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Humor in language.

Salvatore Attardo Salvatore Attardo Texas A&M University
https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780199384655.013.342
Published online: 29 March 2017

Interest in the linguistics of humor is widespread and dates since classical times. Several theoretical models have been proposed to describe and explain the function of humor in language. The most widely adopted one, the semantic-script theory of humor, was presented by Victor Raskin, in 1985. Its expansion, to incorporate a broader gamut of information, is known as the General Theory of Verbal Humor. Other approaches are emerging, especially in cognitive and corpus linguistics. Within applied linguistics, the predominant approach is analysis of conversation and discourse, with a focus on the disparate functions of humor in conversation. Speakers may use humor pro-socially, to build in-group solidarity, or anti-socially, to exclude and denigrate the targets of the humor. Most of the research has focused on how humor is co-constructed and used among friends, and how speakers support it. Increasingly, corpus-supported research is beginning to reshape the field, introducing quantitative concerns, as well as multimodal data and analyses. Overall, the linguistics of humor is a dynamic and rapidly changing field.

1. Humor in Language

Scholarly research on humor goes back to Plato and Aristotle and extends to practically all fields of inquiry, including mathematics and medicine. There exist several scholarly societies for the study of humor, and numerous journals and book series are dedicated entirely to humor research. Linguistics has had a privileged role in humorology (or gelotology), both because of its contributions, which this entry will review, and because language is the medium of much humor. Even humor that is produced entirely outside of language (for example, visually or musically) needs to be discussed and explained in language by scholars wanting to analyze it. In what follows, only humor expressed linguistically will be considered. Likewise, irony and sarcasm will be given only a very cursory treatment (Section 2.3.1), despite their obvious connections to humor, due to the exceedingly large literature on the subject and its complexity.

2. Critical Analysis of Scholarship

One of the earliest linguistic discussions of humor is found in Cicero, who distinguishes between humor “de re” and “de dicto.” The distinction is fundamental and matches precisely modern-day differentiations between “referential” and “verbal” humor: the former is purely semantic/pragmatic and does not depend on the linguistic form (the signifier), whereas the latter crucially does. In practical terms and simplifying a little, verbal humor is comprised of puns, ambiguity-based humor, or humor that is based on repetition of parts of the signifier (for example, alliteration). All these forms of humor exploit characteristics of the signifier to bring together incongruous semantic or pragmatic meanings. Referential humor on the contrary is based only on semantic/pragmatic incongruity. Consider the following riddle:

Example (1) exploits the homophony between the morphemes [red] and [read], which brings together (overlaps) the incompatible meanings of the color “red” and the past participle of “read.” In psychological terms, this is called an incongruity. The incongruity is also “resolved” because the homophony allows the text to playfully “claim” that the coincidental phonetic overlap of the two different morphemes justifies the presence of the two meanings in the text. It should be noted that all discussions of the “resolution” of humor point out that it is only a playful, non-serious, para-logical resolution.

Linguistic humor research initially focused on puns, which are obviously a linguistic problem. Most of the research was taxonomic, building elaborate classifications of phenomena, primarily based on the linguistic factors at play—for example puns are often classified as paradigmatic or syntagmatic, depending on whether the two strings involved are co-present in the text or not. Other classifications focus on distinctions such as homonymy (homophones and homographs), paronimy (partial homonymy), etc. The semantic aspect of humor was neglected until two approaches, one developed in Europe and one in the United States, brought attention to linguistically based humor research on meaning.

2.1 The Semantic Turn: The Isotopy-Disjunction Model

In the 1960s, renewed interest in lexical semantics led numerous semanticists to postulate the existence of meaning units “smaller” than morphemes. A morpheme such as /dog/ could be analyzed in semantic features, such as [+animal][+adult] [+canine], etc. A. J. Greimas, a French structural linguist, in the context of proposing to differentiate between types of features, proposed the idea of isotopy, which would account for the selection of the feature [+animal] or [-human] in the lexeme “bark” (consider the contrastive pair: “the dog barked” vs. “the sergeant barked [at the recruits],” which would select [+animal] and [-animal], respectively). In passing, and without any serious discussion, Greimas ( 1966 ) mentioned that some jokes functioned by switching isotopies. Several European scholars adopted this model, which was soon enriched by the use of narrative functions, such as the idea that jokes consisted of three functions: the first one setting up the story, the second one introducing an incongruity, and the third one resolving it with the punch line.

Despite broad adoption in Europe, the model suffered from a lack of clear definition of the core concept of isotopy (see Attardo, 1994 for discussion) and was largely abandoned in favor of script-based models that were richer and more flexible, semantically and pragmatically. However, a recent synthesis (Al-Jared, 2017 ) shows that there is still some vitality attached to the model.

2.2 The Semantic-Script Theory of Humor

Lexical semantics in the United States, under the stimulus of research in Artificial Intelligence, and following research in psychology, particularly in the area of memory, moved away from feature-based representations and adopted more sophisticated representations that allowed researchers to incorporate encyclopedic information. The terminology varied significantly ( frames , schemata , memory organization packets , scripts , situations ), but the fundamental concept was that the structures were complex semantic units that incorporated large amount of information on how to “do things,” and importantly, were connected in a large semantic network.

Within the context of this research, the semantic-script theory of humor (SSTH) emerged, proposed by Victor Raskin, in 1985 . Raskin’s book was extremely successful, for two main reasons: first, it was the first coherent, book-length treatment of the semantics of humor; second, it linked the linguistic treatment of humor to the broader field of humor research, by providing a thorough review of the literature and a clear epistemological position within the field of linguistics. Humor studies provide the questions, and linguistics provides the answers (when it can).

Another contributing factor to the success of Raskin’s SSTH is that it can be summarized in two pithy conditions. The necessary and sufficient conditions for a text to be funny are:

The text is compatible, fully or in part, with two different scripts.

The two scripts with which the text is compatible are opposite in a special sense. (Raskin, 1985 , p. 99)

The two conditions, in their simplicity, hide the complex underlying semantic theory. This has led to numerous misunderstandings. For example, Raskin’s theory is, very explicitly, a theory of a speaker’s competence, not of their performance. Hence, whether a given person in a given situation does not find a given joke text humorous, for whatever reason, is entirely irrelevant, much like a mispronunciation of a sound by a speaker is entirely irrelevant to the phonemic status of the phoneme /p/ in English. In other words, the SSTH predicts whether a given joke text has the potential to be perceived as humorous by speakers.

2.3 Pragmatics of Humor

Another aspect of Raskin’s theory that is extremely significant, and has been misunderstood, is that Raskin denies the usefulness of the semantics/pragmatics boundary. Hence, his theory should properly be defined as a semantic/pragmatic theory. Raskin observes, as many had before, that jokes do not follow the Principle of Cooperation (Grice, 1989 ). Raskin introduces the idea of non-bona-fide communication to characterize non-cooperative exchanges (cooperative exchanges are bona-fide).

As mentioned, the idea that jokes and humor at large are a violation of the cooperative principles, or of one of the maxims, is not new, but Raskin, and later Attardo ( 1994 ), integrated it within the linguistics of humor. There has been some scattered opposition to this view, essentially attempting to deny the reality of the violation. The most significant of these is by Goatly ( 2012 , p. 235), who suggests considering humor as a short-term violation (or as he puts it, “a flout delayed by violation”).

2.3.1 Irony and Sarcasm

Flouting the Principle of Cooperation is, of course, one of the ways of generating irony, as Grice himself noted. In this section, irony and sarcasm are briefly discussed. The first problem one encounters when addressing the subject is that the terms irony and sarcasm are folk categories, which moreover have undergone, in certain varieties of English, a recent semantic shift: it used to be that, generally speaking, irony was intended as the broad category of “saying one thing and meaning its opposite,” with sarcasm reserved for particularly aggressive or biting forms thereof. However, beginning in the early 1990s, the term irony shifted for young American English speakers, to mean “something unexpected and unpleasant” and sarcasm became the unmarked term covering the field of irony/sarcasm. To what extent this affects research based on questionnaires and on corpora has not been determined. Needless to say, this does not affect other languages and varieties of English.

There have been many pragmatic approaches to irony. Among the most followed are listed here:

The so-called standard pragmatic model , proposed by Grice ( 1989 ) and Searle ( 1969 ), which sees irony as a flout of the maxim of quality, within Grice’s “Cooperative” principle. Later, the claim was broadened to the flout of any of the maxims.

The direct access theory (Gibbs, 1994 ), based on psycholinguistic evidence, which denies that the speakers must first access the literal meaning of the utterance, as implied by the standard pragmatic model. In the direct access model, speakers directly access the ironical meaning.

The graded salience theory, which claims that speakers access the most salient meaning first and the less salient one second (Giora, 2002 ). Between the two meanings, there holds a relationship of negation.

The mention theory (Sperber & Wilson, 1981 ) claimed that irony is the mention of a previous utterance with a critical stance toward the original utterance. Later, the theory was weakened to require only an echo of a belief that could be attributed to someone, and eventually to a reminder of a common belief or social norm, to accommodate the fact that many ironies do not explicitly refer to prior utterances.

The pretense theory argues that the speaker pretends to be another speaker who would say the utterance, also with a critical stance toward the utterance and/or the speaker thereof.

There are many other theories, and new accounts are frequently added (for a synthesis, see Gibbs & Colston, 2007 ). For example, there have been proposals to see irony as a prototypical phenomenon, rather than as a categorical one, as assumed by all the theories reviewed here, as well as approaches that tie irony to embodied cognition. Space limitations prevent a full review; however, a consensus seems to be gathering around the idea of contrast (Colston, 2000 ). Contrast subsumes the pretense and mention theories, as well as the standard pragmatic model, as it assumes that a violation of any maxim may generate irony if it is in a situation in which the expected or preferred state of the world is in contrast with the observed one. The concept of contrast can also be usefully connected with Giora’s negation. Under this view, mention, echo, reminder, pretense, etc., would be ways in which the contrast between expectations and reality is highlighted. This in turn connects back to the similarity between the contrast account of irony and the accounts of humor as “opposition” between two scripts.

2.4 The GTVH

Attardo and Raskin ( 1991 ) presented an expansion of the SSTH, called the General Theory of Verbal Humor (GTVH). The GTVH addressed two limitations of the STTH: first, the SSTH did not distinguish between referential and verbal humor, unsurprisingly, because they are semantically indistinguishable; second and most significantly, the SSTH could not account for the fact that some jokes are perceived as being more similar to one another. The GTVH accounts for these facts by postulating six knowledge resources (parameters or options to be selected): the script opposition , from the original SSTH; the logical mechanism , which handles the resolution of the incongruity introduced in the script opposition; the situation , essentially the environment in which the narrative takes place; the target , that is, the butt of the joke; the narrative strategy , which is how the text is organized (for example, many jokes have series structure in which, after two occurrences of an event, a third occurrence is different); and finally the language , the linguistic choices with which the previous components are verbalized.

The major claim of the GTVH was that the six knowledge resources are hierarchically organized, so that choices in the most abstract, higher knowledge resources affect the choices in the lower knowledge resources. These differences are reflected in the judgments of similarity of speakers, with jokes based on higher knowledge resources being perceived as more different (Ruch, Attardo, & Raskin, 1993 ). Thus, for example, two jokes with different script oppositions (for example, stupid vs. sex joke) would be felt to be more dissimilar than two jokes with different targets (say, Polish and Belgian jokes). It should be noted that most jokes rely on mythical regional stereotypes, thus both Polish people and Belgian people are supposed to be “stupid,” in the United States and France, respectively.

A further expansion of the GTVH (Attardo, 2001 ) expanded the SSTH/GTVH, which had been originally developed using a corpus of jokes and had remained focused on jokes in the 1991 iteration, to all kinds of humor conveyed by language. In particular, long texts such as short stories were analyzed. The main difference between short humorous texts, such as jokes, and longer ones, was found to be that the occurrence of the script opposition in jokes tends to occur at the end of the text (technically, in the last phrase of the last sentence of the text), while script oppositions occur throughout in longer texts, albeit not randomly (Corduas, Attardo, & Eggleston, 2008 ). To distinguish between text-final punch lines and other occurrences of humor, Attardo ( 2001 ) introduced the term jab line . Further research (Tsakona, 2003 ) showed that jab lines may also occur in jokes.

Despite the widespread recognition of the SSTH and the GTVH as the “two most influential linguistic humor theories of the last two decades” (Brône, Feyaerts, & Veale, 2006 , p. 203), they were not intended as and could not possibly have been the final word on the linguistic research on humor.

3. Current Trends in the Linguistics of Humor

3.1 theoretical approaches.

Cognitive linguistics deployed its theoretical apparatus in the analysis of humor only fairly recently. Given the central role of semantics in cognitive linguistics, it is not surprising that it has provided interesting analyses of phenomena such as forced reinterpretation (dubbed “trumping”) in examples such as:

In this sample, the modifier “bloody good” forces a literal reinterpretation of the idiom. Just as predictably, cognitive linguistics has shown an interest in the role of metaphors, metonymy, mental spaces, conceptual blending, and grammatical constructions in humor (Brône, Feyaerts, & Veale, 2015 ). However, as Brône ( 2017 , p. 262) concludes, in summing up the state-of-the-art cognitive-linguistics approaches to humor, “the studies presented thus far have been largely programmatic.”

In many ways, cognitive linguistics offers great promise to solve genuine problems in humor research. For example, it has been repeatedly noted that the literalization of metaphors can be humorous. There have been several studies on metaphors and humor (see Brône, 2017 for a review of some of them). However, none has answered the seemingly basic question of why some metaphors are humorous and some are not. Obviously, this kind of question can be tackled best from within a cognitive approach. The strong emphasis on embodiment and on the psychological reality of the theoretical models should also favor interdisciplinary research straddling psycholinguistics and cognitive approaches (e.g., Coulson & Kutas, 2001 ).

Relevance theory has had to wait until Yus ( 2016 ) for a full-fledged treatment of humor, despite some early unconvincing attempts (Curcò, 1995 ; Jodlowiec, 1991 ). Because relevance theory takes the principle of relevance to be inviolable (unlike Grice’s cooperative principle), relevance-theoretic accounts stress that relevance guides the inferential process both before and after the incongruity is found.

