears, justify that they are well when threatened with sickness, claim normality in the midst of chronic conditions, and take stances that weight loss and gain are not problematic). These examples provide a compelling case that routine cancer care involves many poignant situations managed through laughter and humor. Implications are raised for how quality care might be improved through grounded understandings of laughter, humor, and cancer.
Objective
Compare the non-verbal communication of children before and during interaction with clowns and compare their vital signs before and after this interaction.
Methods
Uncontrolled, intervention, cross-sectional, quantitative study with children admitted to a public university hospital. The intervention was performed by medical students dressed as clowns and included magic tricks, juggling, singing with the children, making soap bubbles and comedic performances. The intervention time was 20min. Vital signs were assessed in two measurements with an interval of 1min immediately before and after the interaction. Non-verbal communication was observed before and during the interaction using the Non-Verbal Communication Template Chart, a tool in which non-verbal behaviors are assessed as effective or ineffective in the interactions.
Results
The sample consisted of 41 children with a mean age of 7.6±2.7 years; most were aged 7-11 years (n=23; 56%) and were males (n=26; 63.4%). There was a statistically significant difference in systolic and diastolic blood pressure, pain and non-verbal behavior of children with the intervention. Systolic and diastolic blood pressure increased and pain scales showed decreased scores.
Conclusions
The playful interaction with clowns can be a therapeutic resource to minimize the effects of the stressing environment during the intervention, improve the children's emotional state and reduce the perception of pain.
Conclusion:
The presence of clowns in the ED before and during painful procedures was effective in reducing children's anxiety. What is Known: • Anxiety and fear caused by medical procedures exacerbate children's pain and may interfere with the procedure. • To reduce anxiety, fear, and pain and to facilitate patient's evaluation, different non-pharmacological approaches have been proposed and positive effects of laughter and humor have been reported. What is New: • The presence of clowns in the waiting room and in the ED during medical evaluation and painful procedures helps to reduce children's anxiety.
This article considers how humor may fit within a resiliency perspective. Following a brief overview of resiliency approaches, including selected work on positive psychology, several lines of research that provide initial support for resiliency effects of humor on stress and trauma are highlighted. This work ranges from anecdotal case report descriptions of facilitative humor use in extremely traumatic situations (e.g., paramedics), to more rigorous studies examining moderator and cognitive appraisal effects of humor on psychological well-being. Although these initial findings are quite promising, it is noted that some resiliency-based approaches to humor are limited by a sole focus on humor as a positive attribute. As such, a humor styles model, which acknowledges both the adaptive and maladaptive aspects of humor, is used to describe broader avenues of research within a resiliency perspective. This process orientation to humor use also highlights the importance of both negative and positive emotion regulation in modulating coping and growth. This model is then used to comment on limitations and potential extensions of current resiliency perspectives on humor, including programs and exercises that attempt to train humor use in a facilitative manner.
Although the use of humour in health care has been well investigated, the humorous interactions between nurse and patient are not. This research project investigated the humorous interaction between patient and nurse.
This study aimed to explore four registered nurses' experiences of the use of humour in relation to gender differences and how humour influences the therapeutic relationship.
Narrative inquiry was the chosen methodology as it allows participants to include what is important to participants and highlights how experiences shape social interaction and understanding of events.
Registered nurses were recruited from a regional hospital. Interested participants contacted the researchers and shared their stories. Data were analysed using a narrative enquiry methodology.
The study indicated gender differences in the way humour is used by patients. For female patients, humour is often instant and situation bound and used as a reassuring discourse for others, whereas male patients' humour through stories and anecdotes is designed to establish a sense of equalising power between the patient and nurse.
Objective:
The primary aim of this pilot study was to evaluate the possible therapeutic effects of a 10-session humor intervention program in improving rehabilitative outcomes and the effects of the intervention on patients' sense of humor among patients with schizophrenia.
Method:
Thirty subjects were randomly assigned into either the intervention (humor skill training) group (n = 15) or the control (doing handwork) group (n = 15). The results were analyzed using descriptive statistics, t-tests and ANOVA.
