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Individual differences in uses of humor and their relation to psychological well-being: Development of the Humor Styles Questionnaire

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Abstract

Describes the development and initial validation of the Humor Styles Questionnaire, which assesses four dimensions relating to individual differences in uses of humor. These are: relatively benign uses of humor to enhance the self (Self-enhancing) and to enhance one’s relationships with others (Affiliative), use of humor to enhance the self at the expense of others (Aggressive), and use of humor to enhance relationships at the expense of self (Self-defeating). Validation data indicate that the four scales differentially relate in predicted ways to peer ratings of humor styles and to measures of mood (cheerfulness, depression, anxiety, hostility), self-esteem, optimism, well-being, intimacy, and social support. They also relate to all five dimensions of the Five Factor Model and to Agency and Communion. The first two scales overlap with previous humor tests, whereas the Aggressive and Self-defeating humor scales largely tap different dimensions. Males scored higher than females on Aggressive and Self-defeating humor. It is expected that the HSQ will be useful for research on humor and psychological well-being by assessing forms of humor that may be deleterious to health as well as those that are beneficial.

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... Existing research has discovered that leader humor is associated with various employee outcomes, such as job satisfaction, in-role performance, and organizational citizenship behavior (e.g., Kong et al., 2019;Mesmer-Magnus et al., 2012). At its core, positive humor is benevolent or absent of harm, whereas negative humor is harmful (e.g., Martin et al., 2003;Mesmer-Magnus et al., 2012). Although previous research has greatly added to our understanding of leader humor, it remains unclear whether positive and negative leader humor are distinct (e.g., Cann et al., 2014;Craik et al., 1996;Martin et al., 2003). ...
... At its core, positive humor is benevolent or absent of harm, whereas negative humor is harmful (e.g., Martin et al., 2003;Mesmer-Magnus et al., 2012). Although previous research has greatly added to our understanding of leader humor, it remains unclear whether positive and negative leader humor are distinct (e.g., Cann et al., 2014;Craik et al., 1996;Martin et al., 2003). Specifically, some researchers conceptualize them as opposite ends of the same continuum (e.g., Craik et al., 1996;Martin et al., 2003), whereas others conceptualize them as independent constructs (e.g., Cann et al., 2014;Kong et al., 2019;Mesmer-Magnus et al., 2012). ...
... Although previous research has greatly added to our understanding of leader humor, it remains unclear whether positive and negative leader humor are distinct (e.g., Cann et al., 2014;Craik et al., 1996;Martin et al., 2003). Specifically, some researchers conceptualize them as opposite ends of the same continuum (e.g., Craik et al., 1996;Martin et al., 2003), whereas others conceptualize them as independent constructs (e.g., Cann et al., 2014;Kong et al., 2019;Mesmer-Magnus et al., 2012). Thus, a key research question arises: Are positive and negative leader humor two distinctive constructs or two opposite ends of the same construct? ...
Article
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Scholars disagree on the distinction between positive and negative leader humor, which may hinder the integration and advancement of the leader humor literature. Thus, we meta-analyzed the correlation between positive and negative leader humor, as well as their shared nomological networks (k = 161; follower N = 45,759; leader N = 7820). Our meta-analysis indicates that (1) there is a very small but significant correlation between positive and negative leader humor (ρ = − .07); (2) positive and negative leader humor have differential relationships with most antecedents (e.g., positive affectivity) and outcomes (e.g., innovation and citizenship behavior); (3) positive affect and leader-member exchange intervene independently and in series the relationships between leader humor and follower outcomes, whereas negative affect mediates the effects of positive leader humor but not negative leader humor. These findings improve our understanding of the uniqueness of positive and negative leader humor, and provide important theoretical and practical implications for the leader humor literature.
... In human social relationships, humor is widely recognized as a beneficial social phenomenon due to its ability to elicit positive affect and enhance social interactions. Research on humor in psychology indicates that having a sense of humor is a highly valued personality trait, both in oneself and in others, and engaging in joking and laughing as social behavior can positively impact interpersonal relationships (Martin, Puhlik-Doris, Larsen, Gray, and Weir, 2003). Moreover, findings suggest that all individuals have a genetic predisposition to humor, at least to some extent (Fry, 1994). ...
... Moreover, findings suggest that all individuals have a genetic predisposition to humor, at least to some extent (Fry, 1994). Martin et al. (2003) distinguish between two utility dimensions of humor. That is, either the enhancement of the self or one's relationship with others. ...
... These two dimensions can be combined into four different ways of using and expressing humor in everyday life. The four resulting kinds of humor are as follows: affiliative humor (i.e., benign and self-accepting), self-defeating humor (i.e., at the expense and to the disadvantage of the self), aggressive humor (i.e., at the expense and to the disadvantage of one's relationships with others), and selfenhancing humor (i.e., to enhance the self in a way that is tolerant and non-detrimental to others) (Martin et al., 2003). These four kinds of humor can vary in their effects on people's reactions and, thus, interpersonal relationships. ...
Conference Paper
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Humor in human-computer interaction (HCI) can enhance user engagement but also lead to negative experiences if misaligned with user expectations. This study investigates how different humor types (affiliative and aggressive), interact with the functional context of technological artifacts (e.g., entertainment vs. security devices) to influence user trust and usage intentions. Drawing on Expectancy Violation Theory (EVT), two experiments demonstrate that humor types mismatched with the device’s perceived role elicit negative expectancy violations, reducing both human-like and system-like trust, as well as user intention. Findings suggest that the effective integration of humor in HCI should consider the artifact’s function to prevent adverse effects on user perceptions and interactions. These insights are critical for designing user-centric technologies that incorporate humor without compromising user trust and engagement.
... Humour is the tendency to experience or provoke laughter or provide amusement through written or spoken words (Sen, 2012). It plays a vital role in interpersonal interactions, emotional expression (Amjad and Dasti, 2022), and psychological wellbeing (Chen and Martin, 2007;Edalat, 2023;Martin and Ford, 2018;Martin et al., 2003). Different humour styles-self-enhancing, self-deprecating, affiliative, and aggressive-carry distinct emotional undertones and social implications (Kuiper et al., 2016;Martin et al., 2003). ...
... It plays a vital role in interpersonal interactions, emotional expression (Amjad and Dasti, 2022), and psychological wellbeing (Chen and Martin, 2007;Edalat, 2023;Martin and Ford, 2018;Martin et al., 2003). Different humour styles-self-enhancing, self-deprecating, affiliative, and aggressive-carry distinct emotional undertones and social implications (Kuiper et al., 2016;Martin et al., 2003). While affiliative humour fosters positive social interactions, aggressive humour may strain relationships through its potential to offend or demean (Anderson and Di Tunnariello, 2016). ...
... While affiliative humour fosters positive social interactions, aggressive humour may strain relationships through its potential to offend or demean (Anderson and Di Tunnariello, 2016). Understanding these styles has significant implications across multiple domains, including mental health Martin and Ford, 2018;Martin et al., 2003), content moderation (Sari, 2016;Zhu et al., 2022), and artificial intelligence (AI) . However, computational humour style recognition presents unique challenges in natural language processing (NLP) due to its subjective nature and complex psychological underpinnings (Amjad and Dasti, 2022;Kazienko et al., 2023;. ...
Preprint
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Humour styles can have either a negative or a positive impact on well-being. Given the importance of these styles to mental health, significant research has been conducted on their automatic identification. However, the automated machine learning models used for this purpose are black boxes, making their prediction decisions opaque. Clarity and transparency are vital in the field of mental health. This paper presents an explainable AI (XAI) framework for understanding humour style classification, building upon previous work in computational humour analysis. Using the best-performing single model (ALI+XGBoost) from prior research, we apply comprehensive XAI techniques to analyse how linguistic, emotional, and semantic features contribute to humour style classification decisions. Our analysis reveals distinct patterns in how different humour styles are characterised and misclassified, with particular emphasis on the challenges in distinguishing affiliative humour from other styles. Through detailed examination of feature importance, error patterns, and misclassification cases, we identify key factors influencing model decisions, including emotional ambiguity, context misinterpretation, and target identification. The framework demonstrates significant utility in understanding model behaviour, achieving interpretable insights into the complex interplay of features that define different humour styles. Our findings contribute to both the theoretical understanding of computational humour analysis and practical applications in mental health, content moderation, and digital humanities research.
... This idea forms the basis for laughter therapy, a cognitive-behavioural treatment designed to induce laughter and reduce stress, tension, anxiety, and sadness (Yim, 2016). However, as Martin et al. (2003) noted, not all humour is beneficial-some forms can even harm relationships with others or oneself. ...
... Considering its impact on well-being, Martin et al. (2003) categorised humour into four styles: self-enhancing, self-deprecating, affiliative, and aggressive. Affiliative and self-enhancing humour are beneficial to psychological well-being. ...
... Building on the gaps identified by Kenneth et al. (2024), this study addresses the lack of an established dataset and ML models for recognising the four humour styles: self-enhancing, selfdeprecating, affiliative, and aggressive. We draw on Martin et al. (2003), who defined and validated these styles, providing the theoretical basis for our classification task. Additionally, Edalat (2023)'s work on self-initiated humour protocols (SIHP) informs how different humour styles can enhance well-being, while Amjad and Dasti (2022) research on the link between humour styles, emotion regulation, and subjective well-being highlights the potential applications of our work in psychological and clinical contexts. ...
Article
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Humour, a fundamental aspect of human communication , manifests itself in various styles that significantly impact social interactions and mental health. Recognising different humour styles poses challenges due to the lack of established datasets and machine learning (ML) models. To address this gap, we present a new text dataset for humour style recognition, comprising 1463 instances across four styles (self-enhancing, self-deprecating, affiliative, and aggressive) and non-humorous text, with lengths ranging from 4 to 229 words. Our research employs various computational methods, including classic machine learning classifiers, text embedding models, and DistilBERT, to establish baseline performance. Additionally, we propose a two-model approach to enhance humour style recognition, particularly in distinguishing between affiliative and aggressive styles. Our method demonstrates an 11.61% improvement in f1-score for affiliative humour classification, with consistent improvements in the 14 models tested. Our findings contribute to the computational analysis of humour in text, offering new tools for studying humour in literature, social media, and other textual sources.
... Humor styles, as described by Martin et al. (2003), have consistently shown stable associations with various domains of quality of life and with optimism. However, most studies employ a correlational design, examining humor styles independently. ...
... In addition, although numerous studies have examined the associations of age, gender, and socio-economic status with quality of life (e.g., Marquez et al., 2020;Jakobsson, 2007;Phyo et al., 2020;Nutakor et al., 2023) or with humor styles (Kazarian & Martin, 2006;Martin et al., 2003), only a few (e.g., Dyck & Holtzman, 2013) have closely analyzed their moderating role in the relationship between humor styles, optimism, and quality of life. Based on this gap, Schneider et al. (2018) concluded that the roles of age, gender, and socio-economic status in the relationship between humor styles and well-being deserve further examination. ...
