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Happiness and Humor Group Promotes Life Satisfaction for Senior Center Participants

Happiness and Humor Group Promotes Life Satisfaction for Senior Center Participants. By: Susan I. Mathieu Presentation by: Alexandra Basciano. Introduction. Proquest Important to have humor in your life Makes you happy. Loneliness. Elderly people get lonely often

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Happiness and Humor Group Promotes Life Satisfaction for Senior Center Participants

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  1. Happiness and Humor Group Promotes Life Satisfaction for Senior Center Participants By: Susan I. Mathieu Presentation by: Alexandra Basciano

  2. Introduction • Proquest • Important to have humor in your life • Makes you happy

  3. Loneliness • Elderly people get lonely often • Research proves that loneliness leads to stress and depression which have a negative impact on physical health and healthy aging • TR programs

  4. The Program: The Happiness and Humor Group • 1x week for 10 weeks @ a California senior center • Goal: To improve the lives of participants by increasing their satisfaction of their present living status • 2 Core Elements: Kindness & Social interaction

  5. Physiology of Humor • Humor and Laughter: • Positive effect on aging, satisfaction, & quality of life • Physiological and psychological effects on the body similar to the health benefits of aerobic exercise • Improve immune system, heart functioning, & mental health • Can remove neg. effects of stress

  6. Funny videos • Increases body’s level of IgA • Decreases requests of pain meds • You Can Sing It - Clips - South Park Studios - Flash Player Installation

  7. Social Interaction • Disengagement • Group Psychotherapy • Group Dynamics

  8. Participants • 8 men 9 women ages 65-89 yrs old • Recruited through a poster which said: “How to get along with difficult people, how laughter brings one peace, and learn the art of relaxation”

  9. The Happiness & Humor Program • Each session addressed factors contributing to happiness and life satisfaction • Short lectures • Interactive activities to facilitate group discussion • Jokes* • Playful props such as whistles and candies

  10. Sessions • 1. Candy shows personality • 2. Lighten your load • 3. Importance of exercise, nutrition, recreation, & attitude to living a happy healthy life

  11. Sessions • Nutrition • Funny videos of stand up comedians such as Ellen DeGeneres • Prescription of laughter • 10th session each participant received a certificate of achievement

  12. Another funny video  • YouTube - Greatest freak out ever (ORIGINAL VIDEO) • hahahahahahahhahahaha

  13. Impact • Assessed by Lohman’s Life Satisfaction Scale (LSS) • Participants rate themselves on 32 item scale, higher the score greater the participants perceived satisfaction w/ life • Certified recreation therapist administered the LSS before and after the program

  14. Results • LSS scores improved significantly • Comments by participants also confirmed these results

  15. So what? • Humor and laughter do promote life satisfaction • More frequent sessions would be beneficial • Family support could be added in as well • More centers should offer these types of programs!

  16. … The End!!

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