Findings:
Repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) tests were conducted to examine the differences across conditions and time. A group by time interaction effect was observed on all of the outcomes, except positive symptoms of PANSS. The time main effect was also significant on the total score (p < 0.005) and the negative symptoms score (p < 0.001) of the PANSS.
Conclusions:
The implementation of humor skill training in a mental health service can improve rehabilitative outcomes and sense of humor for schizophrenia patients who were in the rehabilitation stage.
The primary goal of this project is to provide a summary of extant research regarding humor in the classroom, with an emphasis on identifying and explaining inconsistencies in research findings and offering new directions for future studies in this area. First, the definitions, functions, and main theories of humor are reviewed. Next, the paper explains types of humorous instructional communication. Third, the empirical findings of both the source and receiver perspectives are reviewed. Finally, this paper concludes with advice for educators and suggests potential future research directions for scholars.
Abstract In today's healthcare system where technical instruments and test results are used to implement care it is easy to lose the human aspect of nursing. Personal interaction can get lost and nurses sometimes miss humorous attempts made by patients. Humour is a very personal concept, what one person thinks is funny does not necessarily make another person smile, or might even be hurtful. Humour is an important communication tool for patients as it humanises the nurses, creates a bond and opens communication lines. Humour has the potential to change the hospital experience for patients. The aim of this paper is to highlight the importance of humour in the therapeutic relationship between patient and nurse. Semi-structured interviews were held with four registered nurses and narrative inquiry was used to analyse and present the findings because of its ability to capture human interaction and experience.
The present study aims to conduct a systematic review of the literature by checking the impact of positive emotion in the treatment of depression and on the use of strategies of positive psychology which involves positive emotion to treat and reduce symptoms of depression. For this purpose, we conducted searches in databases ISI Web of Knowledge, PsycINFO and PubMed and found a total of 3400 studies. After inclusion application and exclusion criteria, 28 articles remained, presented and discussed in this study. The studies have important relations between humor and positive emotion as well as a significant improvement in signs and symptoms of depression using differents strategies of positive psychology. Another relevant aspect is the preventative character of the proposed interventions by positive psychology by the fact that increase well-being and produce elements such as resilience and coping resources that reduce the recurrent relapses in the treatment of depression. The strategies of positive psychology, such as increasing positive emotions, develop personal strengths: seeking direction, meaning and engagement for the day-to-day life of the patients, appear as potentially tools for the prophylaxis and treatment of depression, helping to reduce signs and symptoms as well as for prevention of relapses.
This study tested the effect of humor in one particular type of print advertisement: the preventive health ads for three topics (alcohol, tobacco, obesity). Previous research using commercial ads demonstrated that individuals' attention is spontaneously attracted by humor, leading to a memory advantage for humorous information over nonhumorous information. Two experiments investigated whether the positive effect of humor can occur with preventive health ads. In Experiment 1, participants observed humorous and nonhumorous health ads while their viewing times were recorded. In Experiment 2, to compare humorous and nonhumorous ads, the memory of health messages was assessed through a recognition task and a convincing score was collected. The results confirmed that, compared to nonhumorous health ads, those using humor received prolonged attention, were judged more convincing, and their messages were better recognized. Overall, these findings suggest that humor can be of use in preventive health communication.
This article provides an introduction to this special issue on sense of humor and physical health. It begins by discussing several different potential mechanisms by which humor and laughter may benefit health. Each of these mechanisms has different implications for the conceptualization and measurement of humor or laughter, choice of research designs, and potential therapeutic applications. A brief overview of the articles in this special issue is provided, and their contributions are discussed in the context of past research on humor and health. The results of these studies point to some avenues of research that are not likely to be productive, as well as some potentially fruitful directions for future research. Remaining questions are discussed, and suggestions are given for future research in this area.
