
Humor Is Associated with Positive Outcomes in Psychotherapy - EndXA
https://www.psypost.org/2019/02/study-finds-humor-is-associated-with-positive-outcomes-in-psychotherapy-53160
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EndXA
Here is the abstract of the original study:

Considerable anecdotal evidence points to the usefulness of humor in the
therapeutic process, but empirical evidence is lacking. The purpose of this
study, conducted in Belgium, was to search for an association between humor
and therapy outcomes in a population of 110 adult psychotherapy clients who
attended at least 10 therapy sessions. Clients and their therapist evaluated
the frequency and intensity of humorous events, as well as therapy
effectiveness, therapeutic alliance, perceived hope, and pleasure in
participating in therapy sessions. A strong positive correlation was observed
between humor and therapy effectiveness, from both client (rs=0.40; p<0.001)
and therapist perspectives (rs=0.37; p<0.001). The link between humor and
therapy effectiveness remained significant in subgroups of clients with more
severe illness, although these clients reported less humor in their therapy
sessions. Further research is needed to determine whether humor enhances
outcomes or whether positive outcomes trigger occurrence of humor.

