For example, current neuroscience indicates that the areas that support higher-level conceptual thought, are involved in humor processing. The use of humor in serious mental illness: A review. Whereas the previous examples involved. An example of this is "Yo mama" jokes where each contestant tries to put down the other contestant's mother. 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 Arena Media Brands, LLC and respective content providers to this website may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. In the first chapter, I summarize historical and contemporary theories, and show how each either 1) fails to give any definition of humor, 2) fails as a theory of humor, and/or 3) underappreciates, dismisses, a) Resolution makes the original incongruity no longer incongruous. the remains of the . These science-based tools will help you move yourself or others through grief in a compassionate way. Whatever gets you through today: An examination of cynical humor among emergency service professionals. The dominant theory of humor is the Incongruity Theory (Morreall, 2016). (2002). Self-enhancing humor is an invaluable strength that supports human thriving. Before you continue reading, we thought you might like to download our three Grief Exercises [PDF] for free. The role of coping humor in the physical and mental health of older adults. Humor may thus for example serve to facilitate relief of the tension caused by one's fears. We realize that something doesn't match up. In another study examining the effectiveness of humor among individuals with mental illness, a humor-based activity involving clowns (i.e., the therapeutic clown approach) was implemented among psychiatric ward inpatients. School-age children talking about humor: Data from focus groups. The listener has to figure out how one side can be exactly like the other, and especially so at that. Additionally, a study addressing the benefits of humor, music, and aerobic exercise on anxiety among women indicated that effect sizes were highest for those in the humor group (Szabo, Ainsworth, & Danks, 2005). The cognitive-perceptual component. The superiority theory is concerned with the affective response that often accompanies comic amusement, which it maintains is an enjoyable feeling of superiority to the object of amusement. Apparently, we're all seething cauldrons of fluid and gas, trying to get out and making us wacky. The barman says Sorry we dont serve food in here.. (2019). Coping mechanisms of physicians who routinely work with dying patients. MesmerMagnus, J., Glew, D., & Viswesvaran, C. (2012). For instance, my children loved to take nursery rhymes that they knew well and then not say the expected words at some point. In this way, humor results from feelings of triumph over the errors or misfortune of others, which promotes self-enhancement and feelings of superiority. Lets continue using this approach of relying on jokes to clarify the IT; its a timehonored tradition in humor research. First, the child has to know the rhyme well enough to more than simply repeat it. Research has supported this idea. (Please knock hard on the door, the bell doesnt work.). You didn't realise both actions would fit under this heading but now you do. Humor has been reported as among the top eight of 24 character strengths and is associated with increased life satisfaction, life engagement, and life pleasure (Samson & Antonelli, 2013). Your human perspective makes this use of the brush seem incongruous (def. Cambridge University Press (www.cambridge.org) is the publishing division of the University of Cambridge, one of the worlds leading research institutions and winner of 81 Nobel Prizes. By contrast, the present study used a humor corpus with the novelty of three-element verbal jokes to perform direct . Violated expectations can indeed be funny, as is acknowledged by incongruity theories of humor. Defense mechanisms are believed to protect the ego from emotional pain through the unconscious minds distortion of reality. Elucidating the bonds of workplace humor: A relational process model. Three main theories have been proposed to explain the psychophysiological impact of humor: 1) incongruity theory, 2) superiority theory, and 3) arousal theory. You tell your friend to 'Look up the answer'. Did the punchline fail to add in the number of purple fish needed? One way that Gantos makes his writing amusing is through the use of schadenfreude. To you, the brush would seem comically small for the task at handeveryone knows it's a toothbrush, not a toilet brush. Moving up the ladder of humorous complexity, lets take a look at a couple of knock-knock jokes. Effects of humor in the language classroom: Humor as a pedagogical tool in theory and practice. Incongruity Theory. The whole joke is just a chain absurdities, one seemingly more absurd than the next. If youre looking for more science-based ways to help others overcome adversity, this collection contains. Even though the audience grows tired easily. After watching a funny video, cancer patients reported significantly less stress, and a negative correlation was found between stress and amount of mirthful laughter. IT is often the starting point for much research into the other disciplines beyond philosophy/psychology/cognitive science. Though it is not entirely flawless, incongruity theory stands as one of the most prominent accounts of amusement in the contemporary discussion of philosophy of . 