Corpus linguistics has had a very significant impact on the field of linguistics, unmatched in humor studies, where corpus-based studies are rare. Those are considered in Section 3.2.1.2.

3.2 Applied Linguistics

Even within the theoretical linguistics side, calls appeared for a theory of humor performance (e.g., Carrell, 1997 ), as opposed to the competence-based approach of the SSTH/GTVH. These have continued, including arguments within the GTVH (e.g., Tsakona, 2013 ). However, more significant contributions to the analysis of humor performance have come from several subfields of applied linguistics.

3.2.1 Conversation, Discourse, and Corpus Analyses

Probably the most significant contributions to the study of humor have come from the fields of conversation and discourse analysis, if for no other reason than from sheer amount of contributions.

Conversation analysis showed an early interest in the performance of humor and jokes in particular, as Sacks ( 1989 ) used a sexual joke as an example in one of the foundational articles of conversation analysis. Jefferson ( 1979 ) found that the role of laughter in conversation was far from being a passive reaction to humor, but that it was, in fact, used to invite laughter and to affect the structure of the conversation. A full review of the conversation analytical approach, with updates and contemporary contributions can be found in Glenn ( 2003 ) and Glenn and Holt ( 2013 ). Conversation analyses focus primarily on recorded discursive data and use close transcriptions of the conversations.

The study of laughter has since become its own field (Chafe, 2007 ; Trouvain & Truong, 2017 ), with scholars touching on such widespread topics as its acoustic description, its distribution within and around speech, and its complex relationship with humor: laughter may occur without humor and humor may occur with laughter, but the two are far from being an adjacency pair, as early speculation maintained (Norrick, 1993 ).

Discourse analysis broadened the perspective to how the humorous status of the exchange is negotiated (Davies, 1984 ) among the participants, to their different styles (Tannen, 1984 ), and to the social functions of the humor (see Attardo, 2015 for a review of the numerous strands of research).

3.2.1.1 The Social Functions of Humor

Before discussing how humor is integrated in the socialization process, it is crucial to note, as Holmes ( 2000 ) does, that “all utterances are multifunctional (…) Hence, a humorous utterance may, and typically does, serve several functions at once” (p. 166). In fact, as Priego-Valverde ( 2003 ) argues, humor can be used to “do” almost anything. Obviously, the functions of humor vary in relation to the setting. Studies have focused primarily on workplace humor (especially the Language in the Workplace project, by Janet Holmes and her associates), conversations among friends, and classroom discourse.

The most obvious function of humor is to create solidarity among the participants. As Davies ( 1984 ) showed, humorous exchanges are co-constructed, with participants taking up the humor produced by another speaker, elaborating on it, repeating it, commenting on it, or merely signaling their appreciation, thereby reinforcing it. Extreme forms of this phenomenon have been dubbed “joint fantasizing” (Kotthoff, 2009 ). The longest reported sequence of joint fantasizing extends to 13 turns. However, conversations do not generally evolve into non-stop joking. Attardo ( 2015 ) reviews studies that show that a majority of humorous exchanges are under 3 turns, and many instances are single turn. Obviously, participating in a shared activity produces solidarity.

Another way of showing solidarity with the speaker is to engage in humor support (Hay, 2001 ). Humor support consists of discursive strategies meant to acknowledge and support humorous turns. Obviously, laughter and the production of more humor are supportive, but so are echoing (repeating the humorous turn or parts of it), increased backchannel activity, and in the case of self-deprecating humor, expressions of incredulity and/or sympathy. An extreme form of humor support is mode adoption, which, for the hearer of a humorous remark, consists of engaging in the same kind of humor (i.e., adopting the speaker’s mode of communication). Thus an ironical response to an ironical statement would count as mode adoption, whereas laughter or saying “That’s funny!” would be support but not adoption (Attardo, 2002 ; Whalen & Pexman, 2010 ). Support and mode adoption must be seen in a broader framework, as presented in Hay ( 2001 ). Hay notes that, when faced with a humorous utterance, the hearer must undergo four different processes, which bear an implicational relationship among them. First, the hearer must recognize the intention to produce humor, then he/she must understand the humor stimulus. Only after the humor stimulus has been recognized and understood may the hearer engage in the appreciation of the humor and, eventually, react to it. As is clear, appreciation of humor presupposes that the humor has been recognized and understood. The study of failed humor shows that humor may fail at each of these levels. For example, a speaker may recognize the intention to be humorous but not understand the joke (Bell, 2015 ).

Moreover, humor often creates an in-group vs. out-group division. For example Haugh and Bousfield ( 2012 ) found that jocular mockery (humorous teasing) created solidarity by building an in-group of friends: one could not mock a stranger without risking serious offence, hence if A mocks B, A and B must be friends. Plester and Sayers ( 2007 ) find the same dynamic on the workplace, where employees of an IT company bonded over humor touching on taboo and sensitive topics. Everts ( 2003 ) documents the use of aggressive humor to create solidarity within a family. See Haugh ( 2017 ) for an overview on teasing.

Within the workplace, the issue of connections between humor and power becomes very significant. Humor “cuts both ways” when it comes to relationships with a clear power differential. It can be used to reinforce and uphold the power imbalance (e.g., employees laughing at the boss’ jokes) or simply to “get things done,” or it can be used in a “subversive” fashion to challenge authority and undermine it (Schnurr & Plester, 2017 ).

Crucially, humor may function as a tool to challenge authority because of one of its features, namely retractability. Essentially, this consists of the ability to discount one’s remarks as having been uttered non-seriously (“just kidding”). This option is called decommitment (Attardo, 1994 , p. 325–326; Kane, Suls, & Tedeschi, 1977 ) and provides the opportunity to test behavior that might be socially or interactionally “risky” (Emerson, 1969 ). For example, Walle ( 1976 ) reports that customers trying to pick up waitresses in a bar couched the request in humorous terms, to avoid embarrassment if they were turned down.

The relationship between humor and politeness is also an interesting issue. Early approaches (Brown & Levinson, 1978 ) saw humor as a face-saving strategy. More recent work (e.g., Culpeper, 2005 ) shows that both humor and impoliteness violate social norms. For a discussion of the connection between humor and politeness, see Simpson and Bousfield ( 2017 ) and references therein.

Initially, researchers focused almost exclusively on the affiliative aspects of humor, but subsequent research (Boxer & Cortés-Conde, 1997 ; Priego-Valverde, 2003 ) was extended to include the disaffiliative aspects as well. Failed humor is another example of a topic long ignored by discourse and conversation analysis but that has undergone a recent efflorescence of research, summarized in Bell ( 2015 ). Failed humor presents an obvious difficulty to conversation and discourse analysts, since by definition it cannot be identified by the presence of laughter or smiling. Despite these problems, methodologically, failed humor is crucial because analyzing only successful humor would arbitrarily restrict the landscape of humorous interactions only to those that succeed. Bell shows that the reactions to failed humor range significantly, from ignoring the event to strong criticism. Causes of failure range across the communicative gamut and can be likened to misunderstandings.

3.2.1.2 Corpus-Assisted Approaches

In recent years, corpus linguistics has had a renaissance, which has been reflected, to some extent, in the linguistics of humor. Several of the studies on the social functions of humor, reviewed in Section 3.2.1.1, rely on (very small) corpora of a few conversations. However, in the case of Holmes’ Language in the Workplace study, a reasonably sized corpus of conversations was created and utilized for the project. Other research, based on corpora created not directly for the purpose of studying humor, include Günther ( 2003 ), based on the British National Corpus, the Corpus of American and British Office Talk (ABOT; Koester, 2006 , 2010 ), and Chafe ( 2007 ), which uses the Santa Barbara Corpus of Spoken American English (about 250,000 words). Nesi ( 2012 ) examines laughter in lectures within the Michigan Corpus of Academic Spoken English (MICASE) and in the British Academic Spoken English (BASE) corpus. She finds significant differences in frequency of laughter among lectures.

Corpora offer the advantage of allowing the researcher to make generalizations based on relative frequencies. However, these sorts of conclusions are warranted only insofar as the corpus is representative of the population that one wishes to generalize to. Obviously, size tends to be a good predictor of validity in this sense. Limitations of size may be overcome by using a balanced corpus. Some of the results that have emerged from these studies have significantly challenged the status quo of humor research in some areas. For example, Holmes found that: “the overall amount of humour produced by the women is greater than that produced by the men” (Holmes, 2001 , p. 93). Likewise, Günther finds that women laugh more, but do not support humor more, and that there is no difference in the number of canned jokes they tell. These results are antithetical to previous studies on gender and humor, which assigned women a passive role in humor production and reception (see below). Other results, such as that single-sex settings are more conducive to humor, are not novel, but they receive statistical confirmation.

Partington ( 2006 ) sidesteps the issue of identifying humor by focusing on laughter talk , defined as speech adjacent to or interspersed by laughter. He uses a corpus of White House briefings. He finds that speakers at the briefings need to project both competence and congeniality. He finds that talk that leads to laughter tends to be performed with those purposes in mind (Partington, 2006 , pp. 97–98). A new approach to stylistics includes the use of corpora (Partington, Duguid, & Taylor, 2013 ). Partington et al. ( 2013 ) find that Wodehouse’s humorous style can be differentiated from other non-humorous samples, and that some stylistic traits typical to the author emerge: for example, the mixture of formal and colloquial style and the use of hyperbole.

Finally, a progressive broadening of corpora to include audiovisual data and multimodal analyses can be noted. Obviously, technological progress has lowered the price-point of audio and video recording devices and storage media, so that increasingly scholars can afford to build multimodal corpora. This trend has manifested itself in humor research in the beginning of corpus-assisted multimodal studies (Attardo, Eisterhold, Hay, & Poggi, 2003 ; Attardo, Pickering, & Baker, 2011 ; Attardo, Pickering, Lomotey, & Menjo, 2013 ; Feyaerts, 2013 ; Feyaerts, Brône, & Oben, 2017 ; Pickering, Corduas, Eisterhold, Seifried, Eggleston, & Attardo, 2009 ).

The results of studies on the multimodal aspects of humor have been rather unexpected. Whereas a considerable literature predicted that humor should be marked in discourse (see a review in Attardo & Pickering, 2011 ), the analysis of elicited canned jokes and of naturalistic conversations shows that speakers do not mark prosodically punch lines or jab lines at all, neither by higher pitch or volume, nor by pauses or slower/faster speech rate. Laughter does not reliably occur near humor: in one conversation, analyzed in Attardo et al. ( 2011 ), laughter occurred in only 5 out of 26 possible instances. Conversely, early results seem to show that an increase in smiling intensity correlates with the presence of humor (Gironzetti, 2017 ).

3.2.2 Variationist Approaches

The research on variation in humor is uneven. Some areas, such as gender differences, have attracted significant research, whereas other areas, such as ethnicity, age, class, national differences, etc. have seen considerably less work. On gender differences, see Crawford ( 2003 ) and Kotthoff ( 2006 ), who present a synthesis of work focusing on gender differences. Martin ( 2014 ), in an authoritative review of the psychological literature, concludes that the similarities outweigh the differences. The recent corpus-assisted work reviewed above seems to indicate that a re-evaluation of the field is overdue. Finally, Davies ( 2017 ) presents an exhaustive review of variationist research on humor in language.

3.3 Methodological Issues

The increased use of corpora in discourse analysis has raised some methodological and theoretical issues that had been heretofore relegated to the background. These issues are addressed below.

3.3.1. Identification of Humor

As long as researchers used participant observer data, such as Tannen’s ( 1984 ) famous Thanksgiving conversation, they could reasonably claim expertise on which parts of the conversations were humorous, since they were part of the in-group to whom the humor was addressed. However, when researchers start using corpora that have not been collected with humor research in mind and to which they have no special affinity, determining which parts are humorous becomes a significant issue. De facto, the presence of laughter was taken as the criterion for the presence of humor. However, it is a well-established fact that laughter and humor are not coextensive, and that the use of laughter as the sole criterion will lead both to false positives (laughter when there is no humor) and false negatives (missed humor). Within conversation analysis, some have attempted to sidestep the issue by using the term laughable (Glenn, 2003 ) and by completely omitting humor as a category. However, the existence of phenomena such as failed humor requires that the intentionality of the speakers be taken into account (for something to “fail” someone must have been trying to do it).

A better approach is taken by Holmes ( 2000 , p. 163), who defines humor as “utterances which are identified by the analyst, on the basis of paralinguistic, prosodic and discoursal clues, as intended by the speaker(s) to be amusing and perceived to be amusing by at least some participants.” Holmes acknowledges that this definition still fails to account for failed humor. Attardo ( 2012 ) has suggested adding the insights of theoretical models such as the GTVH, which can account for the presence of unacknowledged or undetected humor in an exchange by identifying an incongruity or a violation of the cooperative principle. By triangulating with all the available contextual information described by Holmes, plus the semantic and pragmatic information of the GTVH, plus any metalinguistic cues in the text, it becomes relatively easy to identify the presence of the humor, regardless of its having been reacted to or acknowledged by the participants. The use of the semantic and pragmatic cues is also useful to resolve problematic cases in which the paralinguistic and contextual cues are ambiguous.

3.3.2. Keying of Humor

It is a widespread idea that the participants of a humorous exchange, will frame (Goffman, 1974 , pp. 43–44) or key (Hymes, 1972 , p. 62) a situation, conversation, etc. as humorous (e.g., Hay, 2000 ; Norrick, 1993 ). The concept is problematic, for several reasons. First, it is obvious that keying or framing and humor are independent. One can produce un-keyed or un-framed humor: the popular term for this is “deadpan humor.” Moreover, serious content may be keyed or framed for play (for example, Sesame Street educational songs). Furthermore, a situation may be keyed or framed a posteriori for humor, in that, after the occurrence of otherwise un-framed and un-keyed humor that is recognized and accepted by the participants, the situation may become keyed or framed for humor. However, it is obvious that the detection, recognition, and acceptance of the first instance of humor were not helped by the keying and framing that occurred after the fact.