... Humor styles (Martin et al., 2003) operationalize an individual's use of humor in everyday life and comprise four styles: affiliative, self-enhancing, aggressive, and self-defeating. The affiliative humor style refers to positive humor used to enhance relationships with others, aiming to increase group cohesion and reduce tension. ...
Article
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The present study aims to extend knowledge on the relationship between humor styles, optimism and quality of life by employing the typological approach. Therefore, humor profiles were examined as patterns of humor styles and compared within profiles. The sample of 725 respondents from Spanish community was tested using Humor Styles Questionnaire, Life Orientation Test – Revised and the 12-Item Short Form Survey. Initial insight into the relations between humor styles, optimism and quality of life was provided using correlations controlling for gender, age, and socio-economic status, showing that optimism and quality of life measures correlated positively with affiliative and self-enhancing humor, and negatively with self-defeating humor styles. Four humor profiles (humor enhancers, endorsers, deniers and detrimenters) were identified using latent profile analysis, with the pairwise comparisons between the profiles in the analysis of differences in optimism and quality of life. Results revealed higher optimism and quality of life at humor profiles whose members use positive humor styles compared to profiles whose members use only negative humor styles, or do not use any kind of humor. In addition, significant role of gender, age and socio-economic position on observed relationship were confirmed. Advantages of typological approach in research of humor styles were discussed.
... Humor is a complex and multifaceted construct that has been extensively studied in various fields, including psychology, sociology, pedagogy, and medicine (1)(2)(3)(4). It is defined as a cognitive and emotional response characterized by amusement and laughter, involving mental processes designed to create and perceive comic stimuli (5,6). Humor can be understood as any message designed to evoke smiles or laughter, conveyed through action, speech, writing, images, or music (7,8). ...
... Additionally, the style of humor is an important aspect of research in this field. One commonly accepted classification is to divide humor into four categories: affiliative humor, which involves using humor to enhance relationships and reduce tension; self-enhancing humor, which involves using humor to cope with stress and maintain a positive outlook; aggressive humor, which involves using humor to enhance one's status at the expense of others; and self-defeating humor, which involves using humor to gain approval and acceptance from others by putting oneself down (6). Each of these categories is associated with different psychological and behavioral outcomes, and understanding the nuances of each can be critical in workplace settings (14). ...
... The Humor Styles Questionnaire (HSQ) is a widely used selfreport measure to assess an individual's humor styles. It has been translated into over 30 languages and validated for reliability (6,40). The HSQ consists of four subscales: affiliative humor, self-enhancing humor, aggressive humor, and self-defeating humor. ...
Article
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Background Nurse burnout is a prevalent issue in healthcare, impacting both nurses’ well-being and patient care quality. This cross-sectional study examined the association between humor styles and nurse burnout. Methods A total of 244 nurses in China completed an online self-report measure to assess their humor styles and burnout levels using the Humor Styles Questionnaire (HSQ) and the Maslach Burnout Inventory-Human Services Survey (MBI-HSS). Spearman correlation analysis and stepwise regression analysis were conducted. Results The results showed that affiliative and self-enhancing humor were moderately used, while aggressive and self-defeating humor were rated low among the nurses. Emotional exhaustion was moderate, depersonalization was severe, and personal accomplishment was low. Correlation analyses uncovered significant relationships between humor styles and burnout dimensions. Self-enhancing humor exhibited negative correlations with emotional exhaustion and depersonalization, while aggressive and self-defeating humor styles displayed positive correlations with these burnout factors. Affiliative humor was also negatively correlated with depersonalization. Additionally, self-enhancing humor was positively correlated with personal accomplishment, whereas aggressive humor showed negative correlations with this dimension of burnout. Stepwise regression analysis revealed that self-defeating humor positively predicted emotional exhaustion while self-enhancing humor negatively predicted it. Aggressive humor positively predicted depersonalization, and affiliative and self-enhancing humor also positively predicted this dimension of burnout. Self-enhancing humor positively predicted personal accomplishment, while aggressive and self-defeating humor negatively predicted this dimension. Conclusion The findings highlighted the importance of considering different types of humor in understanding the various dimensions of nurse burnout. The use of self-defeating and aggressive humor appears detrimental, while the use of self-enhancing humor may be beneficial in mitigating burnout among nurses.
... This idea forms the basis for laughter therapy, a cognitive-behavioural treatment designed to induce laughter and reduce stress, tension, anxiety, and sadness (Yim, 2016). However, as Martin et al. (2003) noted, not all humour is beneficial-some forms can even harm relationships with others or oneself. ...
... Considering its impact on well-being, Martin et al. (2003) categorised humour into four styles: self-enhancing, self-deprecating, affiliative, and aggressive. Affiliative and self-enhancing humour are beneficial to psychological well-being. ...
... Building on the gaps identified by Kenneth et al. (2024), this study addresses the lack of an established dataset and ML models for recognising the four humour styles: self-enhancing, selfdeprecating, affiliative, and aggressive. We draw on Martin et al. (2003), who defined and validated these styles, providing the theoretical basis for our classification task. Additionally, Edalat (2023)'s work on self-initiated humour protocols (SIHP) informs how different humour styles can enhance well-being, while Amjad and Dasti (2022) research on the link between humour styles, emotion regulation, and subjective well-being highlights the potential applications of our work in psychological and clinical contexts. ...
... In addition, we also measured participant's self-reported pragmatic abilities, empathizing skills, and humor style to examine whether and how individual variation in these measures can modulate the appropriateness effect for both honorific and humble terms. We used the simplified Chinese version of AQ (Baron-Cohen et al., 2001;12 Zhao et al., 2018), the Interpersonal Reaction Index (IRI; Davis, 1980), and the Chinese version of the Humor Styles Questionnaire (HSQ; Chen & Martin, 2007;Martin et al., 2003) as a measure of participants' pragmatic abilities, empathizing skills, and humor style, respectively. ...
... Finally, the HSQ (Martin et al., 2003) was used to assess four styles of humor (8 items each): affiliative humor (e.g., "I enjoy making people laugh."), self-enhancing humor (e.g., "If I am feeling depressed, I can usually cheer myself up with humor."), ...
... Finally, 40 as we have discussed earlier, impoliteness can be viewed as a source of humor in its own right and appears to coincide with humor, especially aggressive humor (e.g., Cao, 2022;Culpeper, 2005;Dynel, 2013Dynel, , 2015Dynel, , 2016Toddington, 2015; see Cao, 2022 for a detailed discussion). In addition, by definition, an individual with a stronger style of aggressive humor more tends to use humor to enhance himself or herself at the expense of others (Martin et al., 2003). Thus, for both honorific and humble terms, one could expect a modulation of appropriateness effects by individuals' aggressive humor style, with a stronger aggressive humor style being associated with a larger appropriateness effect. ...
Preprint
An ERP experiment was conducted to investigate the common and distinct neurocognitive mechanisms underlying the on-line processing of two types of politeness maxims (self-depreciation and other-elevation) and the individual differences during sentence reading. Electroencephalograms were recorded while participants read sentences containing pragmatically appropriate or inappropriate honorific or humble terms. When collapsing all participants’ data, inappropriate humble and honorific terms elicited N400 and P600 effects, respectively, which could reflect semantic processing costs and rechecking processes, respectively. More importantly, communication abilities modulated N400 and late negativity effects for appropriateness for humble but not honorific terms. In contrast, perspective-taking and emphatic concern modulated N400 and late positivity effects, respectively, for honorific but not humble terms. Moreover, some commonness of the appropriateness effect modulation by individual variables was also observed. These results are discussed in terms of the commonness and individuality of neurocognitive mechanisms underlying the processing of different politeness maxims during sentence comprehension.
... Purposive sampling strategy was used to obtain data from 300 students (150 = men; 150 = women) between the age range of 18 and 22 years in five different public and private universities in Lahore. Demographic sheet, Trait Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (Brown & Ryan, 2003), Humor Styles Questionnaire (Martin et al., 2003), and the Personal Growth Initiative II Scale (Robitschek et al., 2012) were used to measure the variables. ...
... People use affiliative humor such as by telling jokes and engaging in a friendly banter to raise group cohesiveness, identity, and morale. Both these humor styles are termed as positive humor because of their adaptive function (Martin et al., 2003). Manipulating and belittling others is associated with aggressive humor. ...
... Self-defeating humor occurs when humor is used at the expense of oneself i.e., by making jokes that mock oneself to gain the appreciation of others. These latter two styles of humor are maladaptive or negative as they are counterproductive for social relationships and one's sense of personal worth respectively (Martin et al., 2003). Schermer et al. (2019) have verified the existence of four discrete humor styles across cultures and varied groups. ...
Article
Full-text available
Aim of the Study: This study examined mindfulness and humor styles as correlates and predictors of personal growth initiative (PGI) in undergraduate university students of Lahore, Pakistan. Methodology: Purposive sampling strategy was used to obtain data from 300 students (150 = men; 150 = women) between the age range of 18 and 22 years in five different public and private universities in Lahore. Demographic sheet, Trait Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (Brown & Ryan, 2003), Humor Styles Questionnaire (Martin et al., 2003), and the Personal Growth Initiative II Scale (Robitschek et al., 2012) were used to measure the variables. Findings: The results identified a significant positive relationship of mindfulness and adaptive humor styles (self-enhancing humor and affiliative humor) with PGI in undergraduate university students. Maladaptive humor styles (self-defeating humor and aggressive humor) had a significant negative relationship with PGI in undergraduate university students. Mindfulness and humor styles significantly predicted dimensions of PGI in undergraduate university students. Conclusion: The findings provide further evidence for mindfulness and adaptive humor styles as an important resource for PGI.
... Purposive sampling strategy was used to obtain data from 300 students (150 = men; 150 = women) between the age range of 18 and 22 years in five different public and private universities in Lahore. Demographic sheet, Trait Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (Brown & Ryan, 2003), Humor Styles Questionnaire (Martin et al., 2003), and the Personal Growth Initiative II Scale (Robitschek et al., 2012) were used to measure the variables. ...
... People use affiliative humor such as by telling jokes and engaging in a friendly banter to raise group cohesiveness, identity, and morale. Both these humor styles are termed as positive humor because of their adaptive function (Martin et al., 2003). Manipulating and belittling others is associated with aggressive humor. ...
... Self-defeating humor occurs when humor is used at the expense of oneself i.e., by making jokes that mock oneself to gain the appreciation of others. These latter two styles of humor are maladaptive or negative as they are counterproductive for social relationships and one's sense of personal worth respectively (Martin et al., 2003). Schermer et al. (2019) have verified the existence of four discrete humor styles across cultures and varied groups. ...