Three studies, conducted with 143 undergraduates, are reported that investigated the hypothesis, long held by theorists, therapists, and laypersons alike, that a sense of humor reduces the deleterious impact of stressful experiences. In each study a negative-life-events checklist was used to predict stress scores on a measure of mood disturbance. These studies made use of different measures of Ss' sense of humor, including 4 self-report scales and 2 behavioral assessments of Ss' ability to produce humor under nonstressful and mildly stressful conditions. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses revealed that 5 of the 6 humor measures produced a significant moderating effect on the relation between negative life events and mood disturbance. Ss with low humor scores obtained higher correlations between these 2 variables than did those with high humor scores. Results provide initial evidence for the stress-buffering role of humor. (42 ref)
To report an analysis of the concept of humour in adult cancer care.
Humour is a form of communication which is present in the adult cancer setting. Numerous studies show the multi-dimensional value of humour in cancer care. A clear conceptual understanding, however, of what it represents is lacking.
Walker and Avant's framework was used to guide this concept analysis.
Literature searches included bibliographic databases, internet, and manual searches.
Literature published from 1990 to the present was reviewed. Thematic analysis was carried out to identify critical attributes and antecedents.
Based on the analysis, a definition of humour in adult cancer nursing is proposed. Humour is a subjective emotional response, resulting from the recognition and expression of incongruities of a comic, absurd and impulsive situation, remark, character, or action, which enhances feelings of closeness or togetherness when shared in the context of trust between the patient and nurse and may be used as a coping mechanism in a stressful situation such as the adult cancer care setting.
The analysis provides an understanding of the concept of humour in the adult cancer setting and includes a theoretical illustration of its critical attributes. This concept analysis provides a forum for discussion with reference to the use of humour in adult cancer nursing care. Further exploration is recommended to determine the meaning of humour and its nature across different care settings.
This study tests a cognitive and an affective model based on extant explanations of the effects of humor along with a new
affective–cognitive model. Results are derived from meta-analytic data and show how previous explanations may be integrated
in order to explain how humor in advertising works. Humor reduces negative cognitions related to the ad because it serves
as a distraction from counter-argumentation. In order to maintain positive affect, humor reduces cognitive efforts, in particular
those related to brand-related cognitions, thus supporting a vampire effect; that is, humor distracts from processing central
benefits of the brand. Humor exerts its strongest impact along affective paths, supporting the dominance of affective mechanisms.
Affect and cognition do interplay in line with a congruency effect where the impact of positive affect on attitudes towards
the ad is mediated by positive cognitions. The models differ when they are performed based on data from studies using either
real or fictitious stimuli. Depending on the type of stimuli, slight changes occur that can be explained by the lack or existence
of prior brand experience. Overall, the integration of affect and cognitions into one model provides a better explanation
than the previous solely cognitive or solely affective models.
KeywordsHumor–Advertising–Meta-analysis–Structural equation modeling
Background:
Humour is a complex, dynamic phenomenon that mainly occurs in social situations between two or more people. Most humour research reviews rehearsed as opposed to spontaneous humour and rarely review the patients' perspective.
Aim:
We explore patients' perspectives on the use of humour in health care. We discuss the asymmetrical and divergent humour use between patients and clinical nurse specialists and posit nurses' approaches to risk as a contributing factor.
Design:
A constructivist grounded theory collated researcher-provoked (interviews, observation, field notes, pre-and post-interaction audio diaries) and non-researcher-provoked data (naturally occurring interactions) over 18 months. This paper is based upon four patient focus groups. A constant comparison approach to data collection and analyses was applied using interpretative and illustrative frameworks that balanced what was 'known' and 'unknown' about humour.
Setting and participants:
Patients were recruited from four patient-peer groups. Three audio-taped (n = 20) and one observed focus group interactions (n = 12) were undertaken at the groups' regular meeting places.
Results:
Patients hold a broad appreciation of humour and recognize it as being evident in subtle and nuanced forms. Patients wish health-care staff to initiate and reciprocate humour.
Conclusion:
A chasm exists between what patients apparently want with regard to humour use in health-care interactions and what actually transpires. Initiating humour involves risk, and risk-taking requires a degree of self-esteem and confidence. Nurses are, arguably, risk-averse and have low self-esteem. Future research could review confidence and self-esteem markers with observed humour use in nurses and their interactions across a range of specialities.