The mechanisms of keying and framing are almost entirely unexplored, beyond vague references to “tone of voice,” particularly in reference to irony and sarcasm, and the above-mentioned use of laughter as a tool to invite laughter. The studies listed above, about multimodal markers of humor, as well as studies on multimodal markers of irony (Burgers & van Mulken, 2017 ) will probably address at least some of these issues.

Links to Digital Materials

International Society for Humor Studies .
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EDITORIAL article

Editorial: humor and laughter, playfulness and cheerfulness: upsides and downsides to a life of lightness.

$\r\nWillibald Ruch*$

1 Department of Psychology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
2 Department of Psychology, University of Sunderland, Sunderland, United Kingdom
3 Department of Psychology, Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany
4 Department of Psychology, National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei, Taiwan

Editorial on the Research Topic Humor and Laughter, Playfulness and Cheerfulness: Upsides and Downsides to a Life of Lightness

Introduction

This research topic brings together the four research areas of humor, laughter, playfulness, and cheerfulness. There are partial overlaps among these phenomena. Humor may lead to laughter but not all laughter is related to humor. Playfulness is considered the basis of humor (a play with ideas), but not all play is humorous. Cheerfulness is considered the temperamental basis of good humor, a disposition for laughter and for keeping humor in face of adversity but it mostly overlaps with the socio-affective component of humor. Laughter was considered a play signal and to indicate the annulment of seriousness, but there is play without laughter and laughter outside of play. Cheerfulness might facilitate play and cheerful state might be raised due to play but again the conceptual overlap is only partial. They all contribute to levity in life and their apparent similarity suggests studying them together to map out the territory; i.e., to see where they overlap and what is specific. While these traits and behaviors have the potential to contribute to a good life, there is the danger of overlooking their non-virtuous facets; that is, laughter may not only be expressing amusement but scorn directed at people, humor may be benevolent but there is also sarcasm, and playfulness may elicit positive emotions but also risk prone behaviors. While this research topic solicited articles to these four domains without the aim to connect them, a few articles did and it is expected that growing together will be one outcome of this compilation of articles.

Currently, these fields are studied mostly in isolation. A literature search (using the psychology database of Web of Science Core Collection from 1900, 06.08.2018) yielded that humor is clearly leading in terms of number of publications ( n = 3,006), followed by laughter ( n = 1,412), playful(ness) ( n = 629), and cheerful(ness) ( n = 204). As a comparison, antonyms were studied as well, and yielded higher numbers, such as for crying ( n = 1640), serious-mindedness (or seriousness) ( n = 892), and sadness ( n = 3,654). The latter indicates that sadness is 18 times more frequently researched than cheerfulness.

Next, the frequency of articles combining terms was investigated. Combinations of humor and one of the other key terms are rather infrequent with the exception of “humor and laughter” ( n = 454), suggesting that about 10% of all articles on humor also refer to laughter. Humor and playfulness ( n = 59) and humor and cheerfulness ( n = 53) represent only 2% of all articles on humor, and these numbers are still much higher than any combination among the other three. This clearly shows that work is needed integrating these areas to examine how the concepts overlap both regarding their defining substance but also in predicting third variables. It should be mentioned that in a pioneering publication preceding the renaissance of empirical humor research three of the keywords were considered together. Toronto-based English psychologist ( Berlyne, 1969 ) gave an account of laughter, humor, and play in a chapter in a handbook of social psychology. The compilation of research in the four fields is aimed at deepening our understanding of these concepts and stimulating research combining them.

Overview of Studies

There are 32 manuscripts in this research topic. Not surprisingly, most articles are on various aspects of humor, followed by laughter (including dispositions to ridicule and being laughed at), playfulness and cheerfulness. To highlight some prevalent issues beforehand: Individual studies relate to introducing new concepts, or new scales or working on existing ones ( Aykan and Nalçaci ; Bruntsch and Ruch; Heintz et al.; Hofmann et al.; Hofmann et al.; Ruch and Heintz; Ruch et al.; Ruch et al. ). Furthermore, substantial attempts are made to develop and evaluate trainings and interventions ( Auerbach; Linge-Dahl et al.; Tagalidou et al.; Wellenzohn et al. ). There is also a significant number of cross-cultural comparisons ( Heintz et al.; Pang and Proyer; Tosun et al. ) and systematic literature reviews ( Chadwick and Platt; Linge-Dahl et al. ). What research questions were posed and what have we learned in the different fields?

Humor and Humor-Related Traits

Seven contributions relate to humor. Two are systematic reviews summarizing the use of humor in their related fields. Chadwick and Platt 's paper draws upon the 32 existing articles on humor with regards to intellectual disability, which they found grouped into eight emergent themes. The paper showed humor to be of importance in social interactions, not only for people with intellectual disabilities but those who support them and highlighted both the positive and the negative role of humor for both groups. However, the authors suggest that future studies should aim for more empirical rigor when investigating this important, yet complex construct. As Heintz et al. highlighted, the terminology of a dichotomized thinking of positive and negative humor may be a too simplistic approach, especially when thinking about fostering positive relationships. For example, employing carers with a propensity for benevolent humor may help forge more than a work relationship, but a friendship.

In the study of humor assessment and interventions in palliative care, Linge-Dahl et al. reviewed 13 papers. The review found that although the papers were difficult to compare, it was clear that humor is an appropriate and useful resource in palliative care of terminally ill patients (in different settings, such as hospices or oncology wards). Given this review accounts for the last 20 years, the authors note that research is still exceptionally limited, although humor interventions showed promising results on many well-being outcomes.

Humor as a quality that can be trained and developed evidently has potential not only to increase well-being in the terminally ill but also to reducing stress, depressiveness, and anxiety in a population of sub-clinical individuals ( Tagalidou et al. ). This pilot intervention demonstrated encouraging evidence that a humor training can have a stable, long-lasting impact on increasing positive affective states and reducing levels of stress, depressiveness and anxiety. This study also reported a relatively low attrition rate, which would suggest that participants were enjoying themselves, whilst having an overall positive impact on their mental health.

Wellenzohn et al. studied who benefits from online humor-based positive psychology interventions. In Study 1, personality traits were tested and it was the extraverts that benefitted more from the three funny things intervention than introverts did. Remembering emotional events allows reliving the emotion and the extraverts' tendency to positive emotions (i.e., the amusement due to the funny events during the day) apparently contributed to increasing their level of happiness and to lowering their depressive symptoms. In Study 2, no moderating effects were found for sense of humor on the effectiveness of the five humor-based interventions tested. Interestingly, however, changes in sense of humor from pretest to the 1-month follow-up predicted later changes in happiness and depressive symptoms. Thus, increases in sense of humor during and after the intervention are associated with the interventions' effectiveness.

Instruments that measure aspects of humor were investigated in five studies. Heintz et al. investigate responses to the BenCor in 25 samples from 22 countries. The BenCor measures humor aiming at the good and may be seen as a character (as different from personality or temperament) approach to humor. Benevolent humor treats human weaknesses and wrongdoings benevolently, while corrective humor aims at correcting and bettering them. The 12 items exhibited sufficient psychometric qualities in most of the samples. Metric measurement invariance was supported across the 25 samples, and scalar invariance was supported across age and across gender. This study supported the suitability of the 12 marker items of benevolent and corrective humor in different countries, enabling cross-cultural research and eventually applications of humor aiming at the good. Importantly, benevolent and corrective humor were clearly established as two positively related, yet distinct dimensions of virtue-related humor.

Ruch and Heintz study the construct and criterion validity of the HSQ ( Martin et al., 2003 ), which assesses humor styles. They argue that each item entails construct-relevant content (i.e., humor) but also (unwanted) variance produced by the item context. The 32 items were experimentally manipulated to strip off the context or to substitute the humor content by non-humorous alternatives (i.e., only assessing context). Study 1 shows that humor is not the primary source of the variance in three of the HSQ scales with the self-defeating humor style being primarily determined by the context. Study 2 shows that also the relationships of the HSQ with personality were reduced and those with subjective well-being vanished when the non-humorous contexts in the HSQ items were controlled for. For self-defeating, removing the context rendered the results to a positive rather than a negative view of the humor in this humor style. The results suggest that the items of humor instruments warrant careful examination.

Ruch et al. enlarge the list of styles of humor by adding fun, benevolent humor, non-sense, wit, irony, satire, sarcasm, and cynicism and by providing first evidence for the reliability and validity of a set of 48 marker items for their assessment, the Comic Style Markers (CSM). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses showed that the eight styles could be distinguished in English- and German-speaking samples, and studying self- and other-reports supported both convergent and discriminant validity. Studies also showed that the scales tapped differentially into personality, intelligence, and character strengths; for example, wit correlated with verbal intelligence, fun with indicators of vitality and extraversion, and while benevolent humor was related to strengths of the heart, the styles related to mock/ridicule (i.e., sarcasm, cynicism, but also irony) correlated negatively with character strengths. The results suggest that more styles may be distinguished than was done hitherto, which is also confirmed by Heintz and Ruch (2019) .

Two more studies examine irony in more detail and distinguish between two forms. Bruntsch and Ruch investigate irony in ironic criticisms (i.e., mock positive evaluation of negative circumstances) and ironic praise (i.e., mock negative evaluation of positive circumstances). They introduce the TOVIDA (Test of Verbal Irony Detection Aptitude) containing 26 scenario-based items for the detection of ironic criticism vs. ironic praise. Initial validation is provided by exploring personality and ability correlates of the two TOVIDA scales. Relatedly, Milanowicz et al. study mocking compliments and ironic praise from an interactional gender perspective. The ability to create irony is assessed and related to state and trait anxiety. Male responses were consistently more ironic but both genders used more irony in response to male ironic criticism than to female ironic praise. Anxiety predicted irony comprehension and willingness to use irony. The results enrich the discussion within the framework of linguistic intergroup bias and natural selection strategies.

Also Aykan and Nalçaci introduce a new instrument (ToM-HCAT) for assessment of ToM (i.e., theory of mind) by humor comprehension and appreciation suitable for healthy adult populations. This performance test consisting of cartoons measures perceived funniness, reaction time to perceived funniness decision, and meaning inference. While a first validation is presented (individuals high and low in the Autism Spectrum Quotient differ in the meaning-inference scores of the subscale with the ToM cartoons) it awaits further validation to support the claim it is useful to detect variations in ToM ability in the healthy adult population.

While Heintz et al. study country differences in measured humor traits, Tosun et al. explore lay conceptions of an ideal sense of humor in three countries, namely Iran, United States, and Turkey. As in prior US studies they find that the embodiment of an ideal sense of humor is predominantly a male figure. Country and gender had an impact on relative number of specific humor characteristics. For example, Americans mentioned hostility/sarcasm and caring more often than participants from the other countries. Further work is needed to replicate the observed group differences and to identify their sources.

Canestrari et al. use the Theory of the Pleasures of the Mind to study the enjoyment derived from both humor and insight problem solving as they share similar cognitive mechanisms. The results show that finding the solution to a problem is associated with a positive evaluation, and curiosity, virtuosity and violation of expectations are the most frequent explanations. Understanding a joke is accompanied by the joy of verification and a feeling of surprise. However, the choice for the most enjoyable cartoons related to other factors, such as recognizing a violation of expectations and experiencing a diminishment in the cleverness attributed to the characters in the cartoon.

Mendiburo-Seguel et al. investigate the effects of political humor on an individual's trust toward politics and politicians. They conducted two experiments, in which participants were exposed to political disparagement humor to non-humorous political information, or to non-political humor. Study 1 showed that an exposure to political disparagement humor and non-humorous political contents negatively affects trust in politicians immediately after the exposure. Study 2, in which semidaily messages were sent to the participants, did not yield significant effects.

The study by Wagner nicely demonstrates how close upside and downside of humor are together by showing that class clown behavior was positively related to different indicators of social status and peer-rated popular-leadership behavior, but also to aggressive-disruptive behaviors and negatively to prosocial behaviors. Thus, humor is involved in making a student popular but it may also be used in destructive ways. The study also demonstrates that it is important to distinguish among different dimensions of class clown behavior, as they yielded different results.

Laughter and Dispositions to Ridicule and Being Laughed at

Laughter is both a social signal and an expression of emotion with several behavioral and physiological components (e.g., respiratory, acoustic, facial, postural, hormonal). There are different motivations for laughter (with laughing with and laughing at being a minimal distinction made by many) and there are individual differences to be considered regarding both the laughing person and the one perceiving the laughter. Laughter is studied among the healthy but also within psychopathology. Clearly, the section of this research topic devoted to laughter and laughter-related dispositions received a variety of submissions.

Ritter and Sauter investigated whether listeners can identify in- and out-group members from laughter. They showed that listeners were unable to accurately identify group identity from laughter and the exposure to a group did not affect the classification performance. In conclusion, group membership cannot be inferred from the way people laugh.

Curran et al. test the notion that laughter is an ambiguous signal, which is only interpreted correctly in the context it occurs. They provide supportive data from two experiments in which participants judged the genuineness of audio–video recordings of social interactions containing laughter (either original or replacement laughter). When replacement laughter was matched for intensity, genuineness judgments were similar to judgments of the original recordings. When replacement laughter was not matched for intensity, genuineness judgments were generally significantly lower.

Stewart et al. used the 2016 US presidential debates to study laughter together with other responses of audience, such as applause, cheering, laughter, and even booing. In three interconnected studies the impact of the norm-violating audience behavior on those watching or listening was studied. Applause–cheering significantly enhanced liking of the speaking candidate, whereas laughter did not, and party identity mediated the response to applause–cheering, but not for laughter. Thus, in such settings, cheering may be more socially contagious and laughter more stereotypic and likely to be mimicked.

The study by Auerbach confirms that it is important to distinguish between Duchenne Displays as an indicator of joy and non-Duchenne displays. Only the former go along with a variety of indicators of positive experience during a visit of hospital clowns in a rehabilitation center. Thus, also in such interventions it pays off to invest into the fine-grained assessment of facial expressions; i.e., to use the Facial Action Coding System to code the patients' affective responses. Only the Duchenne displays are affected by trait cheerfulness and they can serve as an indicator that hospital clown interventions are beneficial for patients.