... Teniendo en cuenta los impor-tantes beneficios que el humor puede ofrecer no sólo a nuestros pacientes, sino también a nosotros, los profesionales sanitarios, se hace fundamental explorar cómo nos enfrentamos a la vida con el humor. Existen diferentes escalas que evalúan el humor [42][43][44][45], sin embargo, todas ellas lo hacen desde una perspectiva sociocultural, dirigidas a la población general. Uno de los aspectos más destacables de esta investigación es el empleo, por primera vez, de una escala desarrollada y validada por los autores de este presente trabajo [46,47], diseñada específicamente para los profesionales sanitarios, la Escala Multidimensional del Humor en los Profesionales Sanitarios (EMHUPS). ...
... En los estudios de Martin [42], Cassaretto [76] y Saraglou [77] encontraron que los hombres puntuaban más alto que las mujeres en las escalas que evalúan el humor desde una perspectiva sociocultural. En otras investigaciones se establecieron diferencias significativas entre géneros al atribuir la participación del hombre en las formas más perjudiciales y agresivas del humor, como el sarcasmo o el humor humillante [78][79][80], mientras que en otros estudios se asoció la producción de humor de los hombres como más divertida que la de las mujeres [81]. ...
... En cuanto a la edad, la tendencia en la escala EMHUPS fue a mayor edad, menor puntuación en la mayoría de los factores. Esta tendencia se observa en los artículos de Martin [42], Brizzio [82] y Chen [78], donde los más jóvenes puntuaban significativamente más alto que los adultos en las diferentes escalas de humor. Otros estudios no encontraron ninguna diferencia en cuanto a la edad [77]. ...
Article
Introducción: El humor desempeña un papel fundamental como recurso de bienestar físico, mental, emocional y social para los pacientes como para los profesionales sanitarios. Objetivo: Analizar la actitud ante el humor en los profesionales sanitarios mediante la Escala Multidimensional del Humor en Profesionales Sanitarios (EMHUPS). Métodos: Estudio descriptivo realizado en un centro hospitalario. La escala EMHUPS consta de 35 ítems y 8 factores: humor con el paciente, el trabajo, los cuidados, el entorno privado, el entorno sanitario, el ocio, formación y demanda de formación en humor, con una varianza del 60,99% y una fiabilidad de 0,88. Se utilizaron los test de la Chi cuadrado, t de Student, ANOVA o sus variantes no paramétricas. Significación estadística p<0,05. Resultados: Participaron 250 profesionales; 87,6% mujeres, 56,4% enfermeras, con media de 40,61(11,40) años. La escala EMHUPS correlacionó negativamente con la edad. Se observaron diferencias en entre géneros, estado civil, servicio, turno, tipo de contrato y antigüedad laboral. No se observaron diferencias significativas en la categoría profesional. Conclusión: La actitud ante el humor de los profesionales sanitarios varía según el contexto sociocultural y laboral. Este análisis es clave para planificar e implementar medidas orientadas a la promoción del humor como estrategia de cuidado y autocuidado.
... In essence, interactions of self-defeating humor with extraversion, openness, and maladaptive humor style were expected. From a theoretical perspective, adaptive humor styles are used in adverse situations, while maladaptive humor seeks social approval or belittles others and is associated with negative traits (Martin et al., 2003). Hence, self-enhancing humor is expected to boost creativity regardless of personality traits whereas the impact of self-defeating humor is anticipated to vary with these traits. ...
... The construct validity of HSQ was assessed by testing two alternative models. The first model comprises four factors: affiliative humor, self-enhancing humor, aggressive humor, and self-defeating humor (Martin et al., 2003). The reliabilities of the affiliative, self-enhancing, aggressive, and self-defeating humor scales are 0.80, 0.81, 0.77, and 0.80, respectively. ...
... The construct validity of the HSQ was assessed by testing two models (Martin et al., 2003). The first model followed the original four-factor structure: affiliative, self-enhancing, aggressive, and self-defeating humor. ...
Article
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While humor has been a subject of fascination for people since ancient times, research examining the effect of humor on creative behavior has been relatively scarce in recent decades, despite the reciprocal relationship between these variables. Moreover, it is not apparent whether the effect of humor on creativity significantly varies based on various personality traits or differences in humor usage. Thus, we presented two studies aiming to investigate these issues, with a particular focus on the manipulation of humor styles, namely self-enhancing humor and self-defeating humor, along with a control condition. Study 1 focused on the effect of humor and personality traits on creativity. Humor was manipulated using cartoons, and participants were asked to generate alternative uses for an ordinary object in a creativity task. Study 2 was a continuation of the first study, where the state of extraversion in participants was manipulated. The findings revealed that the participants who did read humorous cartoons generated more ideas than those who did not read cartoons. Moreover, personality traits moderated the effect of self-defeating humor on creative behavior. These findings underscore the important role of personality traits in the relationship between humor and creativity and provide valuable insights for future studies on the experimental manipulation of humor styles.
... A distinção é feita a partir da dicotomia entre práticas humorísticas que unem ou dividem as pessoas. Embora não discutam o trabalho de Meyer (2000), Martin et al. (2003), ao elaborarem tipologia de estilos de humor, chegam a resultados parecidos, tendo em vista que os quatro tipos destacados -afiliativo (affiliative), autoengrandecedor (self-enhancing), autodepreciativo (self-defeating) e agressivo (aggressive) -podem ser vistos como formas de construções coletivas de unidade a partir da coesão (as três primeiras formas) ou divisão, crítica ao "outro" (o último estilo). Esses estilos serão descritos na seção metodológica, tendo em vista seu papel na análise das postagens de Boulos. ...
... A identidade pode ser vista como dimensão dinâmica de indivíduos e grupos, algo que se elabora e se negocia a partir de estratégias discursivas e interações nas quais eles se envolvem. Tendo como premissa que Boulos utiliza o humor para desenvolver sua identidade política, podemos, a partir da discussão prévia, entender que isso está relacionado aos estilos de humor (Martin et al., 2003) que ele utiliza em suas comunicações digitais. Assim, formula--se essa outra questão de pesquisa (Q3): Quais os estilos de humor utilizados por Guilherme Boulos em seu perfil no Instagram e o que caracteriza a utilização deles, de maneira geral, no que ele divulga nessa plataforma digital? ...
... É válido notar, porém, que não classificamos nenhuma postagem do Instagram de Boulos como possuidora de humor autodestrutivo diferentemente do estudo sobre postagens no X de políticos chilenos, realizado por Mendiburo-Seguel et al. (2022). Isso se deve à avaliação que a definição de humor autodestrutivo de Martin et al. (2003) não é adequada para compreender as postagens em que Boulos utiliza a si mesmo como foco do humor. Nesse caso, como será discutido, pareceu mais correto entender o estilo como autoengrandecedor. ...
Article
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La relación entre humor y política es antigua y ha adquirido nuevos contornos con el auge del internet. En este estudio se analizan los posts publicados entre 2018 y 2023 en el perfil de Instagram de Guilherme Boulos, líder emergente de la izquierda brasileña. Las discusiones sobre política, humor y el papel de este recurso en la construcción de fronteras simbólicas entre personas y grupos son el telón de fondo teórico del trabajo, cuyo principal objetivo es comprender el papel del humor en la construcción de la identidad política de Boulos. En términos metodológicos, se realizan análisis descriptivos de los mensajes del corpus (n = 13 321), combinados con observaciones cualitativas. Se revisaron los mensajes para distinguir entre los que contenían elementos de humor y los que no. En el caso de los primeros, los mensajes se clasificaron por estilo. Entre otros resultados, el trabajo indica el uso del humor en el 15,6 % de los posts, y el estilo adoptado es mayoritariamente agresivo, es decir, dirigido a diferentes blancos, especialmente al expresidente Jair Bolsonaro. También se observó que los mensajes con humor tuvieron mayor alcance y reacciones. En términos más generales, la identidad que el humor ayuda a construir, en el caso de Boulos, es la de un político combativo, contrario a las políticas y agendas conservadoras, y que tiene dimensiones distendidas y relacionadas con el cotidiano de los ciudadanos comunes.
... Research suggests five major types or dimensions of humor: (1) selfenhancing humor, (2) affiliative humor, (3) aggressive humor, and (4) self-defeating humor, and 5) coping humor (Table 1; [13,88]). Each type of humor serves a different purpose; for example, self-enhancing humor serves the purpose of amplifying one's feelings regarding themselves, while self-defeating serves the opposing role of elevating other relationships at the expense of their own self-image ( [88]; Table 1). ...
... Research suggests five major types or dimensions of humor: (1) selfenhancing humor, (2) affiliative humor, (3) aggressive humor, and (4) self-defeating humor, and 5) coping humor (Table 1; [13,88]). Each type of humor serves a different purpose; for example, self-enhancing humor serves the purpose of amplifying one's feelings regarding themselves, while self-defeating serves the opposing role of elevating other relationships at the expense of their own self-image ( [88]; Table 1). Aggressive humor strengthens one's feelings of themselves at the expense of other individuals, while affiliative humor has been thought to be the most adaptive, as its role is to strengthen relationships with others ( [88]; Table 1). ...
... Each type of humor serves a different purpose; for example, self-enhancing humor serves the purpose of amplifying one's feelings regarding themselves, while self-defeating serves the opposing role of elevating other relationships at the expense of their own self-image ( [88]; Table 1). Aggressive humor strengthens one's feelings of themselves at the expense of other individuals, while affiliative humor has been thought to be the most adaptive, as its role is to strengthen relationships with others ( [88]; Table 1). Finally, coping humor helps to alleviate psychological stressors and tension amongst members of a team (Table 1 [13]). ...
... Moreover, there are additionally two maladaptive or negative humor styles: aggressive humor, which uses humor to improve one's own personal image by humiliating others through sarcasm and teasing, and self-defeating humor, which includes excessive behaviors to gain acceptance from others, even at one's own expense, by employing self-humiliating and self-deprecating jokes. In fact, these humor styles are considered detrimental to oneself and others [20,21]. The use of different humor styles is influenced by social, labor, and cultural factors [22,23]. ...
... Humor Styles Questionnaire (HSQ) [21]: this instrument is a self-report questionnaire, structured in 32 items that measure four humor styles (8 items for each humor style): affiliative, self-enhancing, aggressive, and self-defeating. Response options are given on a 7-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (totally disagree) to 7 (totally agree). ...
