Comparison of the Effects of Music and Rose Water Aromatherapy on the Happiness level among the Elderly Living in Nursing Homes in Kermanshah in 2018

People's psychological and social activities gradually decrease with an increase in age and the beginning of old age. In this regard, proper planning can make life enjoyable at an older age. Therefore, the current research aimed to compare the effect of music and rose water aromatherapy on the level of happiness among the elderly living in nursing homes.

This research was a three-group randomized clinical trial of pre-test and post-test type with a control group. It was conducted on 93 elderly residents in nursing homes in Kermanshah who were selected via convenience sampling and randomly assigned to three groups. Before the intervention, the demographic information questionnaire and Oxford happiness questionnaire were completed. In the music group, an instrumental relaxing local Kurdish music was used for 12 45-50-min sessions three days a week for one month. For the rose water aromatherapy group, three drops of rose were poured on a cotton ball with a dropper and held at a distance of 25 cm from the nose of the elderly. The control group continued their daily activities without receiving any intervention. The data were analyzed using paired t-test and analysis of covariance.

There was no statistically significant difference in the happiness mean score in the three groups. The effect of the pre-test scores of happiness and its different dimensions on the post-test scores was significant (P>0.001). In addition, by controlling the effect of the pre-test, a significant difference was observed among the elderly in the three groups of aromatherapy, music therapy, and the control group.

As evidenced by the results of this study, the two methods of music and rose water aromatherapy increase the happiness of the elderly. Nonetheless, music exerted a more significant effect on increasing the happiness of the elderly compared to aromatherapy. Therefore, it is suggested that music and aromatherapy be used as cost-effective non-pharmacological methods and complementary medicine in nursing homes and hospitals, along with other treatments, to promote happiness.