This is the final article in a four part series reviewing the influence of humor and laughter on physiological and psychological well-being. This final article reviews the evidence for the effect of sense of humor, exposure to a humor stimulus and laughter on various immune system components, with a focus on the effects of laughter on natural killer cell cytotoxicity.
This volume brings together the current approaches to the definition and measurement of the sense of humor and its components. It provides both an overview of historic approaches and a compendium of current humor inventories and humor traits that have been studied. Presenting the only available overview and analysis of this significant facet of human behavior, this volume will interest researchers from the fields of humor and personality studies as well as those interested in the clinical or abstract implications of the subject. © 1998 by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co., D-10785 Berlin. All rights reserved.
Although advertisers have employed humor extensively as the motivational basis for their appeals, relatively little is known about the persuasive effect of humor. This article assesses the role of humor in persuasion and suggests an approach to future humor research.
Background Hospital stays and medical interventions are accompanied by worries and anxiety in children and parents. Recent studies show that hospital clowns may reduce anxiety and enhance well-being. However, so far studies are based solely on subjective measures and clowns are usually not integrated in medical routine. With this pilot study, we aim to provide both psychological and physiological evidence of positive effects of clowns’ interventions in hospitalized children.
Patients/Method In a consecutive randomized intervention-control group design with 31 children aged 4 to 13 years, 17 patients were accompanied by a clown prior to surgery or during ward round (intervention group) and 14 were not (control group). Saliva samples for oxytocin measurement were taken from all patients before hospitalization (T1) and prior to surgery or after ward round (T2). Self- and parents-reports were obtained at T1, T2 as well as at time of discharge from hospital (T3) regarding children’s anxiety (STAI), worries and well-being. Clowns evaluated their success in cheering up the child. Health professionals were asked for their acceptance of clowns in hospitals.
Results Children in the intervention group had lower anxiety ratings and a higher oxytocin concentration at T2 as compared with T1; the control group showed no changes. Parents rated the well-being of their children higher if their child had clown’s contact and were more willing to recommend the hospital. The staff judged the clowns as helpful for patients.
Discussion Consistent psychological and physiological results suggest the positive impact of a clown’s intervention in hospitalized children.
A survey was conducted to examine the frequency, acceptability, and functions of humor between hospice palliative care volunteers and their patients, from the volunteers' perspective. Thirty-two volunteers completed the survey, which was developed for this study. The results revealed that most patients and volunteers initiated humor either "often" or "sometimes" in their interactions. Over half of the volunteers considered humor to be either "very important" or "extremely important" in their interactions with patients (42% and 13%, respectively), with the patient being the determining factor as to whether and when it is appropriate or not (ie, volunteers take their lead from their patients). Volunteers mentioned a number of functions that humor serves within their patient interactions (eg, to relieve tension, to foster relationships/connections, and to distract). Laughter and humor fulfills one of the main goals of hospice palliative care, namely, improving patients' overall quality of life.
Background:
Associations between the sense of humor and survival in relation to specific diseases has so far never been studied.
Methods:
We conducted a 15-year follow-up study of 53,556 participants in the population-based Nord-Trøndelag Health Study, Norway. Cognitive, social, and affective components of the sense of humor were obtained, and associations with all-cause mortality, mortality due to cardiovascular diseases (CVD), infections, cancer, and chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases were estimated by hazard ratios (HRs).
Results:
After multivariate adjustments, high scores on the cognitive component of the sense of humor were significantly associated with lower all-cause mortality in women (HR = 0.52, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.33-0.81), but not in men (HR = 0.88, 95% CI = 0.59-1.32). Mortality due to CVD was significantly lower in women with high scores on the cognitive component (HR = 0.27, 95% CI = 0.15-0.47), and so was mortality due to infections both in men (HR = 0.26, 95% CI = 0.09-0.74) and women (HR = 0.17, 95% CI = 0.04-0.76). The social and affective components of the sense of humor were not associated with mortality. In the total population, the positive association between the cognitive component of sense of humor and survival was present until the age of 85 years.
