I was raised as an only child. other humor theories began to challenge the dom-inance of the superiority theory: the relief theory and the incongruity theory. Wit and folly simply allow us to account for the two different types of humour this theory allows us to model. Interestingly, those who were higher in humor scores were also found to have increased immune functioning (Bennett et al., 2003). IT needs cognition, belief, and expectation to work. Humor's Bad Reputation 2. Gelkopf, M., Gonen, B., Kurs, R., Melamed, Y., & Bleich, A. You are revising for a test with a friend. How is this word play an incongruity? To understand incongruity in non-words, it is important to know that some letters are more likely than others in the English language (e.g., "E" is more frequent than "Q"), and furthermore . I would have gone on, but you can check out www.thesaurus.com if you want to find other synonyms for incongruity. But then the coda of the joke, in attempting to explain the answer muddies the conceptual space. This play then leads to a feeling of delight in the form of humor or mirth. For example, the mechanism of denial, when used by addicts, serves as a barrier to accepting the addiction and seeking help. It's not without its issues or critics. Humor just feels good; it distracts us from our problems and promotes a lighter perspective. Similarly, other researchers have suggested that gallows humor is beneficial for emergency personnel by providing an outlet for painful emotions and by enhancing support via group cohesion (Rowe & Regehr, 2010). At first the incongruity was unexpected, but now it cant be. Twain had a point, as the research literature supports a relationship between humor and a wide range of positive psychosocial outcomes. Your perception of the item is incomplete. Zhan, L. (2012). There is something to be said for not taking everything too seriously. For more information, visit http://journals.cambridge.org. The results of this study indicated that 85% of patients believed that humor helped them to deal with reality by empowering hope. Whatever gets you through today: An examination of cynical humor among emergency service professionals. Humor, according to relief theory, is used mainly to overcome sociocultural inhibitions . Philosophy IT is refined by adding the play qualification so as to help us know which incongruities are funny ha-ha rather than funny strange.. One way that Gantos makes his writing amusing is through the use of schadenfreude. Roughly the general idea is this. This joke would have found itself quite at home in some of Lewis Carrolls works. I would like to end with one of my favorite jokes from esteemed humor researcher Victor Raskin. Remember, regardless of whether we are talking about wit or folly, what makes us laugh is the incongruity we realise exists between abstract and sensuous knowledge. Outside of a dog, a book is mans best friend. For example, in a famous scene on the Mary Tyler Moore Show, Mary is distressed by the death of Chuckles the Clown, who, while dressed as a peanut, was killed by an elephant in a circus parade. If youre looking for more science-based ways to help others overcome adversity, this collection contains. Jack uses irony, schadenfreude, and the incongruity theory to bring his story to life. Explaining the absurd is a bitabsurd. In the second, the author discusses the debate over whether humor is an emotional experience, or something else. Whereas the previous examples involved. Understanding humor based on the incongruity theory and the cooperative principle. The effect of mirthful laughter on stress and natural killer cell activity. The initial question is nonsensical. The child will continue playing with that rhyme substituting words here and there both with others and by themselves. Humor. What these studies are adding up to is the idea that incongruity--when an idea or an object is out of place--is the heart of humor, Martin says. The Relief Theory claims the cause of laughter is the release of tension caused by one's fears makes one laugh. Hopefully you followed that. In the first part, we learn the various theories of humor, and learn that the author favors Incongruity Theory (i.e. Violated expectations can indeed be funny, as is acknowledged by incongruity theories of humor. Coping mechanisms of physicians who routinely work with dying patients. And while approaching such situations with humor may not make sense to others, humor helps nurses deal with their distress when encountering extremely difficult situations regularly (Wanzer et al., 2005). For example, even if well-documented evidence could be collected to show that people with a sense of humor live longer, it might be that they have a sense of humor because they are healthy and things are going well. Defense mechanisms are believed to protect the ego from emotional pain through the unconscious minds distortion of reality. Another issue with IT comes from my continued delight at the parrot joke. Honest good humor is the oil and wine of a merry meeting, and there is no jovial companionship equal to that where the jokes are rather small and laughter abundant. This book assesses the adequacy of the traditional theories of laughter and humor, suggests revised theories, and explores such areas as the aesthetics and ethics of humor, and the relation of amusement to other mental states. The incongruity theory purports to define the for-mal object of comic amusement, which it locates in certain kinds of incongruity. Hence they were an ancient group and had never experienced