RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 A study of storytelling, humour and learning in medicine
JF Clinical Medicine
JO Clin Med
FD Royal College of Physicians
SP 227
OP 229
DO 10.7861/clinmedicine.1-3-227
VO 1
IS 3
A1 Kenneth Calman
YR 2001
UL http://www.rcpjournals.org/content/1/3/227.abstract
AB Story telling is a fundamental part of clinical practice. It provides the mechanism by which doctors and patients communicate and understand the meaning of illness and possible ways of dealing with it. Humour is a particular aspect of story telling and, while there are some negative aspects, generally does have a therapeutic benefit. The physiological effects of laughter are considerable. Both story telling and humour are important for learning and are complementary to the more formal learning from text books and lectures. Stories assist in the development of emotional knowledge. The hypothesis of the contagious theory of behaviour change is presented as a way in which ideas are transmitted from one person to another