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Background/Objectives: Being a healthcare professional often involves exposure to complex situations that can contribute to the development of psychological problems. Evidence suggests that both mental and physical health are crucial for the well-being of these professionals, which in turn influences the quality of care they provide to patients. The main aim of this study was to examine the association between adaptive and maladaptive forms of humor and psychopathological disorders among healthcare workers. Methods: A cross-sectional and descriptive correlational design was employed. The participants consisted of 250 healthcare professionals at a general hospital. Humor styles and the presence of psychological and psychosomatic symptoms were assessed. Data were collected using the Humor Styles Questionnaire (HSQ), the Short Checklist of Symptoms (LSB-50), and sociodemographic information. Spearman correlation analysis and linear regression analysis were conducted. Results: Healthcare professionals were more inclined to use affiliative and self-enhancing humor styles compared to self-defeating and aggressive humor. Affiliative and self-enhancing humor styles were negatively correlated with psychological symptoms, whereas aggressive humor and, to a lesser extent, self-defeating humor styles showed a significantly positive correlation with most psychological symptoms. Regression analysis revealed that positive humor styles negatively predicted all severity indices of the LSB-50. In contrast, negative humor styles, particularly self-defeating humor, positively predicted the severity indices. Being female, working night shifts, and having temporary contracts were positive predictors of most global indices of the LSB-50. Conclusions: This study highlights the importance of considering different types of humor as a potential strategy for improving the mental health of healthcare professionals, as well as the influence of other independent variables related to their personal and work environment. Positive humor styles, specifically affiliative and self-enhancing humor, are associated with a lower prevalence of psychological symptoms among healthcare professionals. Negative humor styles are correlated with a higher prevalence of these symptoms.
... Furthermore, there can be no private humour (in a Wittgensteinian sense, for a detailed take on the private language argument, see Wittgenstein, 1986Wittgenstein, [1953) so humour is an inherently interpersonal feature. It is worth mentioning that even if humour is essentially a social feature, it clearly has an intrapersonal function as well (see Martin et al., 2003;Heintz & Ruch, 2019) which helps a person to cope with various kinds of negative life events. Also, the humour can be self-enhancing and affiliative, as has been noted by Elena Samfira and Ionel Samfira (2023). ...
... This unexpectedness or perhaps unfittingness requires, in our estimation, openness also on a conceptual/theoretical level. Of course, it is possible to joke about, say, oneself (see Martin et al., 2003), and in this case, there is probably no surprises for the joke teller. Even so, we can interpret that the incongruity is perceived between the individual and society's expectations, his or her own wishes in relation to common ideals, or some similar mismatch. ...
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This article explores the relationship between humour and humanism. We argue that humour is a pivotal part of human life, and demonstrate that it plays a significant role in the writings of various humanist authors. The very phenomenon and acknowledgement of the phenomenon of humour functions as a counterargument against those critics, especially posthumanists, who claim that the subject of humanism is an overly rational isolated atom. Our rigorous philosophical analysis will show that humour is an essential human feature, often neglected by such critics. Furthermore, our humane position on humour will offer an important complementation to the ethics of humour. In a humanist framework we defend the broadness of humour and argue against fixed universal rules. Instead, we believe that the ethics of humour is very much about respecting the other as a full human being.
... These studies often use the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (Watson et al., 1988), which measures the current experience of positive (and negative) emotions, which is also different than the ability to manage one's positive emotions. We found a similar concept in some research on the psychology of humor, where Martin et al. (2003) developed a subscale called "self-enhancing humor" as part of their Humor Styles Questionnaire. This scale includes a few items on using humor to cope in ways that we consider to be one aspect of the skill of positive emotion regulation. ...
... e.g., "I don't let small problems ruin my day"). In addition to the mixed-methods approach described above, this scale was also developed after a review of relevant measures such as the Humor Styles Questionnaire (Martin et al., 2003). Psychological Endurance (Hamby, Grych, et al., 2018) measures the ability to persevere despite challenges (six items, α = .74, ...
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Although many psychosocial strengths have been explored, there remains a need to identify under-appreciated strengths that help people overcome trauma. The objective of this study was to explore the resilience potential of 16 psychosocial strengths—including 4 understudied strengths (positive emotion regulation, self-reliance, relational motivation, and group connectedness)—for helping people overcome trauma. The understudied strengths were identified in previous qualitative work as salient in the southeastern communities where the study took place. The sample was comprised of 357 adults recruited from community events in Tennessee. Their average age was 37.6 years ( SD 15.6), and the sample was 65.8% female. They completed a survey with measures of 16 psychosocial strengths, polyvictimization, and a range of outcomes. Blockwise logistic regressions were conducted using subjective well-being and trauma symptoms as the outcome. Results indicated that positive emotion regulation was the best predictor of positive functioning after experiencing trauma. Polystrengths (an indicator of the breadth of a person’s resilience portfolios), a sense of purpose, and social support received were also associated with better functioning after controlling for polyvictimization, other adversities, and demographics. In multivariate analyses, religious meaning-making and relational motivation were unexpectedly associated with worse outcomes. Most studies of emotion regulation only explore the regulation of negative emotions, such as distress and anger, but the capacity to regulate positive emotions shows promise for helping people overcome trauma. The support for polystrengths, despite mixed findings for some strengths, points to the urgent need to identify the most helpful elements of resilience portfolios.
... Comedians often subvert Background Laughter serves as a universally recognized expression of joy and amusement, often facilitated by humor. Research into humor has highlighted its psychological and social benefits, such as enhancing social bonds and providing emotional relief [1,2]. Despite the widespread recognition of these benefits, the mechanisms underlying what makes something humorous remain a topic of ongoing debate. ...
... This aligns with theories of relief, which suggest that humor can function as a way to release negative emotions like anxiety or anger and evoke positive emotions. Literature supports the idea that humor can involve a range of emotions, from the expression of joy and happiness to the relief of negative feelings like sadness or anxiety [1,27]. ...
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Despite the pervasive influence of humor in society, comprehensive quantitative studies exploring its dimensions and societal reception are scarce. This study advances the field by analyzing stand-up comedy specials, linking linguistic elements to humor theories and audience ratings, using the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC-22). The analysis explored the presence and association of Affect, Social, and Cognitive dimensions with ratings of standup comedy shows. Statistical analyses entailed using linear mixed models, incorporating comedians as random effects. Female comedians consistently received lower ratings than males, reflecting historical gender biases, while recent shows received lower ratings than older ones, suggesting the challenge of surpassing pioneering works. Negative emotion positively influenced ratings, while negative mood words had a detrimental effect, highlighting the delicate balance in comedic narratives. Social markers significantly predicted ratings, with moralization negatively impacting them, while the use of social referents, particularly female pronouns, improved ratings. These findings offer valuable insights into the linguistic dynamics of stand-up comedy, informing future research and practice in the comedy industry. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s40359-024-02187-6.
... We measured humour preferences by combining two scales that represent two complementary dimensions of humour preferences that are used to measure affinity with political humour (Hmielowski et al., 2011): liking of humour used by others (Neuendorf et al., 2014) and humour self-use (Martin et al., 2003). In total, the scales consisted of 16 and 32 items, respectively. ...
... In comparison, although humor is generally regarded as an adaptive stress-coping mechanism, it is crucial to note that various types of humor exist, including affiliative, self-deprecating, and avoidant humor (Martin et al., 2003). Some of these types may be linked to maladaptive coping strategies and potentially contribute to excessive Internet use. ...
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Problematic Internet use (PIU) is a significant mental health concern. Previous research has focused on the risk and protective factors associated with PIU but has overlooked the specific categories of stress and protective factors that individuals encounter in real-life situations from a person-centered approach. The sample consisted of 2186 Chinese junior high school students who completed questionnaires assessing cumulative stress and protective factors regarding PIU. Using latent profile analysis (LPA), a person-centered statistical approach, a three-profile model of cumulative stress for PIU was suggested as the optimum: high punishment-peer victimization, high punishment-negative social relationships, and high academic pressure-health adaptation stress. As for protective factors against PIU, a three-profile solution (low levels of protective factors-high humor, low levels of protective factors-high emotional intelligence, and high levels of protective factors-low emotional intelligence) was also the most appropriate one in our study. Finally, analysis of variance (ANOVA) was employed to examine disparities in PIU across different profiles. These findings emphasized the differences in profiles of cumulative stress and protective factors on PIU scores, suggesting that intervention practitioners should provide targeted interventions for these distinct groups.
... Presentation describes the "medium, the setting in which humor is presented, the humorist's delivery" (Paletz, 1990, p. 487). Another typology distinguishes four types of humor: self-enhancing, affiliative, self-defeating, and aggressive humor (Martin et al., 2003). Political satire, as a different form of political information, is intended to attract an audience in a more demanding and cognitively appealing way. ...
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The paper deals with the discursive dimension of two episodes of the Russo–Ukrainian war: The rebellion of Yevgeny Prigoshin (founder of the Wagner private military company) on 23 June 2023, and his death in an airplane crash on 23 August 2023. This dimension is implemented in Ukrainian and Russian political humor. Political satire, as a form of Humorous Media Political Discourse, can be described by its target, focus and setting. Political cartoons and memes, as genres of Humorous Media Political Discourse, can be defined by their goals, frame of reference and means. These corresponding parameters (goal–target, frame of reference–focus, means–setting), as well as the correlation between the discursive dimension and social context, provide the analytical framework for the paper. The methodology is based on the discourse and multimodality theories. Special attention is paid to the interaction of verbal and nonverbal elements in cartoons and memes, as well to similarities and differences in Ukrainian and Russian cartoons and memes depicting Yevgeny Prigoshin’s rebellion and his death.
... The psychosocial resources assessed in this study included social support, sleep quality, emotion regulation skills in cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression, and the use of humor to promote self-esteem and affiliation with others which have each been identified as aspects of resilience in the context of coping with chronic stress (Schetter & Dolbier, 2011). All psychosocial resources were measured using adolescent self-report on four questionnaires: the receiving subscale of the two-way Social Support Scale (Shakespeare-Finch & Obst, 2011), the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (Gross & John, 2003), the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (Buysse et al., 1989), and the Humor Styles Questionnaire (Martin et al., 2003). All of these instruments demonstrated acceptable to excellent internal consistency within this sample, α . ...
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The COVID-19 pandemic disturbed the lives of adolescents during a sensitive period of development, and further disadvantaged communities already burdened with limited resources. Although there has consistently been discourse on human suffering during and since the COVID-19 pandemic, little attention has been paid to flourishing during this time of extraordinary adversity. Flourishing describes individuals when they are reporting high or frequent hedonic and eudaimonic experiences. In the present study, resilience was modeled by the association between early life adversity (ELA) and flourishing.The mediating role of two indices of psychosocial resources (cumulative and compensatory) was also modeled as a function of individual differences in the impact of COVID-19 in their lives. Data collected from 223 predominantly Hispanic/Latino youth (age 11–18) assessed between April 2021 and April 2022 as part of a community-engaged partnership was used. Based on adolescent self-report on the Mental Health Continuum-Short Form, 36.3% met the criteria for flourishing. Parallel moderated mediation showed that having more ELA exposure was associated with a lower likelihood of flourishing (p < .001) and this association was differentially explained by compensatory psychosocial resources depending on COVID-19 impact. Among adolescents experiencing high COVID-19 impact, ELA was associated with a lower likelihood of flourishing via lower compensatory psychosocial resources, the indirect effect at high COVID-19 impact b = −0.01 (SE = 0.007). These results underscore the importance of considering ELA and recent stress in conceptualizations of adolescent flourishing and demonstrate the potential advantages of interventions that increase compensatory psychosocial resources among ELA-exposed youth.