a light bulb. In this way, pent-up pressure is relieved through laughter. For some, this sort of play with language shows that real incongruity-based humor has taken root. For example, in a study by Samson, Glassco, Lee, and Gross (2014), humorous coping applied after viewing negative pictures was found to increase positive emotions at both short- and longer term follow-up. This article provides readers with a comprehensive look at humor as an important concept in positive psychology. You understand it better but the frog dies in the process. The incongruity is to be found in comparing the feeling one has at the end of the joke analysis to death. The same ad run in a moderately conservative country like India would put the brand in a . There is no shortage of quotes about humor (and humorous quotes) available online; here are eight terrific examples: If I had no sense of humor, I would long ago have committed suicide. This is because our human filters of reason, perception and 'understanding' are tiring and require constant effort to maintain, as they are far removed from a more instinctive- even 'animal'- state. Research supports this connection. a) Resolution makes the original incongruity no longer incongruous. A sense of humor is associated with increased life satisfaction and a pleasurable and engaged life (Ruch, Proyer, & Weber, 2010). These moments constitute 'the ludicrous'. Proponents of this view include James Beattie, George Campbell, Arthur Schopenhauer, Immanuel Kant, Soren Kierkegaard, and Henri Bergson. And so, with laughter and love, we lived happily ever after. People with a sense of humor tend to be less egocentric and more realistic in their view of the world and more humble in moments of success and less defeated in times of travail. The first theory is the superiority theory. If you were to see a character brushing their teeth with a toilet brush in a slapstick comedy show, it would be amusing. . If my son had substituted an adjective or conjunction it would have been odd. The dominant theory of humor is the Incongruity Theory (Morreall, 2016). Just as the surrealists might have liked. Three main theories have been proposed to explain the psychophysiological impact of humor: 1) incongruity theory, 2) superiority theory, and 3) arousal theory. If you can make sense of this joke, youre way better than I clever reader. In previous studies, most researchers used two-element jokes (setup and punch line) as stimuli, based on experimental methods, to explore the humor process. Here we share defense mechanism worksheets as tools for practitioners. Returning to the above joke, the answer of purple fish is not relevant at all to the question. In M. W. Gallagher & S. J. Lopez (Eds.). Humor in the classroom also is believed to promote social and emotional development among children (Lovorn, 2008), and we share a few ideas in our article Activities to Stimulate Emotional Development. The humor in a pun is the surprise in discovering the dual meaning, or perhaps embarrassment in having chosen the wrong meaning first. The light bulb joke about the surrealists works because the audience knows a little something about what a surrealist is and then uses that knowledge to make sense of the absurd response. Maiolino, N., & Kuiper, N. (2016). The joke teller then delightfully admonishes the implied silliness of the listener to have been making owl noises rather than responding appropriately to the joke form. For terms and use, please refer to our Terms and Conditions You're now up to speed with incongruity theory. According to Schopenhauer, incongruity theory allows all of the 'ludicrous' to be divided into two categories. The Arena Media Brands, LLC and respective content providers to this website may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. 2023 The Arena Media Brands, LLC and respective content providers on this website. If we didnt use humor, wed cry: Humorous coping communication in health care settings. You need to know something about it. A beautiful piece of sculpture or statuary can do the same. congruity theory is satisfactory, but I believe it is more satisfactory than previous versions and deserves to be considered in this stronger form. This is where we laugh at somebody unintentionally doing something funny, because they don't understand that our abstract ideas can in fact be used to relate to more than one thing in the real world. "Irony is the . In comedy, this often means that any kind of logic or familiarity is going to be replaced with something entirely different. It is a combination of all three concepts that attempts to fully encapsulate the complex subject of racial comedy. (2014). But before we move on to critiques, lets explore some other facts about humor that support the notion that humor is a cognitive act that requires some form of perceived incongruity. In this way, humor results from feelings of triumph over the errors or misfortune of others, which promotes self-enhancement and feelings of superiority. They never seem to tire of it. Here the piece of abstract knowledge applicable to multiple pieces of sensuous knowledge is a word ('fire'), and so here we have an example of wordplay creating folly. Incongruity can even play a role in physical humor. To do this, we will discuss the ideas of the leading thinker behind this theorya man called Arthur Schopenhaeur (he explains his theory in his work The World as Will and Idea, but you don't have to read that text to understand this article). New York: Coward McCann, 1941. Along with helping to promote