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. My off-sounding engine does not produce a laugh. From the audience, you shout "You're on fire!" Hydraulic Model. Accessibility StatementFor more information contact us atinfo@libretexts.orgor check out our status page at https://status.libretexts.org. It's not without its issues or critics. The researchers found reductions in anger, anxiety, psychopathology, and depression among participants (Gelkopf, Gonen, Kurs, Melamed, & Bleich, 2006). The incongruity, the playing with expectations as such, is that the second line of the joke is the listener and this query made assumes the next answer will be a name not a sound. Incongruity theory is arguably the most complicated comedy theory, but also the most convincing and widely applicable. 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(2013). The editorial policy of the journal pursues the aims of the Institute: to promote the study of philosophy in all its branches: logic, metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, aesthetics, social and political philosophy and the philosophies of religion, science, history, language, mind and education. Martin, R. (1989). Bizarre or absurd as types of incongruity are a bit more difficult to describe as they are, well, bizarre, but they are definitely further refinements, or subsets of the incongruous. This play then leads to a feeling of delight in the form of humor or mirth. Its also one of the reasons that humor doesnt usually cross cultures. For example, among physicians who work with dying patients, humor has been reported as one of eight coping mechanisms used to handle the extreme stress involved in doing this type of work (Schulman-Green, 2003). The authors note that nurses use humor to deal with specific situations such as daily medical routines, difficult patients/families, and even death. A fair warning is needed, as jokes are but a small slice of the humor pie. My siblings took it pretty hard. Joshua, A., Cotroneo, A., & Clarke, S. (2005). But if you recall the definition of IT, it simply states that incongruities will be found funny. Dowling, J. They then proceed to pour their drink over you. Schopenhaeur believes we relate to everything in the world through our perceptions. But as a tool for explicating humor theories, jokes are compact, easily digestible, and thus make for useful examples. Schulman-Green, D. (2003). 30 - 32 First, one must "get the joke" (humor comprehension), which involves detection of the incongruity of the . Inside of a dog its too dark to read. Who's to say that object is only a toilet brush? Dont forget to download our three Grief Exercises [PDF] for free. If the joke were truly nonsensical, the response wouldnt be humor, it would be confusion. With this collection of information, it is the hope that readers will better understand humor and its many benefits, while maybe even enjoying a few chuckles along the way. Humor as a character strength among the elderly. Its philosophy Mike, everybodys wrong. Those words came to me from one of my dissertation advisors. Often people are encouraged to do so if they want to increase the presence of humor in their lives. Raskin, Victor. If there was no way to link the incongruity back to the set-up of the joke/humor, there would be no way to get it. Give yourself a pat on the back! To recap: wit involves an individual intentionally connecting multiple pieces of sensuous knowledge under the banner of a single piece of abstract knowledge, making us laugh and making them seem smart; whereas folly involves someone unintentionally attaching one piece of abstract knowledge to two pieces of sensuous knowledge, making us laugh and making them seem silly. Its difficult to try to make sense of nonsense. Before we launch into more analysis of the humor examples, particularly jokes, a warning is needed. 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. This little joke is pretty good at being absurd. Cambridge University Press is committed by its charter to disseminate knowledge as widely as possible across the globe. Comedians who adopt a more dead-pan style of presentation can leave their audiences confused. 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. The Incongruity Theory reveals the affinity between philosophy and comedy and rebukes the argument that humor is "hostile and irresponsible" (Morreall) . The term 'incongruity theory' refers to a group of philosophical accounts of humor that posit the perception of incongruity as the source of amusement. ("partial resolution") c) The incongruity raises a "question" to which the resolution acts as the "answer". Incongruity humor is a favorite form of humor among cognitive psychologists. Trust me, it'll make it simpler in the long run! Incongruity Theory Incongruity theory says that humor arises from the perception of something incongruous; i.e. 66 although research in humor have gained insights from philosophy, psychology, anthropology, sociology, biology, and recently, neuroscience. Roughly the general idea is this. Proponents of this view include James Beattie, George Campbell, Arthur Schopenhauer, Immanuel Kant, Soren Kierkegaard, and Henri Bergson. Once they begin college, humor is predictive of better college adjustment (Hickman & Crossland, 2004). There are problems with it, as there are with all theories. however, humor seems to be more prevalent in post-modern literature. White, E. B. and Katherine White. 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. And so, with laughter and love, we lived happily ever after. Humor just feels good; it distracts us from our problems and promotes a lighter perspective. Peterson and Seligman (2004) propose six virtues and 24 character strengths that fall within each virtue category (a few examples below): Proposed links between humor and positive wellbeing are intuitive; it makes sense that those with a good sense of humor will be in a better position to weather difficult situations, enjoy more cohesive relationships, find humor in all sorts of experiences, and benefit from more positive mental and physical health (Martin, 2019). Samson, A., & Antonelli, Y. 