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 You Can Sing It - Clips - South Park Studios - Flash Player Installation 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” “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  10 th session each participant received a certificate of achievement

12. Another funny video Another funny video  YouTube - Greatest freak out ever (ORIGINAL VIDEO) YouTube - Greatest freak out ever (ORIGINAL 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!!