Abstract
The aim of the present study is to explore higher-order dimensions of humorous conduct derived from 100 non-redundant and comprehensive statements. These dimensions are validated in self- and other-reports and their criterion validity is assessed by relating them to other humor concepts (temperamental basis of the sense of humor, attitudes towards laughter and being laughed at, humor appreciation and creation). Four broad dimensions (mean-spirited/earthy, entertaining, inept, and reflective/benign) were supported in self- and other-reports, and two narrower dimensions (laughter and canned) were found in self-reports. These dimensions covered affective, cognitive, and dysfunctional aspects of humorous conduct and spanned across humorous temperament, attitudes towards laughter and being laughed at as well as humor appreciation and creation. These six dimensions can serve as a reference framework and higher-order categories to which humor scales could be assigned. Future studies need to test the comprehensiveness of these dimensions and conduct further validation studies.
About the authors
Willibald Ruch is a Full Professor of Psychology at the University of Zurich, Switzerland. His research interests are in the field of personality and assessment, with a special focus on humor and laughter, cheerfulness, and smiling. In his doctoral dissertation at the University of Graz (Austria) in 1980, he developed a taxonomy of jokes and cartoons and studied their relation to personality. His more recent work, together with his research team at the University of Zürich, includes humor from a positive psychology perspective, the effectiveness of humor training programs and clown interventions, the ability to laugh at oneself, the fear of being laughed at (gelotophobia), and the measurement of humor. He is a past President of the International Society for Humor Studies.
Sonja Heintz is a senior research and teaching assistant at the Department of Psychology at the University of Zurich in Switzerland. Her main research interests in humor are individual differences (humor and comic styles, dimensions of the sense of humor), measurement (humor questionnaires and humor-related behaviors), and positive psychology (relationships of humor with character strengths and well-being, virtuous forms of humor).
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank Martin Lampert for his valuable feedback on previous versions of this manuscript, and Liliane Müller for her help in collecting the data and in the humor creation ratings.
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