Conclusions:
The cognitive component of the sense of humor is positively associated with survival from mortality related to CVD and infections in women and with infection-related mortality in men. The findings indicate that sense of humor is a health-protecting cognitive coping resource.
Introduction:
The individual implications of major burns are likely to affect the full spectrum of patients' physical, emotional, psychological, social, environmental, spiritual and vocational health. Yet, not all of the post-burn health implications are inevitably negative. Utilizing a qualitative approach, this heuristic phenomenological study explores the experiences and perceptions early (ages 18-35) and midlife (ages 36-64) adults providing insight for how participants perceived their burns in relationship to their post-burn health.
Methods:
Participants were interviewed using semi-structured interview questions framed around seven domains of health. Interview recordings were transcribed verbatim then coded line by line, identifying dominant categories related to health. Categories were analyzed identifying shared themes among the study sample.
Results:
Participants were Caucasian, seven males and one female. Mean age at time of interviews was 54.38 and 42.38 at time of burns. Mean time since burns occurred was 9.38 years with a minimum of (20%) total body surface area (TBSA) burns. Qualitative content analysis rendered three emergent health-related categories and associated themes that represented shared meanings within the participant sample. The category of "Physical Health" reflected the theme physical limitations, pain and sensitivity to temperature. Within the category of "Intellectual Health" were themes of insight, goal setting and self-efficacy, optimism and humor and within "Emotional Health" were the themes empathy and gratitude.
Conclusions:
By exploring subjective experiences and perceptions of health shared through dialog with experienced burned persons, there are opportunities to develop a more complete picture of how holistic health may be affected by major burns that in turn could support future long-term rehabilitative trajectories of early and midlife adult burn patients.
Research on humor is carried out in a number of areas in psychology, including the cognitive (What makes something funny?), developmental (when do we develop a sense of humor?), and social (how is humor used in social interactions?) Although there is enough interest in the area to have spawned several societies, the literature is dispersed in a number of primary journals, with little in the way of integration of the material into a book. Dr. Martin is one of the best known researchers in the area, and his research goes across subdisciplines in psychology to be of wide appeal. This is a singly authored monograph that provides in one source, a summary of information researchers might wish to know about research into the psychology of humor. The material is scholarly, but the presentation of the material is suitable for people unfamiliar with the subject-making the book suitable for use for advanced undergraduate and graduate level courses on the psychology of humor-which have not had a textbook source.
Context:
With aging, the detrimental effects of stress can impair a person's ability to learn and sustain memory. Humor and its associated mirthful laughter can reduce stress by decreasing the hormone cortisol. Chronic release of cortisol can damage hippocampal neurons, leading to impairment of learning and memory. Objectives • The study intended to examine the effect of watching a humor video on short-term memory in older adults. Design • The research team designed a randomized, controlled trial.
Setting:
The study took place at Loma Linda University in Loma Linda, CA, USA.
Participants:
The study included 30 participants: 20 normal, healthy, older adults-11 males and 9 females-and 10 older adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM)-6 males and 4 females.
Intervention:
The study included 2 intervention groups of older adults who viewed humorous videos, a healthy group (humor group), aged 69.9 ± 3.7 y, and the diabetic group, aged 67.1 ± 3.8 y. Each participant selected 1 of 2 humorous videos that were 20 min in length, either a Red Skeleton comedy or a montage of America's Funniest Home Videos. The control group, aged 68.7 ± 5.5 y, did not watch a humor video and sat in quiescence.
Outcome measures:
A standardized, neuropsychological, memory-assessment tool, the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT), was used to assess the following abilities: (1) learning, (2) recall, and (3) visual recognition. The testing occurred twice, once before (RAVLT1) and once after (RAVLT2) the humorous video for the humor and diabetic groups, and once before (RAVLT1) and once after (RAVLT2) the period of quiescence for the control group. At 5 time points, measurements of salivary cortisol were also obtained. The Kruskal-Wallis test was used to measure significance of the data based on the 3 groups.
