Effect of Laughter Therapy on Depression Level in Elderly in a Nursing Home, North Sumatra, Indonesia

Abstract

Background: Depression level among elderly remains high in Indonesia. One of efforts to decrease depression is laughter therapy, which is assumed able to lower depression.Objective: This study aimed to examine the effect of laughter therapy on depression level in elderly at Nursing Home of Binjai Integrated Social Service Unit for the Elderly, North Sumatra, Indonesia.Methods: This was a quasi-experimental study with pretest posttest with control group design. Forty-two participants were selected using a purposive sampling, with twenty-one participants were randomly assigned in each group. An experimental group received one-hour laughter therapy for 3 times a week in 4 weeks, and a control group received usual care. Depression was measured using Geriatric Depression Scale-15. Data were collected from April to June 2018. Independent and dependent t-test were used for data analysis.Results: Findings revealed that the level of depression in elderly significantly decreased in the experimental group (p<.05), but there was no significant change of it in the control group (p=.648). Between the two groups, there was a significant difference in depression level in elderly (p<.05).Conclusion: Laughter therapy could reduce depression among elderly. Therefore, this therapy can be used as one of interventions in nursing practice, especially at nursing homes.

Autobiographical Memory, Gratitude, Forgiveness and Sense of Humor: An Intervention in Older Adults

“…Wellenzohn et al (2016) showed that practicing a sense of humor decreases depression and increases levels of happiness. In the same direction, the studies of Van der Wal and Wok (2019), and Siregar and Gultom (2019) showed that sense of humor reduces depression, anxiety and stress, while Wu et al (2019), andZhao et al (2019) found that a sense of humor leads to increased satisfaction with life and positive affect. One of the greatest contributions of present study was that effects produced by the program persisted over time.…”

Peer Support Group, Terapi Tawa dan Pemberian Monyitmadu terhadap Depresi Lansia

“…Sejalan dengan penelitian (Nurwela Sri et al, 2015) menunjukkan tingkat depresi sebelum dilakukan intervensi pada kelompok perlakuan sebagian besar mengalami tingkat depresi ringan sebanyak 13 (68,4%) responden, setelah perlakuan sebagian besar tidak mengalami depresi sebanyak 16 (84,2%) dengan (p = 0,000), artinya ada perbedaan tingkat depresi pada lansia sebelum dan sesudah diberikan terapi tertawa. Penelitian (Siregar & Gultom, 2019) juga menunjukkan bahwa terapi tawa pada kelompok eksperimen yang memiliki efek signifikan terhadap depresi (p<.05), Selain itu juga terdapat perbedaan bermakna rerata skor depresi partisipan antara kelompok eksperimen dan kelompok kontrol setelah diberikan intervensi (t = -4.146, p< .05), dengan rerata skor depresi kelompok eksperimen dan kelompok kontrol adalah 6,48 (SD=1,477) dan 8,92 (SD=1,180), hal ini menunjukkan bahwa tingkat depresi pada peserta kelompok eksperimen setelah menerima terapi tawa lebih rendah daripada mereka yang tidak menerimanya. Penelitian yang sama juga menunjukkan bahwa terapi humor dapat efektif dalam memperbaiki gejala depresi pada pasien usia lanjut dengan nilai (p-valeu < 0,05).…”