Motivation and emotion/Book/2024/Humour and stress relief

Humour and stress relief:
How does humour help in relieving stress?

Overview

Humour includes sharing experiences and engaging in activities that cause laughter. Humour can help to create positive experiences and allow for positive affects on the individual's mind and body.

Stress is quite literally the opposite, derived from a state of worry or mental tension, can cause various types of trauma to the brain and body if coping mechanisms are not put into place.

The following chapter explores the foundations of stress including the different forms it can present in. It will give an insight to the possible underlying causes of stress as well as the effects it can have on the human body, mind and behaviour. This chapter will also cover the different forms humour can come in and what it can do for different individual's such as undergraduate students or nurses experiencing stress. Several studies and psychological theories such as the psychological wellbeing scale, fight or flight response, relief theory and laughter therapy will be explored in this chapter to support the fact that humour has a significant correlation on psychological wellbeing.

focus questions

1. What does stress do to the brain?

2. What is Humour?

3. What is the role of humour in stress relief?

4. What are the psychological theories of stress and humour?

Stress

Australian Psychological Society (2022a) say that stress is often described using feelings and emotions such as; anxious, overwhelmed, wound up and tense. Australian Psychological Society (2022b)have explained the types of stress (see figure 1) severities humans can experience including:

Acute stress lasts only a short period of time. If managed appropriately, the mind and body typically bounces back from acute stress effectively. Acute stress may occur in situations such as:

exam periods
starting a new job
being faced with a deadline

Chronic stress occurs over a longer period of time and typically does not or, takes a long time to go away. These situations may include; financial difficulties, chronic health problems or living in an unsafe environment.

Cumulative stress is when a number of stressors are occurring simultaneously or one straight after the other without the individual having the opportunity to fully recover.

Figure 1. Marvin using mobile device to access social media to watch short videos as laughter therapy and stress relief. these videos can also be shared with friends to increase social wellbeing. case study Marvin, a 49 year old man has been working as a manager at his workplace for the past two years, he works late and when he does get home, is still taking phone calls and doing admin work on his computer. He sits on the couch and barely acknowledges his wife and children. Marvin enjoys fishing, golf and driving his boat but does not regularly do any of these leisure activities or exercise. Marvin will eat breakfast and lunch but skip dinner most nights, instead, he drinks at least 7 standard alcoholic drinks before he goes to bed, even if he is left staying up alone. After Marvin finishes with his computer, he will turn to his phone to scroll through funny videos and often laugh to himself (see figure 1). During this time and, the day afterward, Marvin's mood seems to be vibrant and happy.

What does stress do to the brain?

World health organisation (2023) say that stress is a state of worry or mental tension, typically caused by a difficult situation. Stress is a natural response that all humans experience when addressing challenges or threats in our lives. The way we respond to and cope with stress affects our overall wellbeing.

There are many different causes and types of stress, which can cause different reactions, signs, symptoms for each individual.

Figure 2. Stress on the brain can cause it to be overworked, sometimes resulting in physical changes and trauma.

If not managed appropriately or, occurs frequently or over long periods of time, there can be great negative impacts on physical and mental health (see figure 2).

Premier neurology center (2021) have confirmed that if left untreated, on going stress of all kinds can cause the human brain to undergo trauma such as;

impairs memory
kills brain cells
changes the brains structure
physically shrinking the brain
increased susceptibility to mental illness
declines cognitive function

Marvin's main stressor could be assumed to be his occupation, however, this case study does not explore Marvin's home life, past traumas or other potential stressors in detail. The "problem" with Marvin's explained situation is that he is experiencing the following symptoms from constant high levels of stress:

loss of appetite
social withdrawal
increased alcohol consumption

Should Marvin continue to engage in humorous videos on social media, as well as increasing his social interactions with a focus on including humour and jokes with his family and friends, his overall wellbeing would see a positive increase.

What is humour?

Humour is the sharing of experiences to provoke laughter and provide entertainment and amusement. Humour is often used for social bonding, to make light of difficult or stressful situations and to brighten up a social atmosphere by assisting individuals in finding things in common and in "breaking the ice".

People of all ages and cultures are able to respond to humour. For an individual to be amused, smile or laugh at something funny such as a joke or funny event means they have a sense of humour. However, according to Freud not everyone is able to endure a sense of humour.

Humour is deemed as positive experience, contributing to positive physiological affects on the mind and body and, an increase in individual overall wellbeing.

Did you know

The psychological wellbeing scale was developed by Carol Ryff in 1989 and includes six dimensions of wellbeing and optimal functioning.