Results:
In the humor, diabetic, and control groups, (1) learning ability improved by 38.5%, 33.4%, and 24.0%, respectively (P = .025); (2) delayed recall improved by 43.6%, 48.1%, and 20.3%, respectively (P = .064); and (3) visual recognition increased by 12.6%, 16.7%, and 8.3%, respectively (P = .321). For levels of salivary cortisol, the research team found significant and borderline decreases for the humor group between baseline and (1) post-RAVLT1 (P = .047), (2) postvideo (P = .046), and (3) post-RAVLT2 (P = .062). The diabetic group showed significant decreases between baseline and (1) post-RAVLT1 (P = .047), (2) postvideo (P = .025), and (3) post-RAVLT2 (P = .034). The study found no significant changes for the control group.
Conclusion:
The research findings supported potential clinical and rehabilitative benefits for humor that can be applied to whole-person wellness programs for older adults. The cognitive components-learning ability and delayed recall-become more challenging as individuals age and are essential to older adults for providing a high quality of life: mind, body, and spirit. Because older adults can experience age-related memory deficits, complementary, enjoyable, and beneficial humor therapies should be implemented for them.
We work in a world of traumas and triumphs. Most of the persons we serve come to us out of necessity, struggling with the sequelae of disease and illness or the aftermath of natural or manmade disasters. We bring our expertise and compassion; they bring their bodies, minds, and compromised lives. Our worlds converge around a shared task: identifying and enhancing their capacities for daily living. We pursue problems of movement, perception, cognition, affect, and social capacity within the context of their roles and aspirations. Our contacts may be extensive, but often they are brief and only partially fulfilled. Our patients move on with varying degrees of functional ability – some with determination and buoyancy, others with little confidence that life is actually worth living. We remain, frequently knowing little about the factors that have influenced the outcome of our efforts, in spite of their compelling importance to our patients, our professional viability, and the health care system.
Substantial research has demonstrated that cognitive psychological techniques including distraction can increase pain tolerance. In recent years, there also have been claims that humor and laughter possess unique characteristics for coping with pain and stress. Theoretically, explanations include the release of endorphins, the lowering of tension, as well as the distraction that results from humor. The question is whether humor is more effective than simple distraction. For this purpose humor was contrasted with a repulsive stimulus and a neutral stimulus controlled for interest level, that would also have distraction capabilities but not the unique aspects of humor. Pain tolerance was tested using cold pressor stimulation. Four groups (20 subjects in each) were tested. Three groups were shown a film: (1) a humorous film, (2) a repulsive film, (3) a neutral film. Group 4 was not shown any film. Results indicated that both the humor and repulsive groups showed a significant increase in pain tolerance as compared to the other groups. The repulsive group yielded the largest increase in pain tolerance although not different from the humor group. Except for sex differences, pain ratings did not show any group effects. Discussion focused on the type of distraction that would be meaningful for increasing pain tolerance and on the place of humor in pain control.
Several studies have examined the pedagogical implications and cautions concerning the use of humor in teaching. Humor has been associated with a host of positive physiological and psychological effects. Researchers have identified that educators who use humor in their instruction are more positively rated by their peers and their students; others have suggested that humor may enhance learning. Although much of this evidence has been anecdotal, the present study assesses the impact of curriculum-specific humor on retention and recall, as well as student evaluations of the course and the instructor. The appropriate use of humor in a classroom setting is discussed and cautions against tendentious humor are addressed.
Increasingly, college students are employed in jobs outside of class—and contend with additional stressors as a result—when they attempt to balance work and academic demands. Enacting humorous communication is one productive way to handle such stress. In a college student, the replication of the process of using humor to cope with job stress (i.e., higher humor orientation, HO) was associated with higher ratings of effectiveness, greater self-perceived coping effectiveness, and subsequently with higher job satisfaction. Path analysis demonstrated that, as the transactional theory would predict, students' trait HO influences their job satisfaction through its effect on heightened coping efficacy. Results indicated that, across two very different sample populations, college students and fully employed adults are extremely similar in the process and benefits of using humor to cope.
