Preferred Humor Styles of Undergraduates of a Private University
Teh Su Yen1*
1 Faculty of Arts & Social Science, UTAR, Malaysia
*Corresponding Author: [email protected] Accepted: 15 April 2023 | Published: 30 April 2023
DOI:https://doi.org/10.55057/ajress.2023.5.1.21
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Abstract: Humor is universal, and it can be contagious. Much research has been done about using humor in the classroom, and it has been found to provide an advantage in teaching and learning. However, humor must still be applied cautiously as different people might perceive the jokes told differently. Therefore, understanding undergraduates' humor styles can help educators use the style of jokes appropriately and effectively. This small-scale research is a preliminary study investigating undergraduates’ preferred humor styles. It has been found that they prefer positive styles and are less likely to use those negatively affecting the self and listeners.
Keywords: humor, styles, undergraduates, preferred
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1. Introduction
The online Cambridge Dictionary (2022) defines humor as “the ability to be amused by something seen, heard or thought about.” Humor can be used in several ways. It is assertive when trying to lighten a stressful situation to establish a connection with friends, family members, and significant others (Psychology Today, 2022). This notion is supported by Meyer (2000), who writes that when jokes are conveyed at the beginning of conversations, any tense situations can have a possible chance to be diffused. Cann, et al. (2009) add that putting humor into conversations will benefit the message's sender and receiver. Meyer (2015) states that humor's role in communication is essential; not only can information be transmitted, but it also serves as a platform where shared meaning can be shaped and, indirectly, relationships among communicators can be established.
It cannot be denied that humor is part and parcel of life. “Humor affects many behaviors such as communication, well-being, anxiety and stress level of people” (Asilioglu, 2020, p.139).
When applied correctly, humor brings positive outcomes in the classroom. McGabe, Sprute and Underdown (2017, p.5) state, “Humor is important because it has many physiological and psychological benefits” as well as social benefits (Abbas & Rana, 2016). Appleby (2018) mentions that teaching and learning is a serious process, but it does not mean educators and students must go through the process without a single ounce of laughter. In addition, Oza and Ahluwalia’s (2021) writing states that humor can heighten students’ eagerness to learn. Bieg et al. (2017) mention that emotions are crucial in the student's academic achievement and help shape students’ character. Also, positive student-teacher rapport can be formed (Appleby, 2018). Shatz (2019) writes that when humor is incorporated into the teaching and learning process, it can drive students' attention toward the lesson and the easier for them to maintain
the knowledge attained. However, as mentioned by Abbas & Rana (2016), even though educators support using humor in a classroom, they need to bear in mind the delivery, as not all students interpret the meaning as the same.
2. Problem Statement
The usage of humor is universal; however, the perception of communicated humor can differ among its recipients. One may find sarcastic humor humorous, while others may find it rude or offensive. Bitterly and Brooks (2020) conducted small-scale research for the Harvard Business Review finds that in an organizational setting, a joke can be interpreted differently by people based on how the message is conveyed. Based on the same research, they find that when jokes are not funny or not suitable for the environmental setting, it may lead to colleagues perceiving the sender to be less intelligent and ultimately may cause someone to lose their job.
Similarly, the educator's job is even more complex in an educational environment when students perceive the class as dull from the beginning. Educators are expected to be
“chameleons,” versatile, and able to accommodate changes easily (Smith & Wortley, 2017).
Shoda & Yamanaka (2022) agree with that notion and add that educators might face difficulty in providing a conducive environment for students to learn. Much less data is available from the point of view of the students regarding instructional humor. Research investigating instructional communication mostly centered on the educators’ being the communicator (Frymier, et al., 2008). Thus, this preliminary study would like to explore how undergraduates use humor. Understanding how students utilize humor must be understood before knowing how educators can incorporate humor into teaching.
3. Research Objective
To investigate undergraduates' preferred humor styles.
4. Research Question
What are the preferred humor styles of undergraduates?
5. Literature Review
In general, there are four different humor styles. Namely, affiliative humor, aggressive humor, self-enhancing humor, and self-defeating humor (Martin et al., 2003). According to Karakus, et al. (2014), the four humor styles can be further divided into positive and negative ones.
Affiliative and self-enhancing can be considered positive styles, while aggressive and self- defeating are regarded as hostile humor negative styles. Martin et al. (2003) add that when humor is used correctly, it can help to foster new relationships and to maintain existing ones.
Concerning that, Shatz (2019) notes that when humor is included in the teaching and learning process, the educator needs to keep in mind to avoid employing hostile humor that would hurt students.