resilience and cope with stress and illness, humor also serves as an invaluable strength associated with various indices of psychological wellbeing, work-related benefits, learning, and creativity. Irrelevance that is in a funny way; something out of place that makes you laugh.Fast and visual humor. The Incongruity Theory (IT, hereafter) is the dominant theory used in modern research to explain humorous things. Examining the impact of a brief humor exercise on psychological wellbeing. Growing up with humor sets children on a more positive pathway. Well thats the big question and one that occupies and vexes many researchers (this author included). Self deprecating; if someone else is laughing at it because you are both flawed in the same way. Maybe it's a toilet brush, maybe it isn't. The response of none both increases and diminishes your perplexity. Humor as a character strength among the elderly. But basically, the kernel of the idea is that you experience something that does not fit easily within the particular context. Abstract knowledge refers to the way we understand things through our human filtersour words for things in the world and the categories we assign them into. And why not? The Incongruity Theory of Humor. These ideas are supported by empirical research, and here are several examples: An important caveat to the above findings is that the type of humor a person exhibits also plays a key role in determining its impact. Martin and Ford (2018) describe the three top humor theories. Cambridge University Press is committed by its charter to disseminate knowledge as widely as possible across the globe. The benefits of humor in nursing education. My off-sounding engine does not produce a laugh. Three traditional theories of laughter and humor are examined, along with the theory that humor evolved from mock-aggressive play in apes. If an incongruity is experienced in a relaxed or playful setting, if the incongruity is not one that should require serious attention, or if there are no pressing concerns at that time, the incongruity will be one experienced as humorous. Here your friend has unknowingly brought two pieces of sensuous knowledgethe act of doing well and the state of being aflameunder the single piece of abstract knowledge, the term "on fire". The humor in both of these examples relies on incongruous . Sense of humor, stable affect, and psychological well-being. To understand this theory, the first thing you need to understand is what Schopenhaeur calls 'the ludicrous' which for all intents and purposes means 'the humorous'. The joke teller does not do as expected and supplies a clever homonym to who in the sound hoo. From the audience, you shout "You're on fire!" (2003). This explains why humor is found more in times of leisure and play than anywhere else. Incongruity is mostly a non-controversial, generally accepted idea, as claimed, for example, by Perlmutter ( 2002, p. 155) "the observation that some form of incongruity is an essential condition for humor, is universally accepted in every serious analysis of the subject." Understanding humor as play helps counter the traditional objections to it and reveals some of its benefits, including those it shares with philosophy itself. Theories of the psychophysiological benefits of humor. I hope thats not the case below, but youll likely find the jokes less funny for the analysis. However, from a neutral unshaped perspective, it is simply a brush. However, most evidence proposing a link between humor and improved health is anecdotal. Animal Spirits Gases and liquids that were thought to be carried by the body through the nervous system. The use of humor in medicine has also been studied from the perspective of healthcare workers. Trust me, it'll make it simpler in the long run! The aim of this dissertation is to offer a new theory of humor that takes seriously both the universality and power of humor in culture. Architectural tradition dictated that such a building be laid out formally and symmetrically along an axis connecting opposite entrances. The most serviceable example of incongruity is the pun, in which a word has multiple meanings, and the meaning of the sentence in which it is included changes dramatically if one or the other meaning is applied. In this respect, humor serves as both a defense mechanism and a way of coping with adversity. In contrast, a person who is not yet ready to face trauma may use mechanisms such as regression or suppression as protective mechanisms until ready to face the situation. Ghayas, S., & Malik, F. (2013). In fact, when you get a joke, so the objection goes, there is no incongruity at all. Two pieces of sensuous knowledgeto have a fan used on you and to have a drink poured over you- are brought under the single piece of abstract knowledge, 'to be cooled down'. Incongruity theory, which focuses on the cognitive mechanisms of perception and interpretation, posits that it is the perceptions of incongruity that explain humor (Martin & Ford, 2018). It also is advantageous for both elderly and child populations. A Subtreasury of American Humor. It was found that those within the high sense of humor category appraised relatively lower amounts of stress and anxiety. Incongruity: Conflicting ideas, bizarre juxtapositions, and any other gaps between expectations and reality create comedy. 