... Martin et al. 46 proposed the existence of four styles of humor that can be divided into two groups. One group, composed of aggressive and self-defeating humor, is considered to be potentially harmful to one's relationships as it may alienate others. ...
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The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively influenced families across the world and contributed to the likelihood of increased parental burnout and decreased parental psychological well-being. However, not all parents experienced parental burnout during the pandemic. In the current study, we focused on protective factors that buffered the negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on parents and supported parents’ quality of life. Based on previous literature, we hypothesized optimism, humor, and resilience will be associated with lower levels of parental burnout. Two hundred and eighty-one Israeli parents participated in the study, completing questionnaires during the government-mandated lockdown. Questionnaires examined information pertaining to both participants’ personal characteristics (optimism and pessimism, self-enhancing humor, resilience, parental stress, and perceptions of the youngest child’s functioning) and background characteristics (parental age, gender, health condition, socioeconomic status, employment status, and youngest child’s age) to examine the relationship between these variables and parental burnout. Findings indicate that resilience, optimism, and humor facilitated reduced parental burnout and enhanced parental well-being during the pandemic. However, these variables were not associated with parents’ stress perception. This study sheds light on the importance of having an optimistic perspective, positive sense of humor, and resilience at times of prolonged stress. Implications for interventions targeting optimistic attitudes and humor are suggested.
... Humour is defined as any communicative instance intended or perceived as being amusing, related to cognitive and affective reactions in the recipient (Romero & Cruthirds, 2006). Various (workplace) humour types are differentiated in the literature (Martin et al., 2003). First, humour is either used to enhance the self (e.g., presenting oneself in a positive light) or to enhance the relationship with others (e.g., making others feel good). ...
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(Workplace) humour can have positive effects on interpersonal (workplace) relationships. However, sexist humour – a form of subtle discrimination that communicates disparagement or degradation at the expense of (mainly) women in a humorous manner – might be highly detrimental in various ways. Despite sexist humour being pervasive in the workplace, little is known about when, how, and why sexist humour impacts the recipients and their work relationship with the initiator. With two pre-registered studies, theoretically based on affective events theory and social identity theory, this research advances knowledge on the interpersonal effects and gender dynamics of sexist humour at work. In the experimental Study 1, 255 participants rated an actor telling a (non-)sexist joke. In the field Study 2, 170 participants recalled a (non-)sexist humour event they encountered at work. Both studies produced converging results: Recipients of sexist humour were less willing to collaborate with the humour initiator and perceived them as less competent; this was psychologically explained by elevated negative affect. These detrimental effects particularly emerged when a man (vs. woman) initiated sexist humour toward a woman (vs. man).
... Whilst the sexist and homophobic nature of banter associated with lad culture is externally problematic to bystanders, as female objectification is associated with sexual violence (Jackson & Sundaram, 2020) and homophobic name-calling decreases wellbeing (Poteat & Espelage, 2007), in the specific context of heterosexual male-to-male banter engaging in such behaviours are a mechanism to build cohesion. Through engaging in banter as a form of affiliative humour with peers, social relationships and bonds are likely to be strengthened and reinforced (Kuoper & McHale, 2009;Martin et al., 2003;Oosthuizen, 2021). In such situations, males in the interaction may use homophobic banter as a defence mechanism to demonstrate conformity to traditional gender roles, which in the realms of social identity theory (Tajfel et al., 1979) would suggest an acceptance of the in-group (heterosexuality) and a rejection of the out-group (homosexuality). ...
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Banter, a form of social communication, is used to facilitate social bonding in friendships and romantic relationships. However, associations between homosocial banter and “lad culture” and potential links to sexual violence and lower wellbeing have highlighted a problematic side to such interactions, especially among males during emerging adulthood. Despite male banter often involving homophobic comments and homosocial behaviour, banter experiences of gay men have to date largely been ignored in the literature. The aim of this study was to explore how gay men in a university setting understand and perceive banter. The data were devised from semi-structured interviews (n = 6, 20–22 years; male). An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) explored the participants’ experiences of banter in their everyday interactions, including within their same-sex friendships and romantic relationships. Themes highlighted how language and behaviours typical of homosocial banter often created a sense of unease when engaging with heterosexual friends, but banter use and perception could be influenced by context and social relationship. Complexities of navigating the ambiguity of banter are discussed.
... FeinGold−Mazzella 1991;Köhler−ruch 1996;Martin−leFcourt 1984;ruch 1996;SvebaK 1996;thorSon−Powell 1993). Az elmúlt évtizedek nem zetközi szakirodalmában a humorérzék terminus helyett gyakran találkozunk a humorstílus kifejezéssel (Craik et al. 1996;Martin et al. 2003), amely pontosabb, részletezőbb képet kíván adni az egyén humoráról és ennek társas vonatkozásairól. (A humorstílus terminus alkalmazása stíluselméleti vonatkozásainak, implikációi nak tárgyalását ugyanakkor a tanulmány nem tekinti céljának.). ...
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A cikk az irónia és a humorérzék kapcsolatát tárgyalja. Kutatásunk az irónia népi kategóriájából indul ki, vagyis azt tekintjük iróniának, illetve ironikusnak, amit az emberek iróniának, illetve ironikusnak tartanak. Kérdésfeltevéseinkben ugyanakkor érvényesítjük a funkcionális kognitív pragmatika iróniaértelmezésének egyes elméleti és módszertani háttérfeltevéseit: az a feltevés, hogy az irónia a reflexivitást, a nyelvi megismerés egyik alapvető tulajdonságát, és különösen a résztvevők metapragmatikus tudatosságát, kibontakozó módon kamatoztatja. A kutatás kiinduló hipotézise szerint a humorérzék pozitív korrelációban áll mind az irónia produkciójával, mind annak megértésével. Az empirikus vizsgálat kétlépcsős: két, egymásra épülő online kérdőíves vizsgálatban mérjük a humorérzék összefüggését egyfelől az irónia létrehozásával, másfelől a megértésével. A vizsgálatban a humorra való képesség méréséhez sztenderd teszteket alkalmazunk. Az irónia produkciójának és felismerésének vizsgálata pedig 15 képi stimulus segítségével történik, amelyhez az első kérdőív kitöltőitől ironikus képaláírásokat kértünk, hogy ezek ironikusságát a második kérdőív kitöltőivel megítéltethessük.
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Deployments are stressful for both service members and their families. To promote the overall health and welfare of those impacted by military deployment, it is important to identify individual resilience-building resources that service members can employ to strengthen their own well-being, the well-being of their families, and the readiness of the force. This pilot study examines different resilience-building skills that may impact individual well-being, relationship quality, and family satisfaction post-deployment. A cross-sectional sample of 78 married U.S. military enlisted service members (n = 24) and commissioned officers (n = 54) completed the Coping Self-Efficacy Scale, Resilience Scale for Adults, Humor Styles Questionnaire, Mindful Attention Awareness Scale, Dispositional Resilience Scale, the emotional well-being and spirituality subscales of the Work-Life Well-Being Inventory, and the Social Problem-Solving Inventory-Revised. The use of a positive humor style was significantly associated with individual well-being. Spirituality and religious practices were significantly predictive of a service member’s family satisfaction. Responding to qualitative open-ended questions, service members identified their top 6 subcategories of stress, which were communication, moving, finances, family separation, children, and future employment during post-deployment. The strengths and resources reported as contributing the most to family effectiveness and well-being were personal character traits, external relationship skills, emotional maturity, and the ability to work. The results identified unique individual resilience-building resources for service members, which contribute to their well-being and the well-being of their families. Findings suggest that training on individual resilience-building resources for service members can offer support to the entire family system following military deployment.
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Regulation Focused Psychotherapy for Children (RFP-C) is a manualized, time-limited, psychodynamic approach for children who experience challenges with emotion regulation and demonstrate externalizing behavior problems (Hoffman et al., 2016). In research settings, it takes place over ten weeks and includes 16 sessions with the child and four with the child’s parents. This protocol can be extended or modified in regular clinical practice. The current study utilized a dual case study method to analyze pretreatment and post-treatment measures and compare psychotherapy outcomes and process in RFP-C between a successful and an unsuccessful case. Data examined included (a) quantitative outcome measures; (b) case conceptualizations and clinical vignettes drawn from review of session videos; (c) post-treatment interviews with parent, child, and therapist; and (d) psychotherapy process codings of child and parent sessions. These data were employed to (a) identify differential psychotherapy processes; (b) assess parental defense mechanisms; (c) assess parental attachment classifications; and (d) evaluate therapist countertransference ratings. Results indicated that many variables contributed to successful versus unsuccessful treatment outcomes, including but not limited to (a) the child’s spontaneity; (b) the child’s active participation and emotional expression throughout treatment; (c) themes of child play; (d) the therapist’s countertransference; (e) the child and parental defense mechanisms; and (f) the parental attachment styles. Taken together, findings from this study contribute to the literature on therapeutic outcomes for children and families and highlight some of the essential characteristics of successful psychotherapy process. Limitations of the study and directions for future research are also discussed.
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This research uses a self-report questionnaire to examine how humour styles based on Martin’s taxonomy (affiliative, self-enhancing, aggressive, and self-defeating) may moderate the relationship between Dark Triad personality traits (Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy) and bullying behaviors among 662 university students. Significant positive correlations between Dark Triad traits and bullying emerged, as well as gender, with males scoring higher in all variables. Moderation analyses showed that affiliative humour reduced the impact of narcissism on bullying, while aggressive enhanced it. Additionally, self-enhancing and aggressive humour increased the impact of psychopathy on bullying behaviors. These results suggest that humour styles play a crucial role in the dynamics of bullying in relation to Dark Triad personality traits, offering new insights for intervention strategies.
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Chronic disease leads to death, disability, and costs. Humor has been studied as an emotion-focused way of coping with chronic disease; however, it is unclear whether type of humor used moderates the relationship between health difficulties and quality of life. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationships between four types of humor (i.e., affiliative, self-enhancing, aggressive, and self-defeating humor), health difficulties and quality of life in individuals diagnosed with a chronic disease ( n = 195; mean age = 34.14, SD = 9.06; 56.7 % male; 74.1 % White/European American) using a cross-sectional, correlational design. Utilizing hierarchical multiple regression and controlling for demographic and lifestyle variables, four humor styles (affiliative, self-enhancing, aggressive and self-defeating) moderated the relationships between health difficulties and quality of life. As health difficulties increased, greater use of self-enhancing, aggressive and self-defeating humor was associated with greater quality of life, while affiliative humor was associated with lower quality of life. Clinical and research applications that implement humor as a coping strategy may help to decrease the burden of living with a chronic disease.