The study of laughter also includes the dispositions to laughter—more precisely individual differences in qualities relating to laughing at and being laughed at. They are still the new kid on the block of variables related to humor and laughter with a research tradition of about 10 years. Gelotophobia (i.e., the fear of being laughed at) represents one form of humorlessness and gelotophobes see humor and laughter as weapons directed at them not as a basis for a pleasant experience to be shared with others. Together with gelotophilia (i.e., the joy of being laughed at) and katagelasticism (i.e., the joy of laughing at others) gelotophobia forms the dispositions to being laughed at and ridicule.

Two of the articles in the present collection of articles relate to their assessment. Ruch et al. utilize a picture completion task to derive a more unobtrusive semi-projective test of gelotophobia. This alternative instrument for the assessment of gelotophobia turns out to yield comparable results to the standard assessment. Hofmann et al. fulfill the need for an ultra short instrument for the assessment of these three dispositions and extends research into the workplace. They propose (and confirm in a nationally representative sample of employees) that if friendly teasing and laughter of co-workers, superiors, or customers are misperceived as malicious, one may feel less satisfied with work and life and experience more work stress. Conversely, gelotophilia went along with positive evaluations of one's life and work, and katagelasticism was negatively related to work satisfaction and positively related to work stress. Torres-Marín et al. provide evidence that gelotophobia is related to a potential bias in gaze discrimination in two experiments. Interestingly, the nature of the emotion did not play the expected role raising the question what elements are necessary for smiling faces to elicit the effect among gelotophobes.

Renner and Manthey investigate humor creation abilities in their study of self-presentation styles and dispositions to ridicule and being laughed at. They derive scores for quantitative (e.g., number of punch lines) and qualitative (e.g., wittiness of the punch lines and wittiness of the person as evaluated by three independent raters) aspects of humor creation abilities. Results show that both gelotophilia and histrionic self-presentation are supported by fluency and quality of humor creation abilities.

Three manuscripts examine gelotophobia in circumscribed groups. Kohlmann et al. investigated the associations between the experience of weight-related teasing and mockery with overweight, self-perceptions of weight, and gelotophobia in youth. Deviations from normal weight were related to experiencing teasing, which in turn was related to the fear of being laughed at. The four studies suggest that research on well-being of youth with weight problems would benefit from studying weight-related teasing and mockery in connection with gelotophobia. Tsai et al. study the relation between the dispositions toward ridicule and being laughed at, personality, and presence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in high school students. As in prior studies, the ASD group was found to have a higher level of gelotophobia and the present study reveals that they also have lower levels of gelotophilia and katagelasticism. However, extraversion fully accounted for the observed lower gelotophobia scores among the ASD sample, and partly for the differences found for gelotophilia. Brück et al. investigated the prevalence of gelotophobia among Borderline Personality Disorder patients. They showed an extraordinarily high level of the fear of being laughed at (i.e., 87%) compared to other clinical and non-clinical reference groups.

Playfulness

The section on playfulness consists of five contributions of which two have a qualitative approach, while the others are quantitative in nature. Two contributions focus on play (the behavior associated with trait playfulness) and playfulness in school and the others employ adult samples. With 1,235 Tweets reaching an upper bound of 3,945,511 followers (March 25th, 2019) 1 , Barnett's article attracted much attention on social media. Her analyses show that teachers react differently—more negatively—toward playfulness expressed by boys than by girls (kindergarten-aged children followed up across 3 years). In contrast, playfulness in girls did not seem to be a concern for the teachers. The methodology employed and the study of gender differences provides a valuable update on earlier literature. Overall, the emerging question is how teachers, schools and societies in general may benefit from playfulness in the classroom.

Pinchover 's pilot study examines the interplay of playfulness in teachers and their students. Taking the limitations of this initial study into account, this may indicate that teacher behavior impacts children's playfulness. Given that there is initial evidence for a contribution of playfulness to academic achievement and more robust data on a beneficial use for stress coping, some functions of playfulness may be helpful for students in their learning experience and development.

The idea that a playful state of mind contributes to innovativeness and creativity has received much interest in the literature (for overviews see Proyer et al., 2019 ) and, for example, it has been argued that “[…] a child who experiences truly “playful play” learns cognitive and behavioral processes that enhance his creative potential” ( Bishop and Chace, 1971 ; p. 321). Heimann and Roepstorff introduce microphenomenological interviews as a method for research in playfulness. In this initial study, they found that autonomy and self-expression were of particular importance for achieving a playful state of mind.

Proyer et al. test associations of playfulness with self-reported health, activity, and physical fitness. Self- and peer-ratings (i.e., ratings by knowledgeable others; Study 1) and a series of behavioral tests (Study 2) to assess playfulness were collected. Overall, playfulness is linked to some facets of physical functioning. Future research will have to clarify the pathways and moderators of these associations (e.g., causality or indirect ways of impacting greater physical activity).

Finally, Pang and Proyer present first data on a comparison of playfulness scores in samples from two regions in the P.R. China and a sample from German-speaking countries—using measures from both, the East and the West. The article provides details on cultural differences and linguistic challenges in the translation of the term playfulness. Overall, the findings indicate that differences are smaller than expected, but that the differentiation between private and public situations impacts how people in the two regions enjoy expressing their playfulness. This study narrows a gap in the literature by providing initial data on cross-cultural differences (see also Barnett, 2017 ) and highlights that larger scale cross-cultural comparisons are encouraged.

These five studies support the notion that playfulness has an impact on various domains of life, but also that more research will be needed for a better understanding of its role across different age groups.

Cheerfulness

Cheerfulness has a tradition in psychological research for more than 100 years (e.g., Morgan et al., 1919 ). Trait cheerfulness, seriousness, and bad mood have been proposed to form the temperamental basis of humor. Bypassing the vague folk concept of the “sense of humor” they were expected to predict humor-related thoughts, feelings, and actions. Washburn in her early studies claimed that a person in the attitude of cheerfulness is incapable of a depressing thought, and meanwhile there is ample evidence that trait cheerful individuals maintain being in a cheerful state (i.e., keep humor) in the face of adversity. The contributions of the present collection of articles are diverse. First, a training of humor yielded outcomes for cheerfulness, seriousness, and bad mood) in the desired direction with medium to large effect sizes ( Tagalidou et al. ). Different to a recent study ( Ruch et al., 2018 ) the state version was utilized. Congruent with the assumption that cheerfulness predicts smiling and laughter, Auerbach shows that trait cheerful patients showed more genuine smiling and laughter during a hospital clown intervention than low trait cheerful individual do. Hofmann et al. present an adaptation of the instrument measuring state and trait cheerfulness using samples from the USA and the UK to providing the basis for studies with English-speaking participants. Next to the long version with 106 items, they provide the standard short form with 60 items and deliver initial validation data. López-Benítez et al. investigate a cognitive mechanism associated with trait cheerfulness. Utilizing a task-switching paradigm they find that while trait cheerfulness does not influence switching costs it modulates preparation and repetition effects. Studies like this are needed to further illuminate the processes associated with the traits be it cheerfulness, playfulness, or humor. Bruntsch and Ruch find trait cheerfulness and low bad mood facilitating the detection of ironic praise.

Conclusions

The individual contributions show how humor, laughter, playfulness, and cheerfulness are related and yet heterogeneous. Each field would profit from starting to talk to each other, see overlaps in scope, finding common structure, common language, and work on theories connecting these fields. Combining the domains in the prediction of important criteria might be important too. The topics studies in this research topic (plus others) may be understood as nodes in a larger net and the interrelations need to be better explored.

It is positive to see that integrative models within the domains are now developed. This indeed needs to be the prime goal, namely to work on a solid structure within the four fields. It took research of personality and intelligence more than half a century to arrive at models that are shared by many. Also in these fields we once had “schools” that did believe into one model and defended it a lifetime. Later generations of researchers then found that the competing models were incomplete variants and do fit into a more general, often hierarchical model. We recommend concerted efforts to solve those basic questions, perhaps by compiling special issues on pertinent topics.

Author Contributions

All authors listed have made a substantial, direct and intellectual contribution to the work, and approved it for publication.

Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank all the authors who agreed to participate in this Topic with their original contributions, and to all the reviewers who promoted the quality of research and manuscripts with their comments. Furthermore, special remarks go to Frontiers staff and Professors Marcel Zentner and Anat Bardi for the opportunity they gave to us.

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Keywords: humor, playfulness, laughter, cheerfulness, gelotophobia, wit

Citation: Ruch W, Platt T, Proyer RT and Chen H-C (2019) Editorial: Humor and Laughter, Playfulness and Cheerfulness: Upsides and Downsides to a Life of Lightness. Front. Psychol . 10:730. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00730

Received: 22 February 2019; Accepted: 15 March 2019; Published: 09 April 2019.

Edited and reviewed by: Nadin Beckmann , Durham University, United Kingdom

Copyright © 2019 Ruch, Platt, Proyer and Chen. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) . The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

*Correspondence: Willibald Ruch, [email protected]

Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

Cover Story

The science of humor is no laughing matter.

Communication
Interpersonal Communication
Nonverbal Communication
Psychological Science
Social Psychology

This is a photo of a pinky fingerwith drawn face, glasses, and tie.

In 1957, the BBC aired a short documentary about a mild winter leading to a bumper Swiss spaghetti crop in the town of Ticino. In a dry, distinguished tone, BBC broadcaster Richard Dimbleby narrates how even in the last few weeks of March, the spaghetti farmers worry about a late frost, which might not destroy the pasta crop but could damage the flavor and hurt prices. The narration accompanies film footage of a rural family harvesting long spaghetti noodles from trees and laying them out to dry “in the warm Alpine sun.”

Naturally, the hundreds of people who called the BBC asking where they could get their own spaghetti bushes hadn’t noticed the air date of the news clip: April 1st. The prank was so successful that even some BBC staff were taken in, leading to some criticism about using a serious news show for an April Fool’s Day joke.

Why April 1st became a holiday devoted to pranks and laughter remains a mystery, although some historians trace it back to the Roman holiday of Hilaria. Humans start developing a sense of humor as early as 6 weeks old, when babies begin to laugh and smile in response to stimuli. Laughter is universal across human cultures and even exists in some form in rats, chimps, and bonobos. Like other human emotions and expressions, laughter and humor provide psychological scientists with rich resources for studying human psychology, ranging from the developmental underpinnings of language to the neuroscience of social perception.

The Hidden Language of Laughter

Theories focusing on the evolution of laughter point to it as an important adaptation for social communication. Studies have shown that people are more likely to laugh in response to a video clip with canned laughter than to one without a laugh track, and that people are 30 times more likely to laugh in the presence of others than alone.

“The necessary stimulus for laughter is not a joke, but another person,” writes laughter expert and APS Fellow Robert R. Provine, professor emeritus at University of Maryland, Baltimore County, in an article in Current Directions in Psychological Science .

Just look at the canned laughter in TV sitcoms as an example: The laugh track has been a standard part of comedy almost from the birth of television. CBS sound engineer Charley Douglass hated dealing with the inappropriate laughter of live audiences, so in 1950 he started recording his own “laugh tracks.” These early laugh tracks were intended to help people sitting at home feel like they were in a more social situation, such as sitting at a crowded theater. Douglass even recorded varying types of laughter, including big laughs and small chuckles, as well as different mixtures of laughter from men, women, and children.

In doing so, Douglass picked up on one of the qualities of laughter that is now interesting researchers: A simple “ha ha ha” communicates an incredible amount of socially relevant information.

For example, a massive international study conducted in 2016 found that across the globe, people are able to pick up on the same subtle social cues from laughter. Samples of laughter were collected from pairs of English-speaking college students — some friends and some strangers — recorded in a lab at the University of California, Santa Cruz. An integrative team made up of more than 30 psychological scientists, anthropologists, and biologists then played audio snippets of this laughter to 966 listeners from 24 diverse societies spanning six continents, from indigenous tribes in New Guinea to urban working-class people in large cities in India and Europe. Participants then were asked whether they thought the two people laughing were friends or strangers.

On average, the results were remarkably consistent across all 24 cultures: People’s guesses about the relationship between the laughers were correct approximately 60% of the time.

Researchers also have found that different types of laughter can serve as codes to complex human social hierarchies. Across the course of two experiments, a team of psychological scientists led by Christopher Oveis of University of California, San Diego, found that high-status individuals had different laughs than low-status individuals, and that strangers’ judgments of an individual’s social status were influenced by the dominant or submissive quality of the person’s laughter.

“Laughing in the presence of others indicates the interaction is safe,” the researchers explain. “While the norms of most social groups prevent direct, unambiguous acts of aggression and dominance, the use of laughter may free individuals to display dominance because laughter renders the act less serious.”

In the first study, the researchers wanted to know whether high- and low-status individuals actually do laugh differently.

To test this, 48 male college students were randomly assigned to groups of four, with each group composed of two low-status members (“pledges” who had just joined a fraternity a month earlier) and two high-status members (older students who had been active in the fraternity for at least 2 years).

Laughter was recorded on video as the group members engaged in a teasing task. Each member of the group took a turn in the hot seat, receiving light teasing from his peers. The teasers came up with a nickname based on randomly generated sets of initials (e.g., L. I. became “Loser Idiot”) and then told joking stories about why they chose the nickname.

One team of coders (naïve to the study hypotheses) identified all of the instances of laughter in the video, and a second team of coders (also blind to the study hypotheses) watched the video and rated how submissive or dominant each laugh sounded using a scale of −3 (definitely submissive) to 3 (definitely dominant). Laughs receiving average ratings of 2 or higher were classified as dominant, whereas laughs receiving average ratings of −2 or lower were classified as submissive.

A third team of coders, also blind to the hypotheses, coded the audio of each laugh on specific sound characteristics — loudness, pitch, pitch range, pitch modulation, airiness, and burst speed — that are associated with disinhibited behavior.

“If dominant laughs are more disinhibited than submissive laughs, as we hypothesize, they should exhibit greater vocal intensity, more pitch range and modulation, and greater burst speed,” Oveis and colleagues explain.

