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The Effect of Laughter Therapy on Nursing Students

Not Applicable
Completed
Conditions
Sleep Disorder
Mental Stress
Insomnia
Mental Health Disorder
Interventions
Behavioral: Laughter Therapy
Registration Number
NCT05681013
Lead Sponsor
Muğla Sıtkı Koçman University
Brief Summary

The aim of this study is to determine the effect of laughter therapy on the general health status, sleep quality, and stress level of nursing students.

Detailed Description

H1.1: Students who receive laughter therapy will have lower mean scores in the general health questionnaire than students who do not receive laughter therapy.

H1.2: Students who receive laughter therapy will have a lower Pittsburgh sleep quality index score than students who do not receive laughter therapy.

H1.3: Students who receive laughter therapy will have a lower mean stress level than students who do not receive laughter therapy.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
COMPLETED
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
70
Inclusion Criteria
  • Volunteering to participate in research
  • Being a 1st or 2nd-year student in the Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Nursing
  • Not have any health problems that may create a communication barrier
  • Being in a quiet environment to participate in the online study due to the pandemic period
  • Have an internet connection to attend online sessions
Exclusion Criteria
  • Having undergone abdominal surgery in the past three months
  • Having a disability to attend regular sessions

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
PARALLEL
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
Laughter Therapy GroupLaughter TherapyA pre-test was administered to all students. In the pre-test application, the Descriptive Information Form, General Health Questionnaire-28, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and Perceived Stress Scale were applied. Experimental and control groups were formed randomly among the students who filled all the scales. Communication groups were established for the students in both groups without being told which group they belonged to. Considering the hours suitable for the experimental group, 8 sessions of laughter therapy were applied for an average of 45 minutes. At the end of the therapy in the last session, a post-test was administered to all of the students. In the post-test application, the Descriptive Information Form, General Health Questionnaire-28, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, and Perceived Stress Scale were applied.
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Introductory Information Form2 minutes

It was prepared by the researchers in line with the literature in order to collect data about the individual characteristics of the participants. Form; family structure, gender, income status, marital status, health status, age, etc. It consists of 13 items (pretest-posttest design was applied).

General Health Questionnaire-28 (GHQ-28)5 minutes

It was prepared to detect mental health problems. Individuals who score below 5 on the scale are evaluated as "normal", while individuals who score 5 and above are considered as a "risk group" in terms of mental health (pretest-posttest design was applied).

Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PUKI)5 minutes

"Poor sleep quality" is expressed for individuals who score 5 and above from the scale. The scale consists of 24 items that evaluate sleep quality and disorders by scoring over a one-month period (pretest-posttest design was applied).

Perceived Stress Scale (PSS)3 minutes

The scale, which was prepared to evaluate the perceived stress level of the individual, consists of 14 items. High scores obtained from the scale indicate that the person has a high perception of stress(pretest-posttest design was applied).

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Muğla Sıtkı Koçman University

🇹🇷

Mugla, Turkey

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