This study examines the uses of humor among cardiovascular patients to test the associations between humor use, satisfaction with companion relationships, and health during recovery. Self-report data were collected from members of two national support groups for patients recovering from cardiovascular disease. As expected, general humorousness associated with social and psychological well-being. Several specific functions of humor in cardiovascular recovery were identified and linked with health perceptions. Antidote humor increased social and psychological health perceptions, whereas conversation regulation humor and distancing humor were negatively related to perceived social and psychological health. Relationship satisfaction mediated most effects. The findings offer new insight into the variability of humor effects, particularly following cardiovascular treatment.
The purpose of this research was to explore humor from a functional perspective. Twenty‐four functions of humor were derived from prior literature. Items representing these 24 functions were subjected to factor analysis resulting in an 11‐item “Uses of Humor Index.”; Three primary factors emerged from this analysis: positive affect, expressiveness, and negative affect. Initial validation of the Uses of Humor Index was achieved via a peer evaluation, a measure of sense of humor, and assessment of interpersonal competence in naturalistic conversations. The implications of this study for future research concerning the use of humor in social interaction and the influence of humor on perceptions of interpersonal competence are discussed.
Investigated social and personality correlates of humor with college students (241 females and 205 males) and with 27 women, aged 60+ yrs. Ss were tested using the Bem Sex-Role Inventory and measures of social skills/orientation. Findings show that, in the college sample, self-monitoring of expressive behavior and social assertiveness were more important predictors of humor than were general social self-esteem, machiavellianism, masculinity, or femininity for both male and female Ss. Results from the college Ss were partially replicated in the older sample. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Describes the development and initial validation of the Humor Styles Questionnaire, which assesses four dimensions relating to individual differences in uses of humor. These are: relatively benign uses of humor to enhance the self (Self-enhancing) and to enhance one’s relationships with others (Affiliative), use of humor to enhance the self at the expense of others (Aggressive), and use of humor to enhance relationships at the expense of self (Self-defeating). Validation data indicate that the four scales differentially relate in predicted ways to peer ratings of humor styles and to measures of mood (cheerfulness, depression, anxiety, hostility), self-esteem, optimism, well-being, intimacy, and social support. They also relate to all five dimensions of the Five Factor Model and to Agency and Communion. The first two scales overlap with previous humor tests, whereas the Aggressive and Self-defeating humor scales largely tap different dimensions. Males scored higher than females on Aggressive and Self-defeating humor. It is expected that the HSQ will be useful for research on humor and psychological well-being by assessing forms of humor that may be deleterious to health as well as those that are beneficial.
The present paper tries to discover the position of sense of humor in personality space. Several definitions of humor are discussed and a review of studies relating personality and humor is given. The authors' conceptualization of humor is introduced and two studies are presented that tried to locate these humor dimensions within personality space. Our humor tests were given to two samples: these samples also had to answer several multidimensional personality inventories to cover the whole domain of temperament (e.g. EPQ, 16PF, FPI, STPI, SSS-IV and STAI). The Humor scores were correlated with each of the personality variables. The factor compositions of the best predictors for a humor category were used to arrive at a tentative hypothesis of the location of dimensions of humor in personality space. The results show that strong relationships between humor and temperament exist. Some of the hypotheses discussed in the literature were supported, but also some new hypotheses were derived from this study. All in all, the results show that the separation of appreciation of humor into the independent components of funniness and rejection is appropriate since they are located in different parts of the personality space.
Scientific research has shown that laughter may have both preventive and therapeutic values. Health-related benefits of laughter are mainly reported from spontaneous laughter interventional studies. While the human mind can make a distinction between simulated and spontaneous laughter, the human body cannot. Either way health-related outcomes are deemed to be produced. Simulated laughter is thus a relatively under-researched treatment modality with potential health benefits. The aim of this review was firstly to identify, critically evaluate and summarize the laughter literature; secondly to assess to which extent simulated laughter health-related benefits are currently sustained by empirical evidence; and lastly to provide recommendations and future directions for further research.
A comprehensive laughter literature search was performed. A list of inclusion and exclusion criteria was identified. Thematic analysis was applied to summarize laughter health-related outcomes, relationships, and general robustness.