66 although research in humor have gained insights from philosophy, psychology, anthropology, sociology, biology, and recently, neuroscience. The effect of humorous movies on inpatients with chronic schizophrenia. You can perform this sort of analysis on most any of the jokes or humor youve experienced. John Morreall traces this theory back to Lord Shaftesbury's 1709 "hydraulic" model, which held that men (sic) had "natural, free ["animal"] spirits" that required release or they would "vent" in undesirable ways. Here the audience is told that the incongruities on offer are objects of humor, not concern. When in reality, it is simply a medium-sized tool for brushing. More traditional comedians with their exaggerated gesticulations or bombastic/exaggerated vocal inflections help the audience understand that what is going on is supposed to be funny and then allows us to experience the incongruity as funny. Therefore, it is suggested that the absence of detrimental humor is equally important to the presence of prosocial humor styles (Martin, 2019). Hydraulic Model. not in harmony or keeping with the surroundings or other aspects of something) with your understanding of the world. This juxtaposition of the Asian man coming from under the counter, which supports the idea that hes the owner, with the sign that proclaims the establishment is black owned is perfect example of ideas or objects that are incongruous with one another. Laughter is also a pleasant sensation and so when we experience the pleasure of incongruity, we- as Schopenhauer puts it- "give ourselves up gladly to the spasmodic convulsions which this apprehension [understanding] excites. We feel good, laughter feels good and so we laugh. Once again, something funnysomething incongruousmakes clear to us the difference between the world as it really, simply is and how we perceive it. Humorous coping and serious reappraisal: Short-term and longer-term effects. For instance, my children loved to take nursery rhymes that they knew well and then not say the expected words at some point. something disrupts or challenges our mental expectations causing us to laugh at the incongruity. As I noted above, the child is playing around with the expectation of the well-known lyric and substituting their own words. The joke makes sense, if in a different or atypical way. To do this, we need to discuss how incongruity theory states we see the world. Certainly children had laughed and giggled prior to language (laughter is evidenced before language after all and is thus a deeper part of our evolutionary history), but this active playing with language and expectations is a mature form of humor, even if its seen as immature to the more advanced humor connoisseurs we all find ourselves to be. In the most general sense, the Incongruity Theory states that in order for something to be found funny or humorous, one needs to perceive a sort of incongruity. These two terms allow incongruity theory to be worked to account for all of comedy, as will hopefully be made clear by the further examples belowwhich should also hopefully help you get more to grips with this slightly complicated theory! The incongruity theory of humor suggests that we find fundamentally incompatible concepts or unexpected resolutions funny. Lastly, following humor therapy sessions, elderly nursing home residents showed a reduced duration of agitation and an increased duration of happiness (Low et al., 2014). Its not like a piece of music. Your email address will not be published. Twinkle, twinkle little star how I wonder what you rooster! The substituted word would always change, but it was typically a noun of some sort and often an animal. More specifically, the muscular and respiratory processes involved in laugher serve the important role of releasing pent-up nervous energy (Martin & Ford, 2018). This article will provide readers with an abundance of information regarding the theoretical foundations of humor within the field of psychology, as well as empirical studies linking humor to various favorable outcomes. Marziali, E., McDonald, L., & Donahue, P. (2008). Whats an incongruity? The main issue with IT is that not all incongruities we experience lead to humor. That we see areas of the brain involved in higher level cognition and conceptual thought involved in humor behavior supports ITs claim that humor is a conceptually based activity that involve incongruity processing. One of simplest forms of humor in young children can be found when they actively do something contrary to expectation or norm. According to incongruity theory, things that are funnyor 'ludicrous'show us the differences between how we perceive the world and how it in fact exists. It publishes over 2,500 books a year for distribution in more than 200 countries. They lean too close to a candle and their sleeve catches fire. Your human perspective makes this use of the brush seem incongruous (def. Detrimental humor (e.g., sarcasm and self-disparaging humor), on the other hand, is believed to have potentially negative ramifications such as reduced relationship quality and low self-esteem (Martin, 2019). They ignore this fact and so foolishly use one as the other. A quote from E.B. Humor and the mastery of living: Using humor to cope with the daily stresses of growing up. Here are 18 examples of studies showing evidence of humor as a strength. humor is - first and foremost - a recognition of and response to incongruities.) There are three main concepts that guide this research; relief theory, incongruity theory, and superiority theory. Have a shot at working that one out. It's Funny 'Cause It's True (Henrigillis and Gimbel), { "2.01:_Metaphysics" : "property get [Map MindTouch.Deki.Logic.ExtensionProcessorQueryProvider+<>c__DisplayClass228_0.