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Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate the relationships between alexithymia, humor styles and anxiety levels and the nature of these relationships. Method: The sample of the study consisted of 254 students from Beykent University. In the context of the research, “Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-26)” was used to measure alexithymia levels, “Humor Styles Questionnaire (HSQ)” was used to measure humor styles, “State and Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI)” was used to measure anxiety levels. In addition, the Sociodemographic Data Form, prepared by the researchers included various sociodemographic variables, was used. Results: Research findings indicate that different dimensions of alexithymia are associated with both state and trait anxiety. Alexithymic features are negatively associated with the positive use of humor and positively associated with negative use. On the other hand, positive use of humor is negatively correlated with anxiety levels. In addition, alexithymia, humor styles and anxiety levels seem to be related to sociodemographic variables such as age, gender, education levels of parents, parental working status, psychiatric diagnosis in the participant and his/her caregiver, and history of physical illness in the participant. Alexithymia, different dimensions of alexithymia and anxiety levels predict humor. Conclusion: The results of this study indicate that the variables of alexithymia, anxiety levels and humor styles are correlated with each other and with various sociodemographic variables in different dimensions. Since the sample of the study consists of students from a private university, it is not possible to generalize the results to the student population representing this age group. Keywords: Alexithymia, Anxiety Levels, Humor Styles
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The purpose of the present study was to analyse the previous literature and identify the trend changes in studies of humour styles within four categories: psychological well-being, physical health, personality and counselling/therapy from 1995 to 2021. This systematic analysis included 65 articles published in different journals and available at SCOPUS, Taylor & Francis and PubMed databases. Results indicated that positive humour styles have a positive impact in all the four categories of study while negative humour styles affected individual’s lives negatively. Qualitative study and psychological well-being have dominated the field of humour studies. We see an increase in humour studies publication after the year 2016 with most publications appearing in 2017.
Article
Ethical leadership is essential for cultivating a productive and competitive workforce, with psychologically empowered employees as a significant result of effective leadership. Despite its significance, scant research has examined the impact of ethical leadership on psychological empowerment within Malaysia's oil refinery industry. This study seeks to investigate the influence of ethical leadership on employees' psychological empowerment in the oil refinery sector in Bintulu, Sarawak. A quantitative methodology was employed to gather data from a random sample of 108 employees via a 26-item questionnaire. The Ethical Leadership Scale developed by Brown et al. was utilised to evaluate ethical leadership, whereas Spreitzer’s Psychological Empowerment Model (1995) was implemented to measure employee empowerment. Descriptive and inferential analyses indicated elevated levels of ethical leadership and psychological empowerment within the examined organisation. The results demonstrate that ethical leadership practices substantially enhance employee empowerment, fostering a workforce that gains from leadership exemplifying ethical conduct. This study elucidates the beneficial correlation between ethical leadership and psychological empowerment, enhancing comprehension of how ethical leadership cultivates empowered employees in the oil refinery industry of Bintulu, Sarawak.
Chapter
This research aims to enhance the comprehension of humour within the realms of marketing practice and scholarship, specifically regarding its definition and classification. Although the primary emphasis is on a marketing viewpoint, the study seeks to present insights into humour that could facilitate its development. In order to address these concerns, a conceptual analysis was conducted on over a hundred papers and 19 expert interviews, which included professional comedians and researchers in humour. The study provides a new definition of humour, encompassing its main identified characteristics and highlighting its ambivalent nature as a double-edged sword capable of instigating both negative and positive outcomes. Furthermore, it provides a new typology of humour applicable to modern use such as meme marketing. Thus far, the literature had focused on the understanding and use of humour in advertising, whilst few studies had delved into other applications. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first to address how humour has been wielded in marketing practice and research and how it can be understood in this academic discipline. Furthermore, although prior definitions and typologies of humour exist, they address fragmented characteristics which could benefit from a holistic approach.
Article
Purpose By integrating insights from cognitive style literature and person-environment fit theory, our study aims to explore which type of entrepreneurs are more inclined to initiate humor behaviors, the circumstances under which such behaviors are more likely to be employed within entrepreneurial teams and the specific benefits of humor behaviors for initiators. Design/methodology/approach This paper analyzes humor behaviors in entrepreneurial teams through a three-wave time-lagged field survey of 227 entrepreneurs in China. Findings We find that entrepreneurs with higher creating style are more likely to exhibit humor, making them more popular within entrepreneurial teams. Additionally, the positive relationship is amplified in the presence of high levels of conflict. Originality/value Previous studies provide substantial evidence of the positive effects of humor behaviors on their recipients in the workplace; however, there has been limited focus on the antecedents of humor behaviors and the benefits for the humor initiators. Our study addresses the gaps by providing empirical evidence that creating style of entrepreneurs may promote humor behaviors, particularly in the context of conflicts within entrepreneurial teams, and such behaviors could elevate entrepreneurs’ social acceptance within teams.
Article
Psikolojinin temel amaçlarından biri, insan davranışını anlamak, açıklamak, öngörmek ve kontrol etmektir. Bu amaç doğrultusunda ve özellikle örneğin, işe alımlarda eleman seçerken kişilik özellikleri insan davranışını tanımlayan temel birimlerden biri olarak kabul edilir. Kaygı, Dışadönüklük, Deneyime Açıklık, Geçimlilik ve Sorumluluk olarak adlandırılan 5 ana kişilik özelliğiyle kişilikteki özellikler yaklaşımı, literatürde uluslararası düzeyde yaygın olarak kullanılan ve iyi bilinen bir modeldir. Bu beş özelliğin paralel formları Türkiye ve diğer farklı ülke ve kültürel bağlamlarda geliştirilmiş olmasına rağmen, bu özelliklerin içeriği ve sayısı ekonomik olarak gelişmiş sosyal bağlamlar dışındaki ülkelerde yeterince sorgulanmamış ve tartışılmamıştır. Bu çalışmanın amacı, sözlük yaklaşımının prosedürünü kullanarak, Türkçe sözlük dağarcığında kişilik özelliklerini tanımlamak için kullanılan kelimelerin, içerik açısından beş faktör modelini doğrulayıp doğrulamadığını belirlemek ve ayrıca, bu beş özellik dışında başka özelliklerin olup olmadığını kontrol etmektir. Bu amaç doğrultusunda, nitel analiz yoluyla seçilen ve 352’de karar kılınan kişilik tanımlayıcı kelimelere verilen yanıtlar 1178 katılımcıdan toplanmıştır. Analizlerin sonuçları, beş faktör modelini doğrulamıştır. Ancak buna ek olarak, beş faktör modeli içerisine sıkıştırılması işlevsel ve anlamlı gözükmeyen Merhametsizlik (psychoticism), Hırs-hedonizm (greed & Hedonism), Yumuşak huyluluk (modesty), Varoluşsal bütünlük (existential integration) ve Duygusal yönelim (emotional orientation) şeklinde beş yeni kişilik ana boyutu daha gözlemlenmiştir.
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استهدف هذا البحث تحديد تأثير الإعلان الفكاهي علي صورة العلامة، وفي ضوء مراجعة الدراسات السابقة تم استخلاص إطار مفاهيمي لأبعاد هذا البحث حيث تضمن متغيرين أساسين، المتغير المستقل (الإعلان الفكاهي) ويتمثل أربعة أبعاد (فكاهة التقارب، فكاهة تعزيز الذات، الفكاهة المحبطة للذات الفكاهة العدوانية)، والمتغير التابع ويتمثل في (صورة العلامة)، وتم الاعتماد في تجميع البيانات الأولية لهذا البحث علي عينة إنترنت اعتراضية، (412 مفردة) من عملاء شركات الاتصالات المصرية، كما استخدمت الباحثة مجموعة من البيانات الثانوية، تم الحصول عليها من الكتب والمقالات والدوريات والرسائل العلمية وتم تحليل البيانات باستخدام اسلوب الانحدار الخطي المتعدد، وتشير نتائج البحث إلي وجود تأثير معنوي إيجابي لأبعاد الإعلان الفكاهي مجتمعة معاً (فكاهة التقارب، فكاهة تعزيز الذات، الفكاهة المحبطة للذات، الفكاهة العدوانية) علي صورة العلامة، كما قدم البحث مجموعة من التوصيات التي تلقي الضوء علي أهمية الإعلان الفكاهي، والفكاهة العدوانية)، والمتغير التابع ويتمثل في (صورة العلامة)، وتم الاعتماد في تجميع البيانات الأولية لهذا البحث علي عينة إنترنت اعتراضية، (412 مفردة) من عملاء شركات الاتصالات المصرية، كما استخدمت الباحثة مجموعة من البيانات الثانوية، تم الحصول عليها من الكتب والمقالات والدوريات والرسائل العلمية وتم تحليل البيانات باستخدام اسلوب الانحدار الخطي المتعدد، وتشير نتائج البحث إلي وجود تأثير معنوي إيجابي لأبعاد الإعلان الفكاهي مجتمعة معاً (فكاهة التقارب، فكاهة تعزيز الذات، الفكاهة المحبطة للذات، الفكاهة العدوانية) علي صورة العلامة، كما قدم البحث مجموعة من التوصيات التي تلقي الضوء علي أهمية الإعلان الفكاهي
Chapter
In a world that at many times does not seem to have much humor, it is good to be reminded that the Bible tells us that it is not only acceptable to laugh, it is encouraged. While the Bible is clear in 1 Peter and in other places that we are to be “sober of mind,” it is just as clear in other places of the Bible that we are to be cheerful and ready to laugh. Now that I have covered the firsts of the “Three H’s,” humility and hope, it is time to move on to a characteristic that is not thought of very much when we look at leadership.
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This study analysed the influence of leadership humour on employees' advice and its mechanism of action. For this purpose, we constructed a model with leadership humour as the independent variable, employees' positive emotions as the mediator, superior-subordinate relationship as the moderator, and employees' advice as the dependent variable. We conducted a questionnaire survey using a random sampling methodand conducted empirical analyses on the valid data. The results showed that leadership humour, positive emotions, and superior and subordinate relations were all significantly and positively related to employee advice; positive emotions played a mediating role in the effect of leadership humour on employee advice; and superior and subordinate relations played a moderating role in the relationship between leadership humour and employee advice.
Conference Paper
This paper presents an approach to designing companion technologies for mental health based on a case study on social anxiety disorder (SAD). We highlight the potential of an irritating dimension of user experience and propose including irritating qualities in companions as a strategy to disrupt patterns of behavior and thought, support perspective change, and expand an individual’s comfort zone. Taking the Tamagotchi as a counterpoint to assisting technologies and combining frameworks and concepts from psychology and HCI, we propose the grounding metaphor of ‘caring for the companion as a form of self-care,’ arguing the potential of building reciprocal care relationships as a means by which to support emotional attachment and establish healthy routines. In this paper, we introduce this grounding metaphor and a set of principles for fostering positive irritations. Our framework provides a basis for exploring and developing novel paradigms and poses future directions for HCI.
