A Study to the Assess the Effectiveness of Laughter Therapy on Stress among Elderly People Residing in Selected Old Age Home, Ludhiana, Punjab

Abstract

Introduction of the Study: The elderly people are on rise day by day, especially in India, and simultaneously psychosocial problems that elderly people are facing also increasing. The number of people in old age homes is constantly increasing and these people are facing the problems like lack of care, emotional support and economic support from the family. It has been observed that the children are not willing to take care of their parents, they do not want to spend money on them, they are treating their parents as aliens, and they do not want to share an emotional bond with their parents. This unbending situation may lead to stress among elder age. Stress has been found to occur at high rates in old age homes. Laughter therapy lifts the spirits and makes feel happy. It can help to feel more alive and empowered. Hence it is considered as the best way to reduce stress and it also helps to cope with stressful life style. Need of the Study: Laughter therapy is a unique concept which uses laughter as a group exercise, as it is physically oriented technique. Aging and its social-biological process naturally impairs the functions of different body organs and causes progressive disabilities in managing personal affairs and performing social growths. It has been recommended by various experts that the health of elderly people can be promoted by laughter therapy. Therefore, researcher aimed to investigate the effect of laughter therapy on elderly people having stress and residing in old age homes. Objectives: (1) To analyze the stress level among elderly people; (2) To assess the effect of laughter therapy on stress among elderly people; and (3) To find out the association between stress and demographic variables. Operational Definitions: Elderly people—It refers to men and women or both in the age of 60 years and above having stress residing in a selected old age home, Ludhiana, Punjab. Stress—Stress refers to failure of the elderly people residing in selected old age homes, Ludhiana, Punjab to cope with emotional or physical threats of daily living as assessed by using “Modified Perceived Stress Scale.” Laughter therapy—Laughter therapy is a form of therapy which encourages the use of the natural physiological process of laughter therapy to reduce the adrenaline level for reduction of stress. The therapy has eight steps and each session was for a period of 20 minutes per day for 6 days. The following are the steps of laughter therapy: (1) Raise your hand and say Ha Ha Ho Ho (7 times), (2) Laugh freely with and loudly with open mouth (7 times), (3) Laugh without any sound with closed mouth (7 times), (4) Milk shake laughter (7 times), (5) Cellphone laughter (7 times), (6) Argument laughter (7 times), (7) Greeting laughter (7 times), (8) Cooling down.