The analysis revealed that, as predicted, high-status fraternity brothers produced more dominant laughs and fewer submissive laughs relative to the low-status pledges. Dominant laughter was higher in pitch, louder, and more variable in tone than submissive laughter. In this regard, dominant laughter appears to share some of the features researchers have identified in genuine (compared with fake) laughter: greater irregularities in pitch and loudness and faster bursts of sound.

Previous research published in Psychological Science demonstrated that holding a position of power can influence the acoustic cues of our speech. The voices of individuals primed with high-power roles tended to increase in pitch and were, at the same time, more monotone. Listeners who had no knowledge of the experiment were able to pick up on vocal cues signaling status: They correctly rated individuals in the high-power group as being more powerful with a surprising degree of accuracy — about 72% of the time.

Findings from the fraternity-brother experiment also showed that low-status individuals were more likely to change their laughter based on their position of power; that is, the pledges produced more dominant laughs when they were in the “powerful” role of teasers. High-status individuals, on the other hand, maintained a consistent pattern of dominant laughter throughout the teasing game regardless of whether they were doing the teasing or being teased themselves.

In another study, the research team tested out whether naïve observers could detect an individual’s social status based just on their laughter, and whether the type of laugh (dominant or submissive) could influence judgements of social status.

A group of 51 college students was randomly assigned to listen to a set of 20 of the laughs recorded from the fraternity brothers. Each participant listened to an equal number of dominant and submissive laughs from both high- and low-status individuals. Participants then estimated the social status of the laugher using a series of 9-point ratings scales. And indeed, laughers producing dominant laughs were perceived to be significantly higher in status than laughers producing submissive laughs.

“This was particularly true for low-status individuals, who were rated as significantly higher in status when displaying a dominant versus submissive laugh,” Oveis and colleagues note. “Thus, by strategically displaying more dominant laughter when the context allows, low-status individuals may achieve higher status in the eyes of others.”

However, regardless of whether raters heard a dominant or a submissive laugh from a high-status individual, they rated that person as being relatively high in status.

It’s unclear whether this was because high-status laughs include characteristics that were not measured in the current study or whether high-status fraternity brothers just didn’t have very convincing low-status laughs while being teased.

When it comes to comedy, it’s often a thin line between love and hate. What qualities make something funny (or not) is a question that philosophers have been attempting to answer for thousands of years. But a pair of psychological scientists have come up with a theory that explains why we might laugh at a dark joke about murder as well as a silly pun or play on words.

Psychological scientists Peter McGraw (University of Colorado, Boulder) and Caleb Warren (University of Arizona) propose that negativity is an intrinsic part of humor — without violating a norm or rule of some kind, a joke just isn’t funny. But violations can’t stray too far; otherwise, they become unappealing or even disgusting and upsetting. According to the researchers’ Benign Violation Theory, a violation is humorous when it breaks a rule or norm but is benign.

McGraw and Warren’s Humor Research Lab (HuRL) has conducted several studies examining the exact criteria that cause us to perceive a comedic situation as benign or not. Along with the severity of the norm violation, a sense of psychological distance from the violation — by space, time, relationships, or imagination — is a key ingredient for turning an unpleasant situation into a humorous one, they posit.

For example, in a study published in Psychological Science , the researchers looked at the effect of psychological distance in terms of time. Inspired by the classic Mark Twain quote, “Humor is tragedy plus time,” the research team investigated how the passage of time can influence one’s perception of an event as funny or painful.

“If distance increases the humor in severe violations (i.e., tragedies), but decreases the humor in mild violations (i.e., mishaps), then autobiographical events that get funnier over time should feature more severe violations than those that get less funny over time,” the researchers write.

One study found that the events from people’s lives that became funnier over time were more severe events (like a car accident), while events that lost their comedic effect over time were seen as minor violations (like stubbing a toe).

Another study examined distance by manipulating whether an image was seen as hypothetical or real. A group of 67 students was asked to rate the humor of images from a website. Those in the close condition were told they would be looking at real photos that “have not been altered using image design software”; participants in the distant condition were told they would be viewing “fake pictures” that “have been altered using image design software.”

One picture portrayed a severe abnormality: a Cronenbergian image of a man sticking a finger up through his nose out of his eye socket. The other portrayed a mild abnormality — a man with large icicles hanging from his frozen beard. Using a 6-point scale, participants rated how funny they thought the photos were.

The students rated the more disturbing image of the empty eye socket as more humorous when they were told it was fake, and they reported the less disturbing frozen-beard image as more humorous when they thought it was real.

“These findings suggest that there’s a real sweet spot in comedy — you have to get the right mix between how bad something is and how distant it is in order for it to be seen as a benign violation,” McGraw said.

The Energizing Effect of Humor

Having trouble finishing a project on deadline? Well, put down that Red Bull and head over to YouTube. No joke — watching funny cat videos at work may not be such a bad thing after all. A study conducted by Australian National University management professors David Cheng and Lu Wang suggests that exposure to humorous stimuli may actually help people persevere in completing tedious tasks.

Across two studies, Cheng and Wang found that people who watched a funny video clip before a task spent approximately twice as long on a tiresome task compared with people who watched neutral or positive (but not funny) videos.

Prior research has found that humor can help facilitate recovery from stressful situations, even prolonging people’s tolerance for physical pain. In the business world, many successful organizations such as Zappos, Virgin, and Google deliberately build play areas into their workspaces and organize fun events to ameliorate the stressful nature of work, boost morale, and increase productivity.

Indeed, in a 2007 article published in Current Directions in Psychological Science , APS William James Fellow Roy F. Baumeister (Florida State University), APS Fellow Kathleen D. Vohs (University of Minnesota), and APS Fellow Dianne M. Tice (Florida State University) point to humor as a factor that can moderate or counteract the effects of mental depletion.

In line with this idea, Cheng and Wang hypothesized that humor may provide a respite from tedious situations in the workplace. This “mental break” might not only prevent work-related depletion, but also might facilitate the replenishment of mental resources, ultimately allowing people to persist longer on difficult tasks.

To test this theory, for their first study the researchers recruited 74 students studying in a business class to come into the lab, ostensibly for an experiment on perception. First, the students performed a mentally depleting task in which they had to cross out every instance of the letter “e” contained in two pages of text. The students then were randomly assigned to watch a video clip eliciting either humor, contentment, or neutral emotions.

For the humorous video, students watched a clip of the BBC comedy “Mr. Bean.” In the contentment condition, participants watched a scene with dolphins swimming in the ocean. The students in the neutral condition were treated to an 8-minute video about the management profession designed for students studying business. Immediately after watching the videos, participants reported their responses to a list of 16 discrete emotions (e.g., amusement, anger, disgust) using a 7-point scale.

Then the students completed a persistence task in which they played what amounted to an unwinnable game. The students were asked to guess the potential performance of employees based on provided profiles and were told that making 10 correct assessments in a row would lead to a win. However, the computer software was programmed such that it was nearly impossible to achieve 10 consecutive correct answers. Participants were allowed to quit the task at any time.

Students who watched the humorous “Mr. Bean” video clip ended up spending significantly more time working on the task, making twice as many predictions as the other two groups.

Cheng and Wang then replicated these results in a second study, during which they had participants complete long multiplication questions by hand. Again, participants who watched the humorous video spent significantly more time working on the task and completed more questions correctly than did those who did not watch the funny video.

“Although humor has been found to help relieve stress and facilitate social relationships, the traditional view of task performance implies that individuals must concentrate all their effort on their endeavors and should avoid things such as humor that may distract them from the accomplishment of task goals,” Cheng and Wang conclude. “We suggest that humor is not only enjoyable but more importantly, energizing.”

Kathleen D. Vohs will speak at the 2017 APS Annual Convention, May 25–28, in Boston, Massachusetts.

Baumeister, R. F., Vohs, K. D., & Tice, D. M. (2007). The strength model of self-control. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 16 , 351–355. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8721.2007.00534.x

Bryant, G. A., Fessler, D. M. T., Fusaroli, R., Clint, E., Aarøe, L., Apicella, C. L., … Zhou, Y. (2016). Detecting affiliation in colaughter across 24 societies. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences , 113 , 4682–4687. doi:10.1073/pnas.1524993113

Cheng, D., & Wang, L. (2015). Examining the energizing effects of humor: The influence of humor on persistence behavior. Journal of Business and Psychology, 30 , 759–772. doi:10.1007/s10869-014-9396-z

Ko, S. J., Sadler, M. S., & Galinsky, A. D. (2014). The sound of power: Conveying and detecting hierarchical rank through voice. Psychological Science, 26 , 3–14. doi:10.1177/0956797614553009

McGraw, A. P., & Warren, C. (2010). Benign violations: Making immoral behavior funny. Psychological Science , 21 , 1141–1149. doi:10.1177/0956797610376073

McGraw, A. P., Warren, C., Williams, L. E., & Leonard, B. (2012). Too close for comfort, or too far to care? Finding humor in distant tragedies and close mishaps. Psychological Science , 23 , 1215–1223. doi:10.1177/0956797612443831

Oveis, C., Spectre, A., Smith, P. K., Liu, M. Y., & Keltner, D. (2016). Laughter conveys status. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology , 65 , 109–115. doi:10.1016/j.jesp.2016.04.005

Provine, R. R. (2004). Laughing, tickling, and the evolution of speech and self. Current Directions in Psychological Science , 13 , 215–218. doi:10.1111/j.0963-7214.2004.00311.x

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International Journal of Humor Research

Online ISSN: 1613-3722
Print ISSN: 0933-1719
Type: Journal
Language: English
Publisher: De Gruyter Mouton
First published: January 1, 1988
Publication Frequency: 4 Issues per Year
Audience: Researchers, students and practitioners with an interest in the scholarly study of humor and related phenomena

Home — Essay Samples — Life — Character Traits — Humor

Humor Essays

When it comes to writing a humor essay, the choice of topic can make or break the success of your piece. Choosing the right topic is crucial to capturing the interest of your readers and conveying your sense of humor effectively. In this article, we will discuss the importance of selecting the right humor essay topics, provide advice on how to choose a topic, and offer a detailed list of recommended essay topics in various categories.

The topic of your humor essay sets the tone for the entire piece. A well-chosen topic can engage your readers, make them laugh, and leave a lasting impression. On the other hand, a poorly chosen topic can fall flat and fail to capture the attention of your audience. The right topic can also showcase your creativity and wit, allowing you to demonstrate your sense of humor through your writing.

When selecting a humor essay topic, it's important to consider your audience and what will resonate with them. Think about what makes you laugh and what you find amusing, as this can help you tap into your own sense of humor. Additionally, consider current events, pop culture, and everyday situations as potential sources of inspiration for your essay topics. It's also important to ensure that your chosen topic is appropriate and inoffensive, as humor can be subjective and sensitive.

Everyday Life

The art of procrastination
Surviving a Monday morning
The joys of grocery shopping
Dealing with tech support
Getting lost in translation

Relationships

Navigating the world of online dating
Awkward first date experiences
The humor in marriage
Roommate horror stories
Family vacations gone wrong
Office pranks and shenanigans
Meetings from hell
Company culture quirks
The art of email communication
The struggle of the daily commute

Pop Culture

Celebrity gossip and scandals
The absurdity of reality TV
Meme culture and internet humor
The impact of social media on humor
The evolution of comedy in film and television

Social Commentary

The humor in politics
Satirical takes on current events
Cultural stereotypes and misconceptions
The absurdity of societal norms
The art of sarcasm and irony

These are just a few examples of humor essay topics that can serve as a starting point for your writing. Remember to choose a topic that resonates with you and allows you to showcase your unique sense of humor. With the right topic, you can engage your readers and leave them laughing long after they've finished reading your essay.

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v.13(9); 2023 Sep
PMC10498079

The impact of humor therapy on people suffering from depression or anxiety: An integrative literature review

Xuefeng sun.

1 School of Nursing, Changchun University of Chinese Medicine, Jingyue National High‐Tech Industrial Development District, China

Jindan Zhang

Xiaotu zhang, hongshi zhang, associated data.

All figure and data analysis are fully available without restriction.

To identify and synthesize existing research on the effectiveness and feasibility of multiform humor therapy on people suffering from depression or anxiety, with the hope of benefiting future research.

An integrative literature review of quantitative, qualitative, and mixed studies was performed. The PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, Embase, and CINAHL databases were searched up to March 2022. Two independent reviewers conducted each stage of the review process, by assessing eligibility using preferred reporting items for systematic review and meta‐analyses (PRISMA) and quality appraisal using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool, and data extraction.

In this integrative review, 29 papers were included, containing 2964 participants across a diverse range of studies, including quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods. The articles were from the United States, Australia, Italy, Turkey, South Korea, Iran, Israel, China, and Germany. The findings indicated that most of the subjects thought humor therapy was effective in improving depression and anxiety while a few participants considered the effect insignificant. However, more high‐quality studies will be needed to confirm these conclusions.

This review collated and summarized findings from studies examining the impact of humor therapy (medical clowns, laughter therapy/yoga) on people with depression or anxiety, including children undergoing surgery or anesthesia, older people in nursing homes, patients with Parkinson's disease, cancer, mental illness, and undergoing dialysis, retired women, and college students. The results from this review may help inform future research, policy, and practice in humor therapy to improve people's symptoms of depression and anxiety.

This systematic review objectively evaluated the effect of humor therapy on depression and anxiety. As a simple and feasible complementary alternative therapy, humor therapy may provide a favorable alternative for clinicians, nurses, and patients in the future.

This systematic literature review objectively evaluates the effect of humor therapy on depression and anxiety. As a simple and feasible complementary alternative therapy, humor therapy provides favorable conditions for clinicians, nurses and patients in the future.

