IMPACT OF HUMOR THERAPY ON STRESS MANAGEMENT AMONG ELDERLY RESIDING IN SELECTED OLD AGE HOMES, BELAGAVI.

Stress is a natural human response to challenges or threats that can cause physical and emotional tension. Stress is a serious mental health issue that affects a significant number of the senior population. The aim of the study was to assess the “Impact of Humor Therapy on stress management among elderly residing in selected old age homes, Belagavi.” A pre-experimental, one-group, pre-test–post-test research design was employed. The sample was selected by non-probability convenient sampling technique (n=60) and pre-existing level of stress among the elderly were assessed by standardised "Perceived stress scale". After pre-test Humor therapy was practiced with elderly people. After the completion of all humor therapy sessions, a one-week gap was given before conducting a post-test to assess the level of stress among the elderly people. The majority of individuals (88.3%) reported moderate stress during the pre-test, followed by high stress (8.3%) and low stress (3.3%). However, a startling 81.7% of subjects indicated low stress level and 18.3% expressed moderate stress level and none of the participants reported high stress on the post-test. The pre-test median score was 23 ± 4.0, and the post-test median score significantly decreased to 12 ± 2.0 (p < 0.05), indicating that the intervention was successful in lowering participant’s stress levels. The above findings revealed that Humor therapy is beneficial in lowering stress levels among the elderly population. Thus, we can conclude that Humor therapy is beneficial for stress relief.