Laughter has shown different physiological and psychological benefits. Adverse effects are very limited and laughter is practically lacking in counter-indications. Despite the limited number of publications, there is some evidence to suggest that simulated laughter has also some effects on certain aspects of health, though further well-designed research is warranted.
Simulated laughter techniques can be easily implemented in traditional clinical settings for health and patient care. Their effective use for therapeutic purposes needs to be learned, practiced, and developed as any other medical strategy. Practical guidelines and further research are needed to help health care professionals (and others) implement laughter techniques in their health care portfolio.
The aim of this review is to identify, critically evaluate, and summarize the laughter literature across a number of fields related to medicine and health care to assess to what extent laughter health-related benefits are currently supported by empirical evidence.
A comprehensive laughter literature search was performed. A thorough search of the gray literature was also undertaken. A list of inclusion and exclusion criteria was identified.
It was necessary to distinguish between humor and laughter to assess health-related outcomes elicited by laughter only.
Thematic analysis was applied to summarize laughter health-related outcomes, relationships, and general robustness.
Laughter has shown physiological, psychological, social, spiritual, and quality-of-life benefits. Adverse effects are very limited, and laughter is practically lacking in contraindications. Therapeutic efficacy of laughter is mainly derived from spontaneous laughter (triggered by external stimuli or positive emotions) and self-induced laughter (triggered by oneself at will), both occurring with or without humor. The brain is not able to distinguish between these types; therefore, it is assumed that similar benefits may be achieved with one or the other. Although there is not enough data to demonstrate that laughter is an all-around healing agent, this review concludes that there exists sufficient evidence to suggest that laughter has some positive, quantifiable effects on certain aspects of health. In this era of evidence-based medicine, it would be appropriate for laughter to be used as a complementary/alternative medicine in the prevention and treatment of illnesses, although further well-designed research is warranted.
In contrast to the well-established scientific evidence linking negative emotional states (e.g., depression, anxiety, or anger) to increased risk for cardiovascular disease, much less is known about the association between positive emotional states (e.g., laughter, happiness) and cardiovascular health. We determined the effects of mirthful laughter, elicited by watching comic movies, on endothelial function and central artery compliance. Seventeen apparently healthy adults (23 to 42 years of age) watched 30 minutes of a comedy or a documentary (control) on separate days (crossover design). Heart rate and blood pressure increased significantly while watching the comedy, whereas no such changes were seen while watching the documentary. Ischemia-induced brachial artery flow-mediated vasodilation (by B-mode ultrasound imaging) increased significantly after watching the comedy (17%) and decreased with watching the documentary (-15%). Carotid arterial compliance (by simultaneous application of ultrasound imaging and applanation tonometry) increased (10%) significantly immediately after watching the comedy and returned to baseline 24 hours after the watching, whereas it did not change significantly throughout the documentary condition. Comedy-induced changes in arterial compliance were significantly associated with baseline flow-mediated dilation (r = 0.63). These results suggest that mirthful laughter elicited by comic movies induces beneficial impact on vascular function.
Catecholamines, especially epinephrine, are implicated in causing arrhythmias, hypertension, and recurrence of myocardial infarction (MI). Diminishing or blocking the effect of catecholamines is useful in cardiac rehabilitation. We have shown previously that a single 1-hour viewing of a humorous video attenuates epinephrine production.
We hypothesized that daily participation in viewing humor would diminish catecholamine production and improve cardiac rehabilitation.
Forty-eight diabetic patients who had recently experienced an MI were divided into 2 matched groups and followed for 1 year in their cardiac rehabilitation programs. The experimental humor group was asked to view self-selected humor for 30 minutes daily as an adjunct to the standard cardiac therapy. Blood pressure, urinary and plasma epinephrine and norepinephrine levels, and 24-hour Holter recording were monitored monthly in both experimental humor and control groups.
The patients in the humor group had fewer episodes of arrhythmias, lower blood pressure, lower urinary and plasma epinephrine and norepinephrine levels, less use of nitroglycerin for angina, and a markedly lower incidence of recurrent MI (2/24) than did the control group (10/24).
Humor appears to attenuate catecholamines and MI recurrence and thus may be an effective adjunct in post-MI care.