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1. INTRODUCTION

Depression and anxiety are common mental disorders and leading causes of disability worldwide (Li et al., 2022). Based on 2021 data (Abeysekera & De Zoysa, 2021 ; Chan et al., 2022 ), the worldwide prevalence of depression and anxiety per 100,000 persons was found to be 3153 and 4802 cases, respectively. Of these, 15–20% of children and adolescents also suffered from anxiety and depression. The recent COVID‐19 pandemic had also significantly increased the prevalence of depression and anxiety disorders (Chan et al., 2022 ). The typical symptoms of depression include low mood, decreased interest, memory loss, slow thinking, decreased volitional activity, sleep disturbances, loss of appetite, and suicidal thoughts. In addition to rapid heart rate, weakness, fatigue, and other physiological reactions, the primary symptom in patients with anxiety disorders is the psychological experience and feeling of excessive worry. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fifth Edition (DSM‐5) details depression and anxiety disorders and their typical symptoms. There is a category of depressive and anxiety symptoms that do not fit with the other diagnoses, which the DSM‐5 calls unspecified depressive disorders and unspecified anxiety disorders. These can include children with significant mood changes before surgery and depression or anxiety due to illnesses such as cancer and hemodialysis.

Anxiety and depression are frequently comorbid in psychiatry and are influenced by various factors such as gender, socioeconomic status, and social support (Bandelow et al., 2017 ). In recent years, depression and anxiety have become more prevalent in younger people, yet many patients are still not receiving adequate treatment. Therefore, it is essential to explore positive psychosocial interventions (Dubovsky, 2021 ).

Although psychiatric medications often alleviate symptoms, they can be costly and have severe side effects, making them unsuitable for elderly or pediatric patients. Some healthcare professionals believed medication was not feasible for these patients (Ebrahimi et al., 2022 ). Consequently, nonpharmacological approaches have been proposed to address these concerns. Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is increasingly used for treating various diseases, including psychiatric disorders such as depression and anxiety. CAM therapies are classified into four categories, namely, biologically based therapies, manipulative and body‐based therapies, mind‐body therapies, and alternative medical systems (Trkulja & Barić, 2020 ). CAM may offer a promising alternative or complementary approach to treating anxiety and depression in individuals who cannot tolerate conventional medications or prefer nonpharmacological interventions.

In recent years, humor therapy has been widely applied as a CAM. Humor therapy is defined by the Association for Applied and Therapeutic Humor as interventions that promote physical well‐being while promoting emotional, cognitive, social, or spiritual healing through the playful discovery, expression, or appreciation of absurd or incongruous situations in life (Zhao et al., 2020 ). This intervention helps people cope with stress, regulate emotions and promote physical and mental health (Farkas et al., 2021 ). According to Mallett ( 1995 ), humor therapy is a nonpharmacological intervention that improves immune function, raises discomfort thresholds, reduces stress, and protects cardiovascular and respiratory function. The contents and types of interventions used in humor therapy are varied, such as reading interesting books and cartoons, watching witty plays and comic videos, sharing anecdotes, instructing relaxation of facial muscles, laughter, meditation, encouraging singing and dancing together, role‐playing, and clown performances. Humor or laughter is primarily investigated through three theories: superiority theory, incongruity theory, and relief theory (Kuru & Kublay, 2017 ). Superiority theory focuses on humor, believing that people are always competing and looking for flaws in others. Laughter is a sudden realization that one is superior to others. Thus, in terms of the theory, people feel happy watching exaggerated expressions, humorous language, or funny pictures that contribute to increased self‐worth and self‐efficacy (Wilkins & Eisenbraun, 2009 ). Relief theory posits that laughter releases tension and depression caused by societal constraints. It suggests that individuals laugh at amusing events and subsequently feel happy and relaxed, releasing tension, anxiety, and depression, which may positively impact their physical and mental health (Ko & Youn, 2011 ). Lastly, Incongruity theory focuses on the process by which people understand and process humor. According to this theory, the perception of dissonance can encourage people to think positively, engage in communication and discussion, and enhance their ability to identify problems (Wilkins & Eisenbraun, 2009 ).

This literature review aims to find and evaluate current research on humor therapy, discussing the effectiveness and feasibility of multiform humor intervention as a psychological treatment, in the hope that this will benefit future research.

We aimed to integrate the findings of primary studies using quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods to assess the efficacy of humor therapy in alleviating depression and anxiety. The questions addressed in this review are as follows:

Is it possible, based on baseline measurements and subsequent changes after interventions, to demonstrate that humor therapy, laughter therapy, and medical clowning can significantly ameliorate depression or anxiety in different populations?

What are the attitudes of subjects to the use of humor therapy for depression or anxiety as a complementary alternative to medication?

2.2. Literature search

A systematic literature review was conducted with the assistance of a librarian and three master's students. The databases searched included PubMed, Cochrane, EMBASE, CINAHL, and Web of Science, and the search period spanned from May 2012 to March 2022. EndNote version X9.1 was used to screen the literature, and Table 1 provides details on the electronic databases searched, along with the syntax used. The references of the selected articles were checked multiple times. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐Analyses (PRISMA) framework was followed in this study (Moher et al., 2015 ), as illustrated in Figure 1 .

Search syntax for electronic databases.

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PRISMA flow diagram.

2.3. Selection criteria

The inclusion criteria were the following: (1) subjects were diagnosed with an anxiety disorder or depressive disorder, according to DSM; “depressive” or “anxious” difficulties in people who did not meet the “clinical criteria,” but suffered such difficulties due to a specific situation in life (e.g., children who undergo surgery or similar), but not too extensively; (2) the article commented on humor therapy or other forms of humor intervention; (3) types of studies to include quantitative, qualitative, and mixed research; and (4) the selected studies were published in the journal or a doctoral or master's thesis; (5) written in English only. The following were excluded: (1) any of the above criteria was violated; (2) articles with animal studies; (3) the article did not discuss the effects of humor therapy on people with depression and anxiety; and (4) more than 25% of subjects’ dropouts.

2.4. Quality appraisal

The Mixed Method Appraisal Tool (MMAT, version 2018) was used to assess the quality of the included studies during the rigorous evaluation stage of the systematic review. MMAT can assess the methodological quality of five types of studies, namely, qualitative studies, randomized controlled trials, nonrandomized studies, quantitative descriptive studies, and mixed studies (Hong et al., 2018 ). After answering two screening questions for each included study, the appropriate study category was selected for evaluation and then scored according to the criteria of the selected category. Based on this, two researchers independently evaluated the methodological and five quality criteria of MMAT. Scores that met one criterion were designated “*” and scores that met all requirements were classified as “*****.” Each included study was read in detail to obtain an objective evaluation score. When the evaluation score was inconsistent or uncertain, the two people discussed it together and reached a decision. This paper did not exclude several low‐quality studies due to the objectivity of the research results. Table 3 depicts the quality scores.

Baseline and outcomes of included study ( N = 29).

2.5. Data extraction and synthesis

This review included 29 relevant publications, and a two‐person extraction method was used for the comprehensive extraction of vital information and data from each article. Analysis was performed using the method of Whittemore and Knafl ( 2005 ), whereby the extracted data were coded and compared to identify key concepts. Consensus between the researchers on the extracted data was reached after discussion.

PRISMA was used to screen the literature, resulting in a total of 29 articles included in this study (see Figure 1 ). The searches yielded a total of 608 studies, 376 of which were duplicated and, therefore, removed. The remaining 232 studies were chosen based on titles and abstracts. One hundred and forty‐seven studies were not included in the scope of the review, which led to the retrieval of 85 studies for possible inclusion. Full‐text retrievals were evaluated against inclusion criteria. Fifty‐nine studies did not meet the inclusion criteria for various reasons, for example, the study was about disorders not associated with symptoms of depression or anxiety, and were excluded. The study characteristics, including author, region, MMAT quality ratings, population type, study design, intervention group content, and control group content, can be investigated in Table 2 . Table 3 showed the evaluation tools, baseline, outcome data, and attitude in each study.

Characteristics and analytics of included studies ( N = 29).

3.1. Study characteristics

These included studies were conducted in Australia ( n = 3), the USA ( n = 4), Italy ( n = 4), Turkey ( n = 4), South Korea ( n = 4), Iran ( n = 4), Israel ( n = 3), China ( n = 2), and Germany ( n = 1). The sample sizes in the 29 studies were between 12 and 398 participants, with a total of 2964 participants. The present review included 26 quantitative studies (Agostini et al., 2014 ; Cai et al., 2014 ; Dionigi et al., 2014 ; Felluga et al., 2016 ; Goldberg et al., 2014 ; Kocherov et al., 2016 ; Kurudirek et al., 2021 ; Liguori et al., 2016 ; Meiri et al., 2016 ; Tagalidou et al., 2019 ; Shahidi et al., 2011 ; Bega et al., 2017 ; Bennett et al., 2020 ; Genc & Saritas, 2020 ; Kim et al., 2015 ; Lee et al., 2020 ; Armat et al., 2022 ; Ko et al., 2022 ; Brodaty et al., 2014 ; Ghodsbin et al., 2015 ; Heidari et al., 2020 ; Kiyak & Kocoglu, 2021 ; Ko & Youn, 2011 ; Low et al., 2014 ; Low et al., 2013 ; Ozturk & Tezel, 2021 ), of which one was a quantitative nonrandomized trial, as well as one qualitative study (Tener et al., 2016 ), and two mixed studies (Bressington et al., 2019 ; Rudnick et al., 2014 ). The qualitative study used in‐depth semistructured interview guides to collect data (see Table 2 ).

Six studies included participants with mental illnesses, such as depressive disorder, dementia, and Parkinson's disease. Nine studies included children undergoing surgery or under anesthesia while six studies analyzed the elderly in nursing homes. Three studies included patients with cancer while a further three investigated retired women, immigrant women, and infertile women. Bennett et al. ( 2020 ) analyzed hemodialysis patients, while Ozturk & Tezel ( 2021 ) included first‐year nursing students in their study (see Table 3 ).

3.2. Methodological quality

The included studies were found to be of moderate quality ( n = 6), moderately high quality ( n = 16), and high quality ( n = 7). The quality ratings of studies based on the MMAT criteria are provided in Table 2 . A list of the specific quality criteria for each study is also provided in Table 4 .

List of quality evaluation grades ( N = 29).

3.3. The epidemiology of depression or anxiety in different populations

Six articles exclusively explored the impact of humor therapy on depression while 12 studies examined its effect on anxiety and 11 investigated its effects on both depression and anxiety. The findings of these studies were summarized in Table 4 . Notably, depression and anxiety are often comorbid with other illnesses or experiences. For instance, Agostini et al. ( 2014 ) reported a high incidence of anxiety symptoms in children scheduled for surgery, with approximately 75% of children receiving anesthesia experiencing severe anxiety or pain. Similarly, Genç and Saritas ( 2020 ), Liguori et al. ( 2016 ), and Kocherov et al. ( 2016 ) found that 60‒80% of children and 40‒75% of adults undergoing surgical procedures experience high levels of preoperative anxiety. Brodaty et al. ( 2014 ) investigated the residents of 17 old‐age homes in Sydney, Australia, and found that 25‒40% of the residents suffered from depression. Two studies (Heidari et al., 2020 ; Ko & Youn, 2011 ) reported an increased prevalence of mental disability in elderly populations, particularly in nursing homes, where depressive symptoms increased by up to 20‒30% as the numbers of elderly residents increased. Kim et al. ( 2015 ) reported that cancer and tumor patients have a high degree of psychological distress, and 20‒40% of such people were simultaneously diagnosed with depression and anxiety, necessitating timely treatment and intervention. Bega et al. ( 2017 ) and Bennett et al. ( 2020 ) studied depressive symptoms in patients with Parkinson's disease and hemodialysis, where the incidence of depression was 17% and 39.3%, respectively. Furthermore, in a recent study on stress among married immigrant women (MIV) in South Korea, Ko et al. ( 2022 ) found that acculturation stress resulted in higher levels of depression and anxiety in this population, reaching 31.2%.

3.4. Research tools

The included studies used various scales to evaluate the effectiveness of humor therapy on anxiety or depression. Six articles (21%) used the State‐Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) (Spielberger et al., 1983 ), a Likert‐type scale in which 20 questions are set to assess state and trait anxiety levels, with scores ranging from 1 to 4 for each question. Total scores on the state and trait anxiety subscales ranged from 20 to 80, with higher scores indicating higher anxiety levels. Four articles (14%) used the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) (Beck et al., 1961 ). The BDI is a 21‐item self‐reporting scale consisting of emotional, cognitive, somatic, and motivational components to measure changes in the severity of depressive symptoms. Each answer is scored between 0 and 3 (From no symptoms to severe symptoms). The scale yields a total score of 0−63. Four articles (14%) used the modified Yale Preoperative Anxiety Scale (M‐YPAS) (Kain et al., 1995 ). This was used to assess the level of anxiety in children undergoing anesthesia induction. M‐YPAS consists of 22 items that address the activity, emotional expression, arousal status, vocalization, and parental need in young children. Children's anxiety levels are assessed by evaluating their behavior in five different areas, with higher scores indicating greater anxiety. Kain et al. ( 1995 ) confirmed the validity of this assessment. Three articles (10%) utilized the Cohen‐Mansfield Agitation Inventory (CMAI) (Cohen‐Mansfield et al., 1989 ), which includes 29 types of agitated behaviors, with each behavior rated on a scale of 1 to 7. The higher the score, the greater the likelihood that the patient will exhibit agitated behaviors. The Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) (Beck et al., 1988 ; Beck et al., 1996) was used in two articles. This consists of 21 questions related to general anxiety symptoms. Each item is scored from 0 to 3, and the total score ranges from 0 to 63, with higher scores indicating more severe anxiety symptoms. Two studies used the Cornell Scale for Depression in Dementia (CSDD) (Alexopoulos et al., 1988 ), a scale designed to assess depression in dementia patients; the scores range between 0 and 28, with higher scores indicating higher levels of depression in dementia patients. Two studies used the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) (Yesavage et al., 1982 ) to assess depressive mood, with a score of 0 to 9 indicating no depression, 10 to 19 indicating moderate depression, and 20 or more indicating major depression. One article used the Neuropsychiatric Inventory‐Nursing Home version (NPI‐NH) (Cummings et al., 1994 ), assessing the frequency and severity of delusions, irritability, anxiety, irritability, and hyperexcitability. In this scale, the scores range from 0 to 144, with higher scores indicating an increased number of symptoms and a higher frequency of occurrence. One article used the Chinese version of the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS−21) (Lovibond & Lovibond, 1995 ) while another study used the German Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale Revised (CESD‐R) (Hautzinger et al., 2012 ). Most of these research tools were screening scales, not diagnostic tools, so the results must be interpreted cautiously.