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Negatively valued masculinity (M^A–)) and femininity (F^A–)) personality scales were developed to supplement the positively valued Masculinity (M^A+)) and Femininity (F^A+)) scales of J. T. Spence and R. L. Helmreich"s (1978) Personal Attributes Questionnaire. (M^A–)) consisted of traits that had been judged to be (a) more typical of males than females, (b) undesirable in both sexes, and (c) agentic or instrumental in content. Two (F^A–)) scales were developed, both containing stereotypically feminine, undesirable traits, one set of traits referring to communionlike characteristics and the other to verbal passive–aggressive qualities. In 220 male and 363 female undergraduates significant sex differences in the predicted direction were found on all scales. In both sexes, low and nonsignificant correlations were found between parallel positive and negative scales, but highly significant negative correlations were found between positive and negative cross-sex scales. Findings provide additional evidence for the multidimensionality of masculinity and femininity. Scores on a self-esteem measure were positively correlated with M^A+) and F^A+), uncorrelated with M^A–), and negatively correlated with the F^A–) scales. Different patterns were associated with 2 types of problem behaviors. Neuroticism was most highly correlated (negatively) with M^A+), and acting out behavior was most strongly correlated (positively) with M^A–). (14 ref)
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Describes the Social Support Questionnaire (SSQ) and 4 empirical studies employing it. The SSQ yields scores for (a) perceived number of social supports and (b) satisfaction with social support that is available. Three studies (N = 1,224 college students) dealt with the SSQ's psychometric properties, its correlations with measures of personality and adjustment, and the relation of the SSQ to positive and negative life changes. The 4th study (40 Ss) was an investigation of the relation between social support and persistence in working on a complex, frustrating task. The research reported suggests that the SSQ is a reliable instrument and that social support is (a) more strongly related to positive than negative life changes, (b) more related in a negative direction to psychological discomfort among women than men, and (c) an asset in enabling a person to persist at a task under frustrating conditions. Clinical implications are discussed. (47 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved).
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Psychology needs a metric for positive mental health that would be analogous to the IQ tests that measure above-average intelligence. The Defensive Function Scale of the DSM-IV offers a possible metric. In the present article the author links the transformational qualities of defenses at the mature end of the Defensive Function Scale - altruism, suppression, humor, anticipation, and sublimation - to positive psychology. First, the methodological problems involved in the reliable assessment of defenses are acknowledged. Next, the use of prospective longitudinal study to overcome such difficulties and to provide more reliable definition and measurement of defenses is outlined. Evidence is also offered that, unlike many psychological measures, the maturity of defenses is quite independent of social class, education, and IQ. Last, evidence is offered to illustrate the validity of mature defenses and their contribution to positive psychology.
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All published research examining effects of humor and laughter on physical health is reviewed. Potential causal mechanisms and methodological issues are discussed. Laboratory experiments have shown some effects of exposure to comedy on several components of immunity, although the findings are inconsistent and most of the studies have methodological problems. There is also some evidence of analgesic effects of exposure to comedy, although similar findings are obtained with negative emotions. Few significant correlations have been found between trait measures of humor and immunity, pain tolerance, or self-reported illness symptoms. There is also little evidence of stress-moderating effects of humor on physical health variables and no evidence of increased longevity with greater humor. More rigorous and theoretically informed research is needed before firm conclusions can be drawn about possible health benefits of humor and laughter.
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This study examined the circumstances surrounding the natural occurrence of laughter in everyday life. Eighty community participants (50 women and 30 men), ranging in age from 17 to 79, each completed a daily laughter record for three days, along with self-report measures of laughter responsiveness, coping humor, and Type A personality characteristics. Laughter incidents were coded according to time of day, source and initiator of laughter, and whether the individual was alone or with others. On average, participants reported approximately 18 daily incidents of laughter, but with wide individual variation being evident (0 to 89 incidents per day). Frequency of laughter also generally increased throughout the day, being most pronounced in the evenings. The most prominent source of daily laughter was spontaneous situational laughter, with "canned" jokes accounting for the least amount of naturally generated laughter. In accord with the primarily social nature of laughter, most incidents of laughter occurred in the presence of others, and were also initiated by others. Overall, men and women did not differ in the frequency with which they laughed. However, gender differences did emerge when age was taken into account. Older women tended to laugh less frequently than did younger women, but this age difference was not found in men. In addition, for both men and women, older individuals did not show the general increase in frequency of laughter during the evening. Gender differences also emerged in the correlations between total laughter frequency and personality variables. For example, a higher frequency of daily laughter was associated with greater Type A characteristics in men, but with fewer Type A characteristics in women. These findings are discussed in terms of possible gender differences in the meaning and function of laughter.
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The abstract for this document is available on CSA Illumina.To view the Abstract, click the Abstract button above the document title.
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The present paper outlines the relevance of cheerfulness, seriousness, and bad mood for humor research. A state-trait model of exhilaratability is presented which incorporates the three concepts as both states and traits. Definitions of the concepts are undertaken utilizing a facet approach and the relationships among the three concepts are outlined. The construction strategy for the various forms of the German version of the State-Trait-Cheerfulness-Inventory (STCI) is outlined and the following versions of the trait form will be elaborated: (a) the pilot form with 122 items (STCI-T < 122 >); (b) a component (or long) form with 106 items (STCI-T < 106 >); (c) the standard form with 60 items (STCI-T < 60 >) and (d) the international form with 106 items (STCI-T < 106i >). The development of the two forms, the replication of the psychometric characteristics, and the evaluation of the facet model utilized samples of German and American adults comprising more that 1,300 subjects altogether. The hypothesized facet structure emerged and appeared to be highly generalizable across the samples. The psychometric characteristics of the facets and scales appeared to be satisfactory. While there were no sex differences in any of the scales, seriousness increased steadily after age 40. Correspondence between self- and peer-evaluation was examined and turned out to be sufficiently high. The construction seemed to have been successful in providing a reliable instrument for the assessment of the temperamental basis of the sense of humor.
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The Situational Humor Response Questionnaire (SHRQ) and the Coping Humor Scale (CHS) are self-report measures of different aspects of the sense of humor that were developed in the context of an investigation of the stress-moderating effects of humor. The SHRQ assesses the degree to which subjects laugh and smile in a wide variety of situations, and the CHS measures the degree to which respondents make use of humor in coping with stress in their lives. Both scales have been translated into more than 10 languages, and a fairly large body of research findings has accumulated, providing evidence for the reliability and construct validity of these measures. This article reviews research on these scales with regard to (1) the stress-moderator hypothesis, (2) correlations with coping-related variables, and (3) the factor space occupied by the measures. The paper addresses the range of usefulness of both measures, as well as their limitations as measures of sense of humor.
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Empirical research on humor has perpetuated, rather than challenged, stereotypes of the humorless female. Among other biases, it has neglected participants' own definitions of “sense of humor” and their own accounts of their preferences and practices. In this study, 203 participants (72 males, 131 females) answered a 68-item Humor Questionnaire and also wrote a narrative about a person with an outstanding sense of humor. Factor analysis of the questionnaire revealed ten dimensions of humor, with four of the ten producing gender differences. Content analysis of the narratives produced a detailed account of the participants' definition of sense of humor. Both males and females viewed creativity, contextual relevance, and caring as components of an outstanding sense of humor. Gender similarities and differences are discussed in relation to the conversational context of spontaneous humor.
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Three studies, conducted with 143 undergraduates, are reported that investigated the hypothesis, long held by theorists, therapists, and laypersons alike, that a sense of humor reduces the deleterious impact of stressful experiences. In each study a negative-life-events checklist was used to predict stress scores on a measure of mood disturbance. These studies made use of different measures of Ss' sense of humor, including 4 self-report scales and 2 behavioral assessments of Ss' ability to produce humor under nonstressful and mildly stressful conditions. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses revealed that 5 of the 6 humor measures produced a significant moderating effect on the relation between negative life events and mood disturbance. Ss with low humor scores obtained higher correlations between these 2 variables than did those with high humor scores. Results provide initial evidence for the stress-buffering role of humor. (42 ref)
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Describes the development of the Situational Humor Response Questionnaire (SHRQ) and reports a reliability study with 497 undergraduates and 3 validity studies with 125 undergraduates. Reliability coefficients were in the 70's, and significant correlations were found between the SHRQ and a number of criteria, including mirth responses during an interview, peer ratings of Ss' sense of humor, a measure of positive mood, and rated wittiness of impromptu comedy monologs. The SHRQ is included. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
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Reigning measures of psychological well-being have little theoretical grounding, despite an extensive literature on the contours of positive functioning. Aspects of well-being derived from this literature (i.e., self-acceptance, positive relations with others, autonomy, environmental mastery, purpose in life, and personal growth) were operationalized. Three hundred and twenty-one men and women, divided among young, middle-aged, and older adults, rated themselves on these measures along with six instruments prominent in earlier studies (i.e., affect balance, life satisfaction, self-esteem, morale, locus of control, depression). Results revealed that positive relations with others, autonomy, purpose in life, and personal growth were not strongly tied to prior assessment indexes, thereby supporting the claim that key aspects of positive functioning have not been represented in the empirical arena. Furthermore, age profiles revealed a more differentiated pattern of well-being than is evident in prior research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
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Responds to comments by A. C. Bohart and T Greening, S. B. Shapiro, G. Bacigalupe, R. Walsh, W. C. Compton, C. L. McLafferty and J. D. Kirylo, N. Abi-Hashem, A. C. Catania, G. K. Lampropoulos, and T. M. Kelley (see records 2002-15384-010, 2002-15384-011, 2002-15384-012, 2002-15384-013, 2002-15384-014, 2002-15384-015, 2002-15384-016, 2002-15384-017, 2002-15384-018, and 2002-15384-019, respectively) on the January 2000, Vol 55(1) special issue of the American Psychologist dedicated to positive psychology. M. E. P. Seligman and M. Csikszentmihalyi expand on some of the critical themes discussed in the commentaries. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
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There are pervasive sex differences in psychological and physical well-being, many of which can be linked to the differential socialization of men and women. Numerous studies have linked psychological masculinity and femininity to well-being. In the present article, this literature is explained by focusing on the specific personality traits captured by conventional measures of masculinity and femininity: agency (focus on self and forming separations) and communion (focus on others and forming connections), respectively. Both agency and communion are required for optimal well-being (D. Bakan, 1966); when one exists in the absence of the other (unmitigated communion or unmitigated agency), however, negative health outcomes occur. Research that is consistent with this idea is presented, and the processes by which unmitigated agency and unmitigated communion affect well-being are explored. These processes involve control, social support, and health behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Book
This volume brings together the current approaches to the definition and measurement of the sense of humor and its components. It provides both an overview of historic approaches and a compendium of current humor inventories and humor traits that have been studied. Presenting the only available overview and analysis of this significant facet of human behavior, this volume will interest researchers from the fields of humor and personality studies as well as those interested in the clinical or abstract implications of the subject. © 1998 by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co., D-10785 Berlin. All rights reserved.