Firstly, affiliative humor can be defined as jokes that are told so that the listeners of the jokes will perceive them as funny (Riggio, 2015). Jokes of this nature are often used when the teller wants to enhance the relationship among the members (Jiang, et al., 2020). It can be implied;
jokes of this style are suitable to be used when friends or work groups want to improve their teamwork. Research by Abbas & Rana (2016) found that students did not perceive using humor
in class as a waste of time. In contrast, students felt that humor was crucial to the learning process.
Secondly, aggressive humor is applied when one wants to insult another. This style is commonly used when the speaker intends to put others down, and if applied too aggressively, it can be seen as a form of bullying (Riggio, 2015). Asilioglu (2020) adds that this style can cause pain, and the speaker could intend to detach from their social groups. Often, this kind of humor would have the essence of sarcasm and mockery in the content (Abadi, 2018). Dyck and Holtzman (2013) state that this version of humor is one of the weakest and must have a minor alignment to secure a stable relationship.
Thirdly, self-enhancing humor functions as a coping mechanism when one is in any stressful situation. This style is used when one has a positive outlook on life (Karakus, et al., 2014).
Lastly, self-defeating humor is linked to people with depression and anxiety (Martin, et al., 2003). Riggio (2015) mentions that using this style of humor is usually unhealthy because the speaker usually puts themselves down before others do.
6. Methodology
A total of 104 undergraduates responded to the online questionnaire. 59 (56.7%) of the respondents were female, and the remaining 45 (43.3%) were male. They were from a local private university and took courses that were communication in nature. Students were given a short explanation on what is the objective of the research. The questions used were adapted from Martin et al. (2003), where they had conducted research using the scale on individual usage of humor.
The respondents were asked to rate based on a five-point Likert Scale for this research. From 1- strongly disagree to 5- strongly agree. There were 18 questions and further divided into 4 subscales: naming affiliate humor, self-enhancing humor, aggressive humor, and self-defeating humor.
7. Results
Table 1: Results of Affiliate Humor Style
Statement Strongly
Disagree
Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree I usually don’t laugh or joke
around with my friends. 39.4% (41) 36.5% (38) 17.3% (18) 4.8% (5) 1.9% (2) I rarely make other people laugh by
telling funny stories about myself 10.6% (11) 35.6% (37) 24% (25) 24%(25) 5.8%(6) I laugh a lot with my closest
friends 1.9% (2) 1.9% (2) 7.7% (8) 31.7%(33) 56.7% (59)
I usually don’t like to tell joke or
amuse people 12.5% (13) 37.5% (39) 31.7% (33) 16.3% (17) 1.9% (2) I enjoy making people laugh 1% (1) 2.9% (3) 17.3% (18) 48.1% (50) 30.8% (32)
Based on the data, the respondents utilize affiliate humor. About 76% of students either strongly disagree or disagree about not making jokes around their friends. Similarly, 88%
noted that they often laugh with their closest friends, and about 80% said they enjoy making others laugh. However, the results indicated a mixed reaction towards “ I rarely make other people laugh by telling funny stories about myself”. 46% said they disagreed, about 30% said they did, and 24% were undecided.
Table 2: Results of Self-enhancing Humor Style
Statement Strongly
Disagree
Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree If I am feeling depressed, I can
usually cheer myself up with humor 4.8% (5) 20.2% (21) 33.7% (35) 34.6% (36) 6.7% (7) My humorous outlook on life keeps
me from getting overly upset about things
1.9% (2) 15.4% (16) 50% (52) 26.9% (28) 5.8% (6) I don’t need to be with other people
to feel amused. I can usually find things to laugh about even when I’m by myself
1% (1) 14.4% (15) 27.9% (29) 46.2% (48) 10.6% (11) It is my experience that thinking
about something amusing aspect of a situation is often a very effective way of coping with problems
0%(0) 6.7% (7) 53.8% (56) 34.6% (36) 4.8%(5)
About 42% noted they could cheer themselves up, while a smaller portion of respondents could not, 25%. While 57% of students agree they do not need others to cheer them up. Lastly, most students remain neutral about having a humorous outlook on life, and perceiving a situation as amusing is an effective way to cope.
