The experience of laughing in prisoner of war camps

The purpose of this study, using an existential-phenomenological approach, was to investigate the relationship between laughing and health or survival in the context of World War II (WWII) prisoner of war (POW) camps. Based on their first- person perspectives, the current meaning for ex-POWs of their experience of laughing in POW camps was described in terms of themes, an experiential description, and a pictorial representation of thematic structure.

The existential approach provides four fundamental grounds of human experience: body, time, others, and the world. In this study the POW camp represented the most extreme context of existence. The POW experience became figural against these existential grounds and involved awareness of lack of control, restriction, threat to life, boredom, and isolation. This experience became the ground from which laughing as a POW broke through and became figural. The laughing-in-a-POW-camp experience involves an awareness of surviving, passing time, reaching out, freedom, and happiness.

From their experience, ex-POWs confirmed a connection between laughing and health. Laughing provides a healthy experience reaching out to connect humans in freedom, health, and happiness. Laughing opposed the POW experience. It provided the face of positive affirmation in spite of a world of extreme constraints.

The themes and affirmations highlighted in this study provide educators, health care professionals, and other researchers suggestions of linking their work with learners, clients, and research subjects to the phenomenon of laughter.