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The role of humor in the psychosomatic health of older adults

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 August 2025

B. Eleni ,
E. Dragioti ,
N. Zagorianakou ,
A. Nakou ,
C. Tsironis ,
S. Mantzoukas  and
M. Gouva
B. Eleni*
Affiliation:
Department of Nursing, School of Health Sciences, Research Laboratory Psychology of Patients, Families & Health Professionals
E. Dragioti
Affiliation:
Department of Nursing, School of Health Sciences, Research Laboratory Psychology of Patients, Families & Health Professionals
N. Zagorianakou
Affiliation:
Department of Nursing, School of Health Sciences, Research Laboratory Psychology of Patients, Families & Health Professionals
A. Nakou
Affiliation:
Department of Nursing, School of Health Sciences, Research Laboratory Psychology of Patients, Families & Health Professionals
C. Tsironis
Affiliation:
Department of Nursing, School of Health Sciences, Research Laboratory Psychology of Patients, Families & Health Professionals
S. Mantzoukas
Affiliation:
Department of Nursing, School of Health Sciences, Research Laboratory of Integrated Health, Care and Well-being, Ioannina, Greece
M. Gouva
Affiliation:
Department of Nursing, School of Health Sciences, Research Laboratory Psychology of Patients, Families & Health Professionals
*
*Corresponding author.

Abstract

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Introduction

Humor is widely recognized for its potential to improve psychosomatic health, enhancing both physical and mental well-being.

Objectives

To investigate the correlation between humor styles and psychosomatic health in older adults.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted with 83 older adults (41 females, 42 males), aged 65 to 94 years (mean age: 74.1, SD = 8.1). Participants completed a sociodemographic questionnaire, the 32-item Humor Styles Questionnaire, and the 36-Item Short Form Survey (SF-36). Linear regression analysis was used to examine the relationship between humor styles and psychosomatic health outcomes.

Results

Self-Enhancing Humor. For Aggressive Humor, the mean was 22.7 (SD = 7.95), and for Self-Defeating Humor, 26.3 (SD = 8.70). The mean scores for Physical Health and Mental Health were 277 (SD = 84.5) and 272 (SD = 70.6), respectively. Self-Enhancing Humor had a significant positive effect on Mental Health (B = 3.458, SE = 0.893, p < 0.001), RF (B = 0.7659, SE = 0.375, p = 0.044), GH (B = 0.7113, SE = 0.234, p = 0.003), MH (B = 0.9711, SE = 0.228, p < 0.001), and SF (B = 0.7165, SE = 0.329, p = 0.033). Additionally, Self-Defeating Humor showed a significant negative effect on RE (B = -1.093, SE = 0.474, p = 0.024).

Conclusions

The findings suggest that positive humor styles, particularly Self-Enhancing Humor, are strongly associated with better psychosomatic health in older adults. Incorporating humor-based interventions could be a valuable approach to enhancing psychosomatic health in this population.

Disclosure of Interest

None Declared

Information

Type
Abstract
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 68 , Special Issue S1: Abstracts of the 33rd European Congress of Psychiatry , April 2025 , pp. S853
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of European Psychiatric Association
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