1. personal growth ( “I am not interested in activities that will expand my horizons”)

2. autonomy (“My decisions are not usually influenced by what everyone else is doing”)

3. self-acceptance (“I feel like many of the people I know have gotten more out of life than I have” )

4. environmental mastery (“I am good at juggling my time so that I can fit everything that needs to get done”)

5. purpose in life ( “I enjoy making plans for the future and working to make them a reality”)

6. positive relations (“I don’t have many people who want to listen when I need to talk”)

What is the role of humour in stress relief?

Stress is a universal human experience as is humour, so why not use one to relieve the other? It is widely known that humour can be used as a coping mechanism to contribute to a higher physical, social and psychological wellbeing.

Mbiriri (2020)^[1] has found that laughter produces endorphin chemicals in the body and brain which makes us feel contentment. This study on laughter therapy has proven to be an effective intervention and coping mechanism that allows our bottled up distress and negative emotions to escape.

Laughter therapy which involves using humour to help relieve pain and enhance mood, physiologically reducing the level of stress hormones and increasing the level of endorphins and strengthens the immune system.

Wulandari & Wardani (2022)^[2] conducted a study on the stress conditions experienced by nurses caused by factors such as overworked and trauma. To reduce the impact that stress has on nurses and therefore on the quality of the nursing care. During their study, Wulandari and Wardani discovered that humour is one of the most effective tools to reduce stress, they emphasise the suggestion for the use of laughter as it is very easy to do and does not require expensive costs.

Ajoke & Sunday (2020) ^[3] have conducted a study in hopes to find the association between having a sense of humour and psychological wellbeing for undergraduate students. This study has concluded that with the exception of autonomy and self acceptance, undergraduates have shown a positive and significant correlation between sense of humour and psychological wellbeing.

What are the psychological theories of stress and humour?

Various studies and theories have been developed to understand both stress and humour individually and the relationship they have with each other. Specifically, the correlation humour has with stress relief.

flight or fight response

The flight or fight response (see figure 3) which can also be referred to as the hyper arousal or acute stress response, was first described in 1915 by Walter Bradford Cannon. It can be defined as a physiological reaction to perceived harmful event, attack or threat to survival.

figure 3. flight or fight response sequence of events. Firstly, a threat is presented then the amygdala and hypothalamus process the signals. The pituitary gland releases cortisol and adrenaline into the body. Physical symptoms start presenting, particularly in the heart and sensory systems.

The individuals perception of threat activates the sympathetic nervous system and, triggers an acute stress response that prepares the body to fight or flee the situation or stimuli.

During the flight or fight response, the pituitary gland releases hormones called cortisol and adrenaline and can cause the following temporary physiological symptoms to present, including an increased:

blood flow
blood pressure
heart rate
blood sugar (glucose)
tunnel vision
shaking
flushed face
hearing loss
slowed digestion
respiration to supply the oxygen necessary
speed of blood clotting function
muscle tension
dilated pupils

After the threat or harmful event has been removed, the brain and body slowly return back to homeostasis.

Although fear and humour seem to be polar opposites, they seem to interact continually throughout our lives. Hye-Knudsen, Kjeldgaard-Christiansen, Boutwell & Clasen (2024). ^[4] explain one of four coping mechanisms as emotion-focused which is attempting to reduce the negative emotions associated with the situation.

They have discovered that fear releases stress hormones that can send our sympathetic system into overdrive, humour involves positive opioids that have an opposite, pleasantly soothing effect on the human body.

This study on the cognitive intersections of humour and fear has also included a real world example of horror films and haunted houses where jump scares are often followed by laughter.

Humour can therefore help reduce the symptoms of flight or fight response as the neurochemistry and physiological effects of humour are antagonistic to fear. Humour help to soothe and calm down, thus natural moments of laughter may help hit a “sweet spot” of recreational fear.

relief theory

Have you ever heard the saying "laughter is the best medicine"? well, relief theory suggests just that, it uses humour as a mechanism to release bottled up emotions or tension through emotional relief. Relief theory is when humour reduces and relieves psychological stress.

One of the main contributors to relief theory is Spencer who has shared that laughter is a homeostatic mechanism as it reduces psychological stress and releases excess nervous energy and tension.

The relief theory is also supported by Freud, who argued that people normally laugh when they reveal their suppressed desires.

Freud expanded on Spencer's ideas that like energy, emotions are being conserved and bottled up and then released naturally through humour and other coping mechanisms as to prevent an explosion.

When anticipating a negative situation, one may experienced heightened arousal which can then be reduced and relieved by experiencing laughter with friends or through entertainment.

Zahoor (2020) ^[5]explores social media and the modernised version of humour it has to offer through texts, photos, videos and memes are free to be created and circulated.

This review focuses on humour post covid-19 and how it can serve as relief therapy because humour is "a coping mechanism that can balance out overwhelming circumstances, neutralise aggression and heal relationships”.