Article
A new questionnaire on aggression was constructed. Replicated factor analyses yielded 4 scales: Physical Aggression, Verbal Aggression, Anger, and Hostility. Correlational analysis revealed that anger is the bridge between both physical and verbal aggression and hostility. The scales showed internal consistency and stability over time. Men scored slightly higher on Verbal Aggression and Hostility and much higher on Physical Aggression. There was no sex difference for Anger. The various scales correlated differently with various personality traits. Scale scores correlated with peer nominations of the various kinds of aggression. These findings suggest the need to assess not only overall aggression but also its individual components.
Article
Article
There are pervasive sex differences in psychological and physical well-being, many of which can be linked to the differential socialization of men and women. Numerous studies have linked psychological masculinity and femininity to well-being. In the present article, this literature is explained by focusing on the specific personality traits captured by conventional measures of masculinity and femininity: agency (focus on self and forming separations) and communion (focus on others and forming connections), respectively. Both agency and communion are required for optimal well-being (D. Bakan, 1966); when one exists in the absence of the other (unmitigated communion or unmitigated agency), however, negative health outcomes occur. Research that is consistent with this idea is presented, and the processes by which unmitigated agency and unmitigated communion affect well-being are explored. These processes involve control, social support, and health behavior.
Article
Article
The virtues are imbedded in a new field: positive psychology. With a definition and brief discussion of the parameters of positive psychology, various factors related to virtues are explored, including their public versus private aspects, domain-specific versus global characteristics, the necessity for careful claims regarding what we do and do not know in this area, progress in measurement, the need for interventions, the attention to communal matters, their natural bridges with health, and the overlap among them. In addition to exploring issues related to the present virtues of love, forgiveness, gratitude, humility, wisdom, control, and hope, additional virtues are noted. It is suggested that the interface of clinical, counseling, social, personality, and health psychology could profitably turn its attention to the study of virtues within the positive psychology paradigm.
Article
Preface and Acknowledgements. 1. The changing concerns of psychology. 2. The experiencing of humor in everyday life. 3. Early Conceptions of Humor in Religion, Medicine, Philosophy, and Psychology. 4. The Pervasiveness of Humor. 5. The Many Faces of Humor: Variations in the Types and Definitions of Humor. 6. The Development of Humor: Accounting for Individual Differences in Humor. 7. The Effects of Stress Upon Emotion and Health. 8. Humor as an Emotion-Focused Coping Strategy. 9. Humor as a Means of Retaining Social Cohesion and Support. 10. Sense of Humor and Physiological Stress Responses. 11. Sex and Humor: Interactive Predictors of Health? 12. Summing Up. Appendices. References. Author Index. Subject Index.
Article
Two studies were conducted to examine the way in which humor could account for the stress moderator effects found in earlier research. In study one, perspective-taking humor measured by responses to Far Side cartoons was found to predict emotional responses during tasks in which mortality was salient. While most subjects were dysphoric following death-focusing exercises, those who had scored high on perspective-taking humor showed little change in affect. In study two, perspective-taking humor accounted for variance in systolic blood pressure during the recovery from an uncontrollable stress task. In contrast, such differences in recovery were not obtained following the administration of a more controllable stress task. These data were taken to offer some support for the idea that perspec tive-taking humor is more an emotion-focused coping technique that facilitates recovery from stressful circumstances than a means of dealing with the stress itself.
Article
The development of the Sense of Humor Questionnaire (SHQ) is reviewed in six sections. First, early approaches to sense of humor assessments are reviewed to the extent that these approaches provided a reference for the need of a new scale. A second section presents the ideas and evaluations that guided the overall approach to the preliminary SHQ content formation. A third section describes the content of the pre-published SHQ and problems that emerged from the use of this scale in empirical research. The 1974 revision of the SHQ is presented in a separate section along with the available information on its psychometric characteristics and an evaluation of its usefulness in empirical research. A fifth section offers a review of some of the findings from other groups using the SHQ and a final section describes the content and psychometric properties of a recent six-item revision of the SHQ (SHQ-6) that appears to overcome some of the shortcomings of the previous versions of the scale. The SHQ-6 items and scoring format are included.
Article
This study systematically examines the relations between the folk concept of ''sense of humor'' and the behavioral domain of everyday humorous conduct. Participants completed our Humorous Behavior e-sort Deck (HBQD) and a set of self-ratings contributing to an overall sense of humor index as well as personality measures including the California Psychological Inventory and the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. Our analyses revealed that overall sense of humor subsumed only a delimited and specific set of humor-related behaviors, in particular, socially constructive and competent forms of humorous conduct within interpersonal contexts. Results with the HBQD further indicated that overall sense of humor was positively associated with only two dimensions of humorous conduct (Socially Warm Versus Cold humorous style and Competent versus Inept humorous style) and unrelated to three others (Reflective versus Boorish, Earthy versus Repressed and Benign versus Mean-spirited humorous styles). Sense of humor was also found to be linked to socially desirable behaviors, but only those behaviors associated with social warmth and competence and not the entire range of socially desirable forms of humor. Analysis of the concept of ''sense of humor'' among subsamples of extraverts and introverts also revealed that although socially constructive uses of humor were important for both psychological types, humor competence figured more prominently in the introverts' notion of sense of humor. General personality characteristics were only minimally related to overall sense of humor, but revealed substantial and differentiated correlates to the styles of humorous conduct isolated by the HBQD. Overall, our findings argue strongly for a comprehensive approach to the assessment of individuals' understanding of humor and their styles of everyday humorous conduct.
Article
There has been a renaissance of research interest in the "sense of humor" in recent years, partly äs an attempt to define the concept but more strenuously to provide Instruments for its measurement. A quick count of recent publications shows an average of two to three new sense of humor- instruments per year — or one every four to six months. This intensity of research is unparalleled in the history of humor research and contrasts sharply with 25 years ago when the renewal of interest in humor feil into a period where cognitive approaches dominated the Zeitgeist in psychology, and the long tradition of personality research in humor was at a point of Stagnation. As an indicator, the "classic" anthologies Psychology of Humor (1972, edited by Jeffrey Goldstein and Paul McGhee) and Humor and Laughter (1976, edited by Tony Chapman and Hugh Foot) contained no chapter on personality and humor. Perhaps even more striking, "sense of humor" did not appear among the index terms in the former. In the latter, the index guides the reader to Lawrence LaFave's suspicion that the sense of humor is merely a "myopic illusion" (LaFave, Haddad, and Maesen 1976: 79).
Article
The CES-D scale is a short self-report scale designed to measure depressive symptomatology in the general population. The items of the scale are symptoms associated with depression which have been used in previously validated longer scales. The new scale was tested in household interview surveys and in psychiatric settings. It was found to have very high internal consistency and adequate test- retest repeatability. Validity was established by pat terns of correlations with other self-report measures, by correlations with clinical ratings of depression, and by relationships with other variables which support its construct validity. Reliability, validity, and factor structure were similar across a wide variety of demographic characteristics in the general population samples tested. The scale should be a useful tool for epidemiologic studies of de pression.
Article
Two experiments examined “jeer pressure,” which is a hypothesized inhibiting effect of observing another person being ridiculed. Jeer pressure was expected to induce conformity to others’ opinions; concern about failing or standing out; and conventional, uncreative thinking. In both experiments, participants observed videotapes containing either other-ridiculing humor, self-ridiculing humor, or nonridiculing or no humor. Participants then completed tasks that assessed conformity, fear of failure, and creativity. Results of both experiments showed that participants who viewed ridicule of others were more conforming and more afraid of failing than were those who viewed self-ridicule or no ridicule. Creativity was not influenced by the humor manipulation. Experiment 2 also included a lexical decision task to assess whether salience of potential rejection mediated the obtained behavioral effects. Salience of rejection mediated the effects of humor on fear of failure but not the effects of humor on conformity.
Article
Places humor more firmly in the literature concerned with coping processes, the moderation of stressful experiences, and health. This book tries to make it clear that humor is facilitative only at times and under certain conditions. At other times, personality characteristics such as beliefs about control, the accessibility of social support, and the depths of one's commitments may be equal or more prominent psychological tools when one must protect oneself from succumbing to the effects of particular stressors. The author takes the liberty of including anecdotes and stories to illustrate "humor in action." It is the hope of the author that the use of "hard data" and anecdotal reports makes the book useful for the academic and enjoyable at the same time. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Article
In 5 consecutive stressful tasks, with 60 male and 49 female undergraduates, the authors examined the role of humor as a potential stress moderator using systolic and diastolic blood pressure as an indication of cardiovascular reactivity. In all 5 tasks, the Coping Humor Scale interacted with sex in the prediction of blood pressure. The same pattern was found in response to each of the 5 tasks: Females who were higher in coping humor exhibited lower systolic blood pressure than females scoring lower on coping humor, while the reverse characterized males; males who scored high on the coping humor scale exhibited higher systolic blood pressure than males scoring low on that scale. Similar though less robust results were found when the Situational Humor Response Questionnaire was used as the measure of humor. In the Cold Pressor Task, which involves pain and endurance, interactions were found between humor, sex, and trials indicating a stress-moderator effect. The absence of interactions indicating stress moderation in most of the analyses with the other four stress tasks suggests that humor may play more of a role in moderating the impact of uncontrollable and passively experienced stressors. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Article
From among 250 MMPI items that discriminated significantly between teachers scoring high and teachers scoring low on the Minnesota Teacher Attitude Inventory, two sets of 50 items were selected (principally on the basis of content) to form a Hostility (Ho) Scale and a Pharisaic virtue (Pv) scale. "The Ho scale… reveals a type of individual characterized by a dislike for and distrust of others. The Pv scale… reveals a type of person who described himself as preoccupied with morality and ridden with fears and tensions." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Article
Examined the frequency and nature of classroom events that evoked laughing and/or smiling in a 3rd, a 7th, and an 11th grade classroom ( N = 78). Results reveal that the frequency of humorous events decreased as grade level increased and was lower than other classroom behaviors, including disruptive behaviors. Most humorous events occurred when peers were, and teachers were not, in a position to react. Ss who produced humorous events in the 7th, and to a lesser degree in the 11th grade also tended to produce disruptive behaviors. Ss who produced humorous events in the upper 2 grades also were reprimanded more frequently than Ss who did not. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)