Abstract:
This qualitative research aimed to study experiences of tension situation management using humor in head nurses. Husserl Phenomenology was used in this study. Ten head nurses who use humor in their tension situation management and work in an autonomous university hospital were the subjects. Purposeful sampling and snowball sampling were used to recruit the participants who are registered head nurses with at least 2 years of experience in their positions. Data was collected using in-depth interviews which included audio recording and transcribed verbatim. Van Manen’s method (1990) was applied for data analysis. Four main issues were discovered in this study: 1) tension situations in patient wards which include 1.1) tension from taking care of patients, 1.2) tension from adhering to the hospital’s policies, and 1.3) tension from nurse staffs; 2) humor is a good way to release tension as 2.1) humor encouraged positive thinking, 2.2) humor helped ease up a tension situation, and 2.3) humor made head nurses happy and they shared their happiness with others; 3) experiences in using humor during tension situation management which required 3.1) situation assessment, 3.2) consideration of an individual’s humor preference, and 3.3) development of a strong relationship before using humor; 4) The results after humor was applied showed that 4.1) people in the wards were less stressed and happier, 4.2) person with a sense of humor was found to be charming and friendly, 4.3) sense of humor could lighten up a nurse’s mood and alleviate conflict between nurses and patients, 4.4) sense of humor could unlock a nurse’s creativity, and 4.5) sense of humor should be used properly, at the right time and the right place but should not be used repetitiously. The results from this study can be used as guidelines for head nurses in applying humor in tension situation management, which can lead to effective patient ward management. Finally, these results are provided as a base guideline for further study in humor.