3.5. Study findings

In general, the studies included in this review found that humor therapy, a kind of nondrug therapy, has received increasing attention. It was used progressively in clinical practice to improve the symptoms of depression or anxiety in all types of people. The results of 27 included studies showed that humor techniques such as humor therapy, clown intervention, and laughter therapy/yoga could reduce depression or anxiety. However, two articles did not show a significant effect of humor therapy on depression or anxiety and remained neutral. Of course, humor therapy has some limitations, and there will be still plenty of room for future research.

3.5.1. The scope and content of humor therapy

Humor therapy is usually divided into “spontaneous” (humorous) and “simulated” (nonhumorous) laughter. The practice of inducing spontaneous laughter mainly included comedy videos, standup comedies, role‐playing such as medical clowns, etc. “Simulated” laughter therapy usually involves clapping, dancing, and elements that do not involve laughter, such as laughter yoga. Table 4 lists interventions for depression or anxiety. The 29 studies focused on three types of humor therapy interventions, including humor therapy, medical clowning, and laughter therapy. Humor therapy interventions included showing participants comedy videos or movies. Sometimes, Laughter Bosses and Elder Clowns interact with them through music, jokes, slapstick, or simply conversation in both one‐on‐one or in groups. Medical clowns entertained children in various ways, such as interrupting, soap bubbles, magic tricks and puppets, pantomime techniques, prestidigitation, juggling, and improvisation. Armat et al. ( 2022 ) concluded that laughter therapy could expand the sternum, exercise breathing ability, stimulate the brain to generate a happy mood, and then relax the entire body.

3.5.2. The effects of three kinds of intervention on depression or anxiety

Humor therapy.

Seven studies demonstrated the effect of humor therapy on depression or anxiety. These studies were comparable to baseline measures and did not have statistically significant differences in demographics or preintervention. Three studies had shown that humor therapy improved depression and anxiety symptoms in elderly seniors in nursing homes; the intervention process was conducted by the “Laughter Boss” or the “Elder Clown” (Brodaty et al., 2014 ; Low et al., 2014 ; Low et al., 2013 ). In patients with mental disorders, humor therapy had a different therapeutic effect. Through humor skills training, Cai et al. ( 2014 ) found that symptoms of depression and anxiety improved significantly in 15 subjects, and BDI and STAI scores were significantly reduced ( p < .005). However, Rudnick et al. ( 2014 ) and Tagalidou et al. ( 2019 ) both demonstrated that standup comedy training and humorous games did not improve depression and anxiety, particularly major depression. As a result, both studies were neutral with respect to humor therapy. Genc and Saritas ( 2020 ) discussed the effect of watching comedy videos on anxiety symptoms in cancer patients, and the results demonstrated that humor therapy can effectively relieve anxiety ( p < .001). This review revealed that the actual physical condition of the patients will determine the timing of each intervention. In most cases, it will take at least 9–12 humor training sessions.

Medical clowns

Multiple studies had shown that medical clowns were popular among pediatric patients (Van Venrooij & Barnhoorn, 2017 ). In this review, nine articles addressed the role of medical clowns in the field of medicine, especially pediatrics (Dionigi et al., 2014 ; Felluga et al., 2016 ; Goldberg et al., 2014 ; Kocherov et al., 2016 ; Liguori et al., 2016 ; Meiri et al., 2016 ; Tener et al., 2016 ; Agostini et al., 2014 ; Kurudirek et al., 2021 ). These studies highlighted the sources of anxiety in children who receive clinical treatment and explored in more detail the effect of medical clowns on the reduction of anxiety in children, of course, at a comparable baseline. Separation from parents, fear of unfamiliar environments or people, pain, and fear of medical procedures can all contribute to hospitalized children being more prone to anxiety and stress. Eight studies found that medical clowning significantly relieved anxiety in children, with significant reductions in VAS, m‐YPAS, STAI, CAPS, and CFS scores ( p < .05). Tener et al. ( 2016 ) interviewed participants in an in‐depth semistructured interview, they described the significance of the clown retrospectively and how the clown projected onto their perception of the hospital, the examination, and their personal narrative. Research suggested that the presence of medical clowns throughout the medical process, while largely eliminating pain for children and families, may even be a positive empowering experience, reshaping perceptions of the hospital experience. Clown doctors normally performed their duties when a doctor is treating a child and the duration of the intervention was relatively short. Several studies have also emphasized the relevance of clown interventions in reducing preoperative anxiety and emotional responses in both children and their parents (Agostini et al., 2014 ; Dionigi et al., 2014 ; Meiri et al., 2016 ; Tener et al., 2016 ; Kocherov et al., 2016 ). This could be because parents’ emotions, behavior, and health all played roles in their children's psychological experiences. Stress and anxiety from parents can easily be passed on to their children. In contrast, Agostini et al. ( 2014 ) assumed in their studies that the presence of parents could effectively reduce children's pain and anxiety during anesthesia induction.

Laughter therapy/yoga

Laughter therapy contained laughter yoga, a complementary intervention since the 1970s (Rosner, 2002 ). Thirteen articles were introduced to show the effects of laughter therapy on depression or anxiety (Bressington et al., 2019 ; Shahidi et al., 2011 ; Armat et al., 2022 ; Bega et al., 2017 ; Bennett et al., 2020 ; Ghodsbin et al., 2015 ; Heidari et al., 2020 ; Kim et al., 2015 ; Kiyak & Kocoglu, 2021 ; Ko & Youn, 2011 ; Ko et al., 2022 ; Lee et al., 2020 ; Ozturk & Tezel, 2021 ). Laughter therapy generally involved laughter, deep breathing, stretching, meditation, and music‐related activities (chorusing, body movement, and dancing). This therapy was delivered primarily through group sessions (Lee et al., 2020 ). In this review, 11 studies had shown that laughter therapy improved depression, including depression, cancer, hemodialysis, retired women, immigrant women, infertile women, nursing home seniors, and freshmen. With the same baseline, there were significant differences in DASS, CDS, POMS‐B, PHQ‐4, BDI, CESD, and BSI scores between the pre and postlaughter therapy interventions. ( p < .05). However, Ghodsbin et al. ( 2015 ) indicated that the intervention group did not improve depression among 36 nursing home seniors after a six‐week laughter therapy program. The study further explained that the difference could be due to the short duration of the study and timely changes in depressive mood. If we could continue the study over a longer period of time, we might see significant changes in depression scores. Again, Bega et al. ( 2017 ) confirmed that laughter therapy did not improve depression and anxiety in Parkinson's patients, but significantly improved subjects’ ability to function in daily life. Eight studies discussed the effects of laughter therapy on anxiety, and most of the studies found that laughter therapy obviously improved participants’ anxiety, but Bressington et al. ( 2019 ) confirmed that implementing a group‐based laughter yoga intervention did not improve anxiety in depressed patients. According to Rudnick et al. ( 2014 ), the positive effect of laughter therapy on stress and depression may be due to the psycho‐neuro‐endocrine‐immune stress response mechanism. Armat et al. ( 2022 ) concluded that laughter therapy could expand the sternum, exercise breathing ability, stimulate the brain to generate a happy mood, and then relax the entire body. Only physical and mental relaxation can maintain positive emotions while reducing depression, anxiety, and stress.

3.5.3. Challenges for the future of humor therapy

Humor was influenced by personal factors such as personality, age, and gender characteristics, where men were more likely to use humor than women, and there may be large differences in the emphasis on humor use (Schweikart, 2020 ). Clinically, medical personnel should fully consider the environmental factors that affect humor in the implementation of humor therapy, such as stress, degree of perceptual difficulty, preonset physical symptoms, number of negative attitudes, the severity of illness, pain, executive ability, etc. In summary, we should pay attention to the personality differences of the patients to select the best treatment plan.

The therapeutic effects of humor were widely accepted and had persisted for centuries, but there was no consensus on the definition of humor, the type of intervention, or the best way to assess the effects. There is limited empirical evidence to support mediation mechanisms for the positive effects of humor, and the lack of empirical evidence limits the acceptance and use of humor therapy by clinical medical personnel (Savag et al., 2017 ). Brain imaging provides a means to study the mediating mechanisms of the positive effects of humor. However, until now, there have been no studies involving the neurological effects of humor interventions.

4. DISCUSSION

This integrative review compiled the results of previously published randomized controlled trials and qualitative and mixed studies related to the topic of humor therapy and systematically synthesized the narrative summaries of a range of CAM‐based multivariate humor therapies in patients with anxiety and depression. In general, the results of the review showed that humor therapy has considerable developmental prospects and advantages in the treatment of anxiety and depression. It can be actively put into practice to reduce the adverse effects of mild anxiety and depression in patients.

4.1. The importance of mental and psychological rehabilitation

Depression and anxiety disorders are prevalent throughout the world and also represent a focus of attention in the field of mental illness. The World Health Organization emphasizes strengthening mental health care in its 2022 World Report on Mental Health. In contrast to traditional rehabilitation, mental illness rehabilitation focuses on reducing psychopathology. Therefore, the integration of new forms of treatment to improve patients’ happiness, life satisfaction, self‐esteem, and other positive emotions is crucial.

4.2. The universality of the use of humor therapy

Humor therapy is increasingly recognized as a cost‐effective, safe, and efficient intervention to enhance physical and mental health, as well as social well‐being. A recent study found that approximately 11.8% of children in the United States prefer complementary and alternative medicine. Among the nonpharmacological approaches, clown therapy has gained widespread popularity (Dionigi et al., 2014 ). Medical clowns create a more positive atmosphere between the medical team and patients by conveying their sense of humor through whimsical antics, comedy, and improvisation (Gomberg et al., 2020 ). Going through surgery and the use of syringes is painful and frightening for children and, furthermore, the COVID‐19 pandemic had also forced children worldwide to get vaccinated. Therefore, helping children reduce anxiety and fear of syringes is also important for future research, and the collaboration of medical clowns and nurses should address this issue. At the same time, nurses are also in charge of vaccinating and injecting; their humor skills will also positively impact this process. This type of intervention can meet the needs of individual children, has both short‐ and long‐term effects, and is widely used.

Dr. Madan Kataria in India proposed the concept of laughter yoga as part of laughter therapy in 1994. This was a type of yoga that incorporates yogic breathing, meditation, and relaxation. Unlike other types of yoga, laughter yoga practice does not necessitate special training facilities or professional yoga equipment, nor does it necessitate professional inspection or supervision due to its simple movements, safety, and low intensity. Practitioners can learn and practice alone quickly, at a low cost, with high patient participation and ease of compliance (Miles et al., 2016 ).

4.3. Explore the mechanism of humor therapy

Humor is positively correlated with happiness and is a strategy for regulating emotion that is not only a medium for dispersing and transferring negative emotions but also an effective tool for dealing with negative life situations. Humor therapy and the emotional care offered by Chinese medicine coincide. According to traditional Chinese medicine, people have seven emotions: joy, anger, worry, thought, sadness, fear, and shock. “Joy overcomes sorrow” is also proposed in the Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon; a happy mood can eliminate inner depression and annoyance. Considering this, humor and laughter therapies can induce and stimulate laughter, resulting in positive emotions. Of course, traditional Chinese medicine also emphasizes dialectics and tension. As a result, humor intervention should be carried out with regard to the specific situation of individuals and with consideration of the person's internal and external environment, including factors such as age, gender, cultural differences, and sense of humor, amongst others.

Laughter has been shown to promote movement in the respiratory muscles within the chest and abdomen while triggering reflex diaphragmic function through four stages of laryngeal regulation. These stages include the laughter interpulse pause, arytenoid cartilage closure, vocal cord vibration, and arytenoid cartilage opening. In addition, laughter has been found to normalize hypothalamic‐pituitary‐adrenocortical dysfunction. By increasing the frequency of laughter, individuals may reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety by direct improvement of their mood and mental health in response to stressful events, which can be attributed to cortical and subcortical brain regions (Fonzi et al., 2010 ; Lee et al., 2020 ).

To summarize, the relationship between humor, laughter, and health has gained increasing attention in healthcare approaches. Physiological models classify laughter into spontaneous and simulated types, both of which have positive effects. In the humor enhancement model, humor induces positive emotions. The pressure‐release model helps individuals relieve stress from their daily lives, while the social model reduces interpersonal conflict and tension, ultimately promoting overall health (Lee et al., 2020 ).

4.4. Strengths and limitations

Although humor therapy is widely used in treating both depression and anxiety, there is no comprehensive summary of its specific interventional methods, duration, efficacy, and patient feedback. This review compiled previously published randomized controlled trials and qualitative and mixed studies related to this topic.

This study was comprehensive regarding the literature search, using publications from five databases. We searched for articles investigating people from different countries, regions, age groups, and disease associations. Several humor therapy interventions were further explored, namely, medical clown therapy, laughter therapy, and laughter yoga, showing that humor interventions can be provided in multiple forms to meet the specific needs of individuals. Furthermore, no adverse effects are associated with humor therapy, and the intervention is relatively easy to implement.

However, this study has several limitations. First, while most of the studies included in the review came to a positive conclusion, it is difficult to generalize the effects of humor therapy on patients with depression or anxiety as different studies used different forms of intervention. According to the literature, humor therapy is effective in patients with mild anxiety and depression, but its efficacy in patients with moderate to severe anxiety and depression needs to be further verified. Second, all of the included studies assessed the effects of depression and anxiety using scales that failed to achieve objective diagnostic results. Third, the inclusion of only one qualitative study is insufficient for analyzing the public's understanding and feelings about humor therapy, resulting in a poor understanding of the potential shortcomings of humor therapy, which may hinder the development of future interventional measures.