Table 3: Results of Aggressive Humor Style
Statement Strongly
Disagree
Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree If someone makes a mistake, I will
often tease them about it 12.5% (13) 25% (26) 33.7% (35) 21.2% (22) 7.7% (8) People are never offended or hurt
by my sense of humor 3.8% (4) 21.2%(22) 37.5% (39) 30.8% (32) 6.7% (7) When telling jokes, I am usually not
very concerned about how other people are taking it
18.3% (19) 34.6% (36) 22.1% (23) 21.2% (22) 3.8%(4) Sometimes, I think of something
that is so funny that I can’t stop myself from saying it, even if it is not appropriate for the situation
10.6% (11) 30.8% (32) 32.7% (34) 22.1% (23) 3.8%(4) If I don’t like someone, I often use
humor to put them down 13.5% (14) 24% (25) 29.8% (31) 24% (25) 8.7% (9)
In general, many students do not like to utilize aggressive humor. About 38% noted that they do not tease others when they have made a mistake, and jokes told by the respondents are not hurtful recorded, a 37.5% of agreement. Students did not agree with the notion of “not very concerned about how other people are taking it” 53% and 41% said they disagreed with the statement, “ I cannot stop myself from saying it, even if it is not appropriate for the situation.”
However, the results for the last notion under aggressive humor are pretty divided. 37.5%
disagree with “if I do not like someone, I often use humor to put them down,” while 32.7%
agree with that notion to a certain extent.
Table 4: Results of Self-Defeating Humor Style
Statement Strongly
Disagree
Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree I let people laugh at me or make fun
at my expense more than I should 7.7% (8) 14.4% (15) 51% (53) 21.2% (22) 5.8% (6) I will often get carried away in
putting myself down if it makes my family or friends laugh
6.7% (7) 14.4% (15) 44.2% (46) 28.8% (30) 5.8% (6)
When I am with my friends, I often seem to be the one that other people make fun of
3.8% (4) 22.1% (23) 33.7% (35) 30.8% (32) 9.6% (10) Letting others laugh at me is my
way of keeping my friends in good spirits
5.8% (6) 11.5% (12) 28.6% (30) 40.4% (42) 13.5% (14)
On a general note, the respondents did not appreciate using self-defeating humor. They either disagreed with the statements related to the style of humor or felt undecided about it. 51%
were deemed neutral about letting others make fun of them, and 46% felt the same about allowing others put them down by making fun. However, 2 statements received more strongly agree and agree on results. About 40% were okay with letting others make fun of them, and 54% either strongly agreed or agreed about letting friends laugh at them for maintaining good spirits.
8. Discussion and Conclusion
A conventional classroom is a physical setup where students and educators gather. Since educators often take the lead role in facilitating the progress of each lesson, educators must always be prepared to adapt to the constant change and reaction of each class. Also, using humor properly on students have found to be beneficial (Smith & Wortley, 2017). Hence, understanding what and how students utilize humor will be advantageous for educators so that educators can use it to enhance the teaching and learning process. Based on the findings of this preliminary research, it can be discerned that students use and find it acceptable to use affiliate and self-enhancing humor to a certain degree. While most find aggressive and self-defeating less attractive, some do not use them.
Based on Bolkan, et al. (2018) investigation, they found humor distracting when inappropriate jokes were told. This could support what this research has found. When the students do not use the type of humor, they would not appreciate that form of a joke. Appleby's (2018) notion is alike; he reminded in his paper that educators need to stay clear of any form of negative humor, such as those that could cause embarrassment to students. Weimer (2013) also noted that when sarcasm is overly used in conversations between educators and students; students tend to give lower evaluations to the educators.
Farhana and Vijay (2019) note that humor could be used to regain students’ attention on the lesson. Since students prefer a livelier style of humor, it can be suggested that educators consider using affiliates and enhancing humor. Machlev and Karlin's (2016) research supported this notion. They found that students felt more at ease and displayed more positive emotions when the humor projected by the educator was suitable. Also, the students’ claimed a more significant amount of knowledge could be retained.
Similarly, Sidelinger (2014) found that students felt more satisfied with the lesson when the content of good humor was mixed into the course. Banas, et al. (2011) also had a similar agreement. They noted that the teaching and learning process would gain positive recognition from students when appropriate humor is practiced. Nursyafiqah, et al. (2020) provided another dimension for consideration, students' language capability could also affect their ability to grasp the jokes delivered by the educator.
This preliminary study has indicated the presence of humor in students. Based on the 4 humor styles, it can be agreed that students enjoy the humor on the positive side of the joke’s spectrum.
Students are found to use affiliate and self-enhancing humor. In contrast, they did not appreciate aggressive humor and self-defeating humor. This study has given a glimpse of what kind of humor students prefer and also opens more directions to what other concentrations could be investigated.
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