Hope, Laughter, and Humor in Residents and Staff at an Assisted Living Facility

Possessing hope and utilizing laughter and humor to cope with lifeʹs stressors and losses are especially important to elderly people as they experience a decline in their independence. In this study, hope levels and laughter and humor experiences of 24 elderly residents (ages 69 to 96 years) and 21 staff at an assisted living facility were assessed and compared. Hope was defined as a two-factor cognitive construct that involves (a) Pathways, an individualʹs ability to set goals and devise multiple plans to reach them, and (b) Agency, an individualʹs inner determination to implement these plans and overcome obstacles to the goals. Both residents and staff had high total Hope and Pathways scores, but residentsʹ Agency scores were significantly higher than staffʹs. Residents and staff reported numerous benefits from humor and laughing, but differences arose between the two groups about the sources and frequency of humor and laughter. Differences were found between more-hopeful and less-hopeful respondents in regards to sources of laughter, benefits of laughing and playing more, and the last time they laughed. Implications for mental health counselors are discussed.