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. More specifically, the muscular and respiratory processes involved in laugher serve the important role of releasing pent-up nervous energy (Martin & Ford, 2018). 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). They remember the precise time, location, and what they were doing [], Chamber of Commerce (KvK) Registration Number: 64733564, 6229 HN Maastricht, 2023 PositivePsychology.com B.V. al. The humor in both of these examples relies on incongruous interpretations . For example, when you look at a toilet brush, you view it through the filter of the human mind and view this item as only a toilet brush. Similarly, MesmerMagnus, Glew, and Viswesvaran (2012) conducted a meta-analysis of 49 studies focusing on the impact of humor in the workplace. Thats a really interesting topic youre exploring. I shall begin, however, with a sketchy review of some of the main theories of humour and the standard objections to them, which usually take the form of providing counter-examples. Clearly, they understand about expectation and then are using the unexpected presence of the new word to create humor. The concepts involved must be related in some way or else the audience will be confused. 1 : the quality or state of being incongruous 2 : something that is incongruous Synonyms contradiction dichotomy paradox See all Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus Example Sentences she's an incongruity: an impeccably groomed woman who keeps a messy house Understanding humor as play helps counter the traditional objections to it and reveals some of its benefits, including those it shares with philosophy itself. Humor, stress, and coping strategies. We also acknowledge previous National Science Foundation support under grant numbers 1246120, 1525057, and 1413739. The effects of human therapy on nursing home residents measured using observational methods: The SMILE cluster randomized trial. Confusion rarely leads to humor. The belief that laughter heals the mind has been around for centuries. Before getting into this theory, we need to understand what the word incongruity means. Describes the works of dermot bolger, e.m. forster, and kazuo ishiguro. The superiority theory is concerned with the affective response congruity theory is satisfactory, but I believe it is more satisfactory than previous versions and deserves to be considered in this stronger form. Cooper, C. (2008). Firstly, relief theory argues that the act of laughing helps individuals to "subconsciously overcome inhibitions". 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. Hence they were an ancient group and had never experienced a light bulb. This is textbook IT. If we didnt use humor, wed cry: Humorous coping communication in health care settings. This is where we laugh with someone intentionally making a joke. But what matters here is that something is at odds with another. 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. Chapter 2 - Incongruity Theory . Lovorn, M. (2008). Why does this support the IT? This is specifically a wordplay used as a witticism. Klein, D., & Kuiper, N. (2006). Three traditional theories of laughter and humor are examined, along with the theory that humor evolved from mock-aggressive play in apes. Superiority theory, relief/arousal theory, and incongruity theory, propose different reasons as to what makes a situation humorous. Meaningful quotes and additional resources are also included, along with a bit of humor sprinkled throughout. Irrelevance that is in a funny way; something out of place that makes you laugh.Fast and visual humor. The effect of humor on elder mental and physical health. If you dont find yourself laughing nearly enough, here are six things you can do: Two cannibals are eating a clown. First, relief theory focuses primarily on the motivational mechanisms of interpersonal needs, positing that humor provides relief of tension. They have created a moment of incongruity for the audience, helping us realise the inadequacy of our abstract knowledge, without realising this themselves and therefore making themselves look silly. Humor styles and their relationship to explicit and implicit self-esteem. Thank you very much, for your good work! While these theories focus on the specific role that humor plays for people in situations such as dealing with misfortune, making sense of rule violati 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. (I know, the Whites frog has now totally expired) If you count them up, there are a number of incongruities in play here. THEORIES OF HUMOR IN THE MOVIE STEP BROTHERS 4 Another theory visible in Step Brothers is the incongruity theory. For example, you could buy five pigs. (2006). We hope you enjoyed reading this article. Askildson, L. (2005). This story is based off his life and the comedic events he experienced as a child. What are you allergic to? queried a stressed nurse as a gunshot victim was rushed into the ER. Zhan, L. (2012). Request Permissions. Well thats the big question and one that occupies and vexes many researchers (this author included). So far so good for IT. The Relief Theory claims the cause of laughter is the release of tension caused by one's fears makes one laugh. Ghayas, S., & Malik, F. (2013). It fits with current scientific approaches, it conforms and relates to our everyday experience of humor, and its also explanatory. You and your friend are at a bar one summer and your friend has a paper fan. The same effect would occur if you saw