| Humor has been noted by various disciplines for thousands of years. Despite humor's presence in everyday life, its application as an intervention in the health promotion process has only relatively recently found its way into main stream scholarly research. Very little literature examines the use of clowning as a therapeutic intervention in medical care settings.;"Caring Clowns," are those clowns who visit people in a hospital or nursing home, and aim to provide healing and comfort to people who are experiencing some sort of physical or emotional pain. Caring clowns often practice therapeutic clowning and attempt to make a therapeutic connection with each of their patients.;This dissertation examines literature that reviews the phenomenon we call "humor," the history of humor in medicine, and clowning as it has evolved to a point where it is almost completely accepted in medical settings. Using this literature and the literature that supports the positive physiological, psychoneuroimmunological and psychosocial effects of humor, a Caring Clown Training Manual is proposed and discussed. There is specific emphasis on starting a caring clown training program, the specific skills a caring clown must have, the concerns such a clown should consider, and some ideas about how to evaluate the success of such a program. |