Zahoor has concluded that humour brings people together and has the power to change our perception, that as humans, we have the ability to transform mundane situations into fun and lessen their gravity. When experiencing stress or other unpleasant circumstances, to have a sense of humour is seen as an expression of resilience.

Conclusion

Stress is a natural human experience that can present in a range of forms, emotions and behaviours. Not all stress is negative, some can increase motivation and productiveness and others, however, if left unmanaged, stress an have many negative physiological and psychological impacts on the body and individual wellbeing including; increased blood pressure, muscle tension, memory impairment and changes to the brain structure.

One way to help manage and relieve the negative impacts of stress can be to use coping mechanisms such as humour and amusement. Humour is engaging in laughter and entertainment either alone or in a social setting to increase positive psychological affects on the mind and body.

The relationship between humour and stress relief is essentially that laughter allows our bottled up distress and negative emotions to escape. The neurochemistry and physiological effects of humour are antagonistic to stress and can therefore help to reduce the symptoms.

The various psychological theories and studies that support humour relieving stress and it's symptoms include laughter therapy, relief theory and our flight or fight response.

Humour and laughter can decrease stress hormones, anxiety and depression and increasing the release of positive opioids into our bodies. This chapter can conclude that laughter really is the best medicine.

References

Ajoke, O. O., & Sunday, I. E. (2020). The association between sense of humour and psychological well-being among undergraduates. J Hum Ecol, 71(1-3), 1-7.

Hye-Knudsen, M., Kjeldgaard-Christiansen, J., Boutwell, B. B., & Clasen, M. (2024). First They Scream, Then They Laugh: The Cognitive Intersections of Humor and Fear. Evolutionary Psychology, 22(2). https://doi.org/10.1177/14747049241258355

Mbiriri, M. (2020). Laughter therapy as an intervention to promote psychological well-Being. J. Humanit. Soc. Policy, 6, 2020.

Wulandari, R. A., & Wardani, H. R. (2022). The effect of humour as a stress management for nurses working in hospital: systematic review. D'Nursing and Health journal (DNHJ), 3(1), 55-63.

Zahoor, A. (2020). Linguistic humor in memes to mitigate post COVID-19 severity. Linguistics and Literature Review (LLR).

External links

Healing benefits of laughter (U.S department of veteran affairs)
Laughter therapy (howstuffworks)
Laughter is medicine (informational video)
Make stress your friend (informational video)
Psychological wellbeing scale (positive psychology, 2021)
Signs and symptoms of stress (Mind UK, 2022)
Stress (World Health Organization, 2023)
Types of stress (APS)
6 ways stress affects your brain (Premier Neurology & Wellness Center, 2021)

↑ Mbiriri, M. (2020). Laughter therapy as an intervention to promote psychological well-Being. J. Humanit. Soc. Policy, 6, 2020.
↑ Wulandari, R. A., & Wardani, H. R. (2022). The effect of humour as a stress management for nurses working in hospital: systematic review. D'Nursing and Health journal (DNHJ), 3(1), 55-63.
↑ Ajoke, O. O., & Sunday, I. E. (2020). The association between sense of humour and psychological well-being among undergraduates. J Hum Ecol, 71(1-3), 1-7.
↑ Hye-Knudsen, Marc; Kjeldgaard-Christiansen, Jens; Boutwell, Brian B.; Clasen, Mathias (2024-04). "First They Scream, Then They Laugh: The Cognitive Intersections of Humor and Fear". Evolutionary Psychology 22 (2). doi:10.1177/14747049241258355. ISSN 1474-7049. PMID 38840335. PMC PMC11155347. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/14747049241258355.
↑ Zahoor, A. (2020). Linguistic humor in memes to mitigate post COVID-19 severity. Linguistics and Literature Review (LLR).

[1] Mbiriri, M. (2020). Laughter therapy as an intervention to promote psychological well-Being. J. Humanit. Soc. Policy, 6, 2020.

[2] Wulandari, R. A., & Wardani, H. R. (2022). The effect of humour as a stress management for nurses working in hospital: systematic review. D'Nursing and Health journal (DNHJ), 3(1), 55-63.

[3] Ajoke, O. O., & Sunday, I. E. (2020). The association between sense of humour and psychological well-being among undergraduates. J Hum Ecol, 71(1-3), 1-7.

[4] Hye-Knudsen, Marc; Kjeldgaard-Christiansen, Jens; Boutwell, Brian B.; Clasen, Mathias (2024-04). "First They Scream, Then They Laugh: The Cognitive Intersections of Humor and Fear". Evolutionary Psychology 22 (2). doi:10.1177/14747049241258355. ISSN 1474-7049. PMID 38840335. PMC PMC11155347. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/14747049241258355.

[5] Zahoor, A. (2020). Linguistic humor in memes to mitigate post COVID-19 severity. Linguistics and Literature Review (LLR).

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