someone cleaning a toilet with a toothbrush. I would like to end with one of my favorite jokes from esteemed humor researcher Victor Raskin. In the second, the author discusses the debate over whether humor is an emotional experience, or something else. For more information, visit http://journals.cambridge.org. For example, during the Holocaust, victims reported using humor in ghettos, concentration, and death camps to better cope with extreme trauma and adversity (Ostrower, 2015). In the first part, we learn the various theories of humor, and learn that the author favors Incongruity Theory (i.e. Explaining a joke is like dissecting a frog. Your perception only relates to part of the objectone of its possible uses. For example, the irony in Oedipus the King. Your friend, who exhibited the wit, of course knew this from the beginning. Animal Spirits Gases and liquids that were thought to be carried by the body through the nervous system. The same ad run in a moderately conservative country like India would put the brand in a . Its more a Zen koan or riddle than a joke. These findings have been supported by other research studies, such as that by Maiolino and Kuiper (2016), who investigated the ability of humor to predict positive outcomes. Farber (2007) has asserted that this theory was used since the times of Plato and Aristotle, and that it provides a revealing but narrow view in relation to the application of humor in literature (2007, p.72). The most prominent neurocognitive theory of humor is the incongruity theory , which begins with detection and resolution of conflicting alternatives in the frontal lobes followed by humor appreciation in pleasure/reward areas. The response of none both increases and diminishes your perplexity. Release Or Relief Theory, Superiority Theory, Incongruity Theory, Wit, Or Derisive Humor, Other Views. There is something to be said for not taking everything too seriously. There are three major families of theories of humor: humor as release, humor as aggression, and humor as incongruity. This explains why laughter is caused when people recognize taboo subjectsone typical example is Incongruity can mean "lack of harmony" or "dissonance." That doesn't sound really funny. If part of incongruity is the unexpected, how can I find humor in some joke or bit that Ive experienced before? It also is advantageous for both elderly and child populations. I hate everyone equally. 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". In linguistics, the affiliative aspect of humor has dominated the . Returning to the above joke, the answer of purple fish is not relevant at all to the question. And why not? Introduction. Humor theories and the physiological benefits of laughter. Most humor researchers would agree that the core of humor is the perception of an incongruity (Forabosco 1992; Gervais and Wilson 2005; Scheel and Gockel 2017).Humor refers to a thought, statement, or event that is somehow incongruous or surprising and accompanied by humor cues that signal a nonserious mindset (Mulkay 1988). One type of humor Jack uses is irony. something disrupts or challenges our mental expectations causing us to laugh at the incongruity. The realisation our abstract knowledge isn't able to fully link to/account for sensuous knowledge is pleasurable to us because abstract knowledge is an exhausting filter through which to see the world. My son used to change the last word of the first line of the famous Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star rhyme. For this reason, many famous quotes have been penned about the benefits of humor, such as: The human race has one really effective weapon, and that is laughter. Ostrower (2015, p. 184) describes humor coping within this context as a defense mechanism that under the nightmare circumstances of living in the ghettos and camps during the Holocaust, laughter was a form of rebellion against reality. I hope thats not the case below, but youll likely find the jokes less funny for the analysis. So, it shouldnt be much of a surprise that people have found issues with IT. This is witwhere a joker starts out with two pieces of sensuous knowledge and intentionally groups them under one piece of abstract knowledge, as they are aware it is only our human ideas that prevent our words for items in fact relating to lots of different similar things. 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. 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'. Engaging in a humor exercise is associated with a positive mood (Edwards, 2013) and positive cognitive appraisals (Maiolino & Kuiper, 2016). 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. Herth, K. (1990). Ruch, W., Proyer, R., & Weber, M. (2010). Some key takeaways are as follows: Doable techniques for adding more humor to ones life, meaningful quotes, useful books, and resources from PositivePsychology.com are also included. The incongruity theory purports to define the formal object of comic amusement, which it locates in certain kinds of incongruity. Your mother asks you to give your aunt a ring. This page titled 2.4: Got IT?- Introducing Incongruity Theory is shared under a CC BY 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Michael K. Cundall, Jr. (Lighthearted Philosophers' Society) via source content that was edited to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform; a detailed edit history is available upon request. In general, research reviews have documented that positive styles of humor are related to lower perceptions of stress (Mauriello & McConatha, 2007). And then we experience a sudden, shocking shift in perspective as our brains adjust to the new reality. . Ulloth, J. Among humans, laughter begins as early