5. CONCLUSIONS

The study reviewed quantitative, qualitative, and mixed studies on the effects of humor therapy on people with depression or anxiety. The baseline measurements and statistical outcomes of each study were analyzed to explore the therapeutic effects of various interventions, including comedic video and crosstalk‐based humor therapy, medical clowning, and laughter therapy. The review revealed that humor significantly impacts perception, attitude, judgment, and mood, which may directly or indirectly influence physical and mental well‐being. While most studies confirmed the benefits of humor therapy for depression or anxiety, several suggested that the intervention period may have been too short for the full reflection of positive effects. Therefore, additional high‐quality studies are necessary for the further verification of the effects of humor therapy.

5.1. Implications

Obstacles are inevitable in the implementation of humor therapy with the most important being the attitude and views of the medical staff towards humor therapy. This is because they are two different teams with different goals. Several studies showed that the work of medical staff may occasionally be hindered due to humor therapy treatment, thus affecting overall patient care and leading to negative views of humor therapy. On the positive side, medical personnel may also consider that humor therapy can relieve pain, reduce the negative effects of treatment, and have a positive impact on overall patient recovery. Therefore, medical personnel need to be consulted before the implementation of humor therapy to achieve the maximum effects of the therapy.

The future success of humor therapy depends on its pricing and the effectiveness of its services. If humor therapy is applied to special groups such as the elderly and cancer patients, the inclusion of humor therapy in the national healthcare system is a powerful tool for its promotion.

Humor therapy can be combined with specific technological applications and treatments in some cases and situations. Humor therapy often cannot be fully implemented because some hospitals prohibit clown doctors from entering operating theaters and interactions were also severely curtailed in specific situations such as during the COVID‐19 pandemic, restricting the use of the therapy. Thus, the use of apps, video recordings, and live guidance can compensate for these drawbacks. Technology is the best way to reach more patients.

Future research should use widely accepted definitions of humor and effective assessment tools to try to assess and test the effects of humor interventions based on neurobiological effects and laboratory marker tests to better understand how humor therapy affects mental health.

AUTHOR CONTRIBUTIONS

Jindan Zhang, Xiaotu Zhang, and Yidan Wang conceived the study. Jindan Zhang, Yidan Wang, and Sixuan Li screened the studies and extracted data. Xuefeng Sun, Zihan Qu, and Xiaotu Zhang did the quality assessment. Xuefeng Sun wrote the first draft of the manuscript. All authors revised this draft. All authors read and approved the final version.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST STATEMENT

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

PEER REVIEW

The peer review history for this article is available at https://publons.com/publon/10.1002/brb3.3108 .

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The authors gratefully acknowledge the support of Professor Hongshi Zhang of Changchun University of Traditional Chinese Medicine in developing and reviewing this paper. In addition, thank my brother Xuewen Sun (Beijing Forestry University) for revising the grammar and vocabulary of the manuscript.

Sun, X. , Zhang, J. , Wang, Y. , Zhang, X. , Li, S. , Qu, Z. , & Zhang, H. (2023). The impact of humor therapy on people suffering from depression or anxiety: An integrative literature review . Brain and Behavior , 13 , e3108. 10.1002/brb3.3108 [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]

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111 Humor Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

🏆 best funny essay topics & examples, 📌 simple & funny essay titles, 👍 good humorous essay topics, 😄 funny narrative essay topics.

Humor in Lysistrata and She Stoops to Conquer: Still Funny Today For contemporary audiences yet delight in the satire of Lysistrata, the farcical comedy of manners in which the themes of national war and peace, and yes, even war and peace between the sexes, all receive […]
The Effects of Humor and Persuasion Nevertheless, humor does still have a firm standing in as far as enhancing persuasion is concerned since the source is able to build rapport with the receiver which is the fundamental goal of persuasion. Humor […] We will write a custom essay specifically for you by our professional experts 808 writers online Learn More
Sense of Humor: How Does It Help? Satire is more particular because it is based upon a proper understanding of the target of the humor and may only be interesting and entertaining to a mature and probably educated audience.
Comedy and humor in World Literature Here, the comedy of absurd is presented in the description of the state of poverty in the family of Okonkwo’s father.
Harpagon – The Achievement of Humor in “The Miser” by Moliere Since he has alienated himself from all the other characters, whatever unfortunate happens to him in the course of the play is a source of humor for the audience.
Humor in Zadie Smith’s Novels The style in which Zadie Smith writes serves as a shorthand to introduce the reader to a situation that can be regarded as ethically or socially problematic and approached from the perspective of Zadie Smith’s […]
Humor and Parody in Japanese Literature The aim of this paper is to explore the use humor and parody in the following works of Edo and Tokugawa periods: Shikitei Sanba’s Ukiyoburo, Ihara Saikaku’s Life of a Sensuous Man, and Hiraga Gennai’s […]
Drew Hayden Taylor’s Aboriginal Humor: Just Joking? This essay looks at the classical theories that could be applied to aboriginal joking while touching on the functions of joking, comedy as serious, and the analysis of a joke. It informs us of the […]
Humor Importance in the Workplace Since the HRM function is charged with the development of motivation in the workplace, humor can be instrumental in the development of a free social environment.
Humor and Technology in “Young Frankenstein” Film One of the debates of the day was the question of the proper role of the scientist in the contemporary age, addressed in the novel Frankenstein written by Mary Shelley.
Racial Humor and Stereotypes in “Rush Hour 2” Due to the influence of the process of globalization various cultures on our planet started to interact very closely, massive waves of migrations covered every country and the clash of customs, traditions, religions and lifestyles […]
Humor and Horror: The Last House on the Left by D.Iliadis Review On the other hand, humor in the Film is used to generate fun, make the viewers laugh, reduce tension, and offer empathy to the characters.
Film Noir and Black Humor in “The Missing Gun” Black humor and noir elements can also be viewed as features helping to create a specific visual image of a movie and atmosphere that would affect viewers.”The Missing Gun” combines these aspects to depict an […]
Humor as the Leading Strategy of Stress Relief The purpose of this paper is to discuss the importance of humor as one of the leading stress management strategies. In other words, it does not suffice to know the sources of stress, as the […]
Humor as a Means to Achieve Positive Results in the Workplace However, when a team represents a wide variety of ethnic groups who are hostile to each other, the manager should know how to build a good relationship in a multi-ethnic team.
Humor Application in Conflict Management: Facilitating and Regulating Communication To an extent, the value of humor can be explained by the fact that it helps to establish a more relaxed atmosphere, the quality sometimes needed at a workplace.
Humor as a Therapeutic Tool at Health and Humor Website Humormatters.com It can be found through the google search of “Sultanoff” and is also listed on the Pepperdine University website in the section dedicated to the researcher, as to one of the faculty members.
Humor and Health in the Workplace: Communication and Reducing Employee Tension Additionally, the cartoon reduces tension in the workplace since it gives the employer a chance to advise the specific worker. The organization management comprehends that employees are free to develop a great deal of expertise […]
Ethics and Persuasion of Humor: In Context to the Social Functions of Humor in the Society The mental position in this case is taken to be the attitude of the person. Humor in persuasion helps the receivers have interest in what one is trying to communicate.
Culture-Based Humor and Stereotypes: A Comedian’s Relationship With the Audience It is impossible to distinguish the type of comedy that would be interesting for a person without analyzing one’s reaction to humor on various topics.
Humor in Asian Cinema: The Functions of Humor in Japanese Films To conclude, humor in cinema is a valuable instrument for developing the major topics of films and adding certain distinguishing details to them.
The Racial Humor in America: Jokes With Racial and Ethnic Contents Connotations The Indian childhood and racial stereotypes are the major areas covered by Peter Russell since the start of his performance in 1989.
Mark Twain and His Humor According to Critics He and his family moved to Nook Farm in Hartford, Connecticut in the 1860s then to Fredonia, New York and Keokuk, Iowa.
Humor With a Multifunctional Nature: Cultures and Traditions in Works of Comedy Considering the 2008 elections in particular, the Colbert Report served as accelerator of the people’s self-awareness and patriotism; it aimed at revealing the truth to people in humorous ways in order to compensates the lack […]
The Strategies of Humor and Australian Art Post 1970 The role of humor concerning needs and emotions illustrates a society as a powerful teacher in the construction of the social self-reinforcing of which emotions are acceptable.
Different Tastes of Humor Humor is a part of life, and if we try to ignore it because of too many activities, or of little things that we tend to magnify in spite of their irrelevance in our lives, […]
Humor Therapy for Patients With Mental Illness Thus, the researchers concentrated on humor as one of the most valuable components of therapy, having the potential to lead to positive patient outcomes.
African-American Humor as a Reflection of Change The purpose of this article is to show that humor has been employed by the African-American population as a tool of diminishing the stereotypes that get in their way towards the realization of equal privileges […]
“Humor and Laughter” by Attardo Since then up to now, a synthesis of the different elements of humor and laughter lacks thereby, triggering the relevance of evaluating the maturation of the field.
Humor in the Workplace The findings of this paper can be important from theoretical and practical perspectives: on the one hand, they can better explain those forces which govern the relations among colleagues; while on the other hand, they […]
The Nature of Humor: What Makes People Laugh Academically, literary works are a creative and constructive way of condemning evils such as corruption, impunity, gender violence and discrimination of any kind, which could be understandably an obstacle to the progress of a society […]
Dark Humor in The Cask of Amontillado Essay The use of horror and humor in “The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe is one of the literary features that the author uses to constructs the story.
The Impact of Fun and Humor in the Workplace on Employee Morale and Performance Although it has always been known that laughter can lower stress levels and provide several other benefits, it is generally believed that kidding around and having some laughter in the workplace is not helpful at […]
The Theme, Message, Humor and Setting of The Fault in Our Stars, a Novel by John Green
The Theme of Humor in The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare
Uses of Humor in The Crying Lot of 49 by Thomas Pynchon and White Noise by Don DeLillo
Transforming the Moment: Humor and Laughter in Palliative Care
The Humor of Absurdity in Adams’ Hitch Hiker’s Guide
The Humor Through the Characters By Creating False Realities in the Taming of the Shrew
The Humor and Satire in Mark Twain’s Writings
The Use of Comedy to Add Humor in the Movie Zombieland
The Principles of Satire and Humor in Candide by Voltaire
Use Of Tone, Irony and Humor in The Hammon and the Beans
The Use of Irony and Humor in Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest
The Importance of Humor in Literature for the Beginning Reader
Use Of Humor And Language Techniques In Monbiot’s Article Modest Proposal For Youth Scourge
The Potential Correlations Between Self Defeating Humor
Use of Humor by Woody Allen and Sigmund Freud
The Importance of Humor in Tragic Hamlet, a Play by William Shakespeare
The Relationship Between Humor And Culture: Emma Jameson
The Humor Functions in Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest
The Definition of a Parody and the Different Strategies of Finding Humor
The Positive and Negative Implications of Humor
The Cooperative Principle of Pragmatics: An Analysis of the Verbal Humor in Friends
The Use of Literary Devices to Create Humor in Romeo and Juliet
The Use of Humor in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, a Play by William Shakespeare
What Is The Triumph Of Humor Over Human Adversity
The Similarities and Differences between Popular and Academic Sources on Humor Comprehension and Humor Production
Using Humor in the Teaching-Learning Process To Improve the Students’ Speaking Skill
The Truth Behind Comedy: An Analysis Of Comedians And Humor
The Subtle Humor of Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen
The Humor in Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
The Cynical Views and Dark Humor of Voltaire in Candide and Zadig
Therapeutic Use of Humor Description
Women And Comedy: Sexual Humor And Female Empowerment
Using Dark Humor And Journals
The Use of Humor in the Writings of Mark Twain
The Importance of Humor in Creating an Effective Advertising for Marketers
The Effects Of Humor At The Cellular Level And On The Immune System
What Roles Does Humor Play in Flight
The Satire and Humor In Chaucer8217s Canterbury Tales
The Use of Humor in Richard Iii by Shakespeare
The Powerful Humor Presented in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
The Life of Kurt Vonnegut Jr. and His Dark Humor in Satirical Novels
The Difference Between American and British Humor
Use Of Humor To Describe Historical Events Illustrated In George Orwell’s Animal Farm
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving and Humor
The Use of Different Forms of Humor to Face the Harsh Reality of Everyday Life as a Prisoner During the Holocaust
Use of Humor in William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet
The Development of a Sense of Humor in Childhood
The Main Effect of Humor Through the Contradictions Within Each Component in Foreign Bodies by Hwee Hwee Tan
Wit and Humor in Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night
Theories of Humor in Stop Me If You’ve Heard this by Jim Holt
The Humor in 21 Jump Street, a Film by Phil Lord and Chris Miller
What Is Mean “Bad” Humor?
What Is the Meaning of Humor?
What Is the Opposite of Humor?
What Is the Best Synonym for Humor?
Which Is the Closest Synonym for the Word Humor?
How African American Humor Has Evolved and the Way We Look at Comedy?
How Does Chaucer Use Humor to Make Social Criticism?
How Does Dorothy Parker Use Humor to Explore Gender Differences?
How Does Humor Affect Our Society?
How Does Humor Use Humor?
How Emily Dickinson Uses Humor and Irony in Her Poetry?
How Can Humor Benefit Workplace Relations and Improve Employees?
How Can Humor Create Different Emotions Within the Comedy?
How Can Humor Serve as an Important Part of Health?
How Humor Makes More of an Impression Than Stern Speeches?
How Would Open-Mindedness, Responsibility, and a Sense of Humor Help Japan Become a Better Country?
How Russel Peters’ Uses Race-Based Humor?
What Are the Unique Characteristics of Jewish Humor?
Who Benefits From Humor-Based Positive Psychology Interventions?
The Moderating Effects of Personality Traits and Sense of Humor?
Does the Relation Between Humor Styles and Subjective Well-Being Vary Across Culture and Age?
How Does Humor Affect Brand Imaging, Interpersonal?
How Does Humor Influences Perceptions of Veracity?
Can a Person Be Described as Humorous?
What Is the Importance of Humor?
How Did Social Change and Its Humor Idiom in the Twentieth Century?
Which Are Different Styles of Humor?
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Home / Essay Samples / Life / Humor / Benefits of Humor: Analysis of Research Based Information

Benefits of Humor: Analysis of Research Based Information

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Topic: Happiness , Humor , Laughter

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