The Effect of Laughter Yoga on Stress, Burnout, and General Health in Psychiatric Nurses

NCT ID: NCT07015372

Last Updated: 2025-06-11

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: COMPLETED
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 70 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2023-07-01
• Study Completion Date: 2023-09-01

Brief Summary

This study aims to examine the effects of laughter yoga on general health, perceived stress, and burnout among psychiatric nurses. Nurses working in psychiatric units are often exposed to high levels of occupational stress, which may impact their well-being and job performance. This trial was designed to evaluate the potential benefits of laughter yoga as a supportive intervention in this context.

Detailed Description

Psychiatric nurses frequently face emotionally intense situations, aggressive patient behaviors, and heavy workloads. These factors are known to contribute to elevated stress levels and burnout.

This study was conducted as a randomized controlled trial at a psychiatric hospital located on the Anatolian side of Istanbul, Türkiye. A total of 70 psychiatric nurses voluntarily participated and were randomly assigned to either an experimental group or a control group (n=35 per group).

The experimental group received an eight-session laughter yoga program, with each session lasting approximately 30 minutes. Sessions were held face-to-face in small groups and facilitated by a trained laughter yoga instructor. Each session included four components: warm-up and clapping exercises, deep breathing, childlike playfulness, and structured laughter activities. The control group received no intervention during the study period.

Data were collected before and after the intervention using the following validated tools:

Nurse Demographic Information Form

Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI)

Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10)

General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28)

The study was approved by the relevant ethics committee, and all participants provided informed consent prior to enrollment.

Conditions

Burnout; Perceived Stress; Occupational Stress; General Health; Psychiatric Nursing

Study Design

• Allocation Method: RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Primary Study Purpose: HEALTH_SERVICES_RESEARCH
• Blinding Strategy: NONE

Study Groups

Experimental: Laughter Yoga

Participants in this group received a structured laughter yoga program consisting of 8 sessions over approximately four weeks. Each session lasted about 30 minutes and included clapping, breathing exercises, playful activities, and laughter exercises. Sessions were delivered face-to-face in small groups.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Laughter Yoga

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Laughter yoga intervention including clapping, breathing, childlike play, and laughter exercises, delivered in 8 sessions over 4 weeks to reduce stress and burnout and improve general health among psychiatric nurses.

Control: No Intervention

Participants in this group did not receive any intervention during the study period. They continued their usual routines and duties. The same pre- and post-test assessments were applied as in the experimental group.

Group Type: NO_INTERVENTION

No interventions assigned to this group

Interventions

Laughter Yoga

Laughter yoga intervention including clapping, breathing, childlike play, and laughter exercises, delivered in 8 sessions over 4 weeks to reduce stress and burnout and improve general health among psychiatric nurses.

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• Being a psychiatric nurse at the specified hospital
• Volunteering to participate
• Not receiving psychiatric treatment currently

Exclusion Criteria

• Chronic physical illnesses that could interfere
• Inability to attend all sessions

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 65 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Sponsors

Bezmialem Vakif University

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Ayşe DOST

Associate Professor

Responsibility Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

Ayşe V Dost

Role: STUDY_DIRECTOR

Bezmialem Vakıf Üniversitesi

Locations

Erenköy Ruh ve Sinir Hastalıkları Hastanesi

Istanbul, , Turkey (Türkiye)

Countries

Turkey (Türkiye)

Other Identifiers

2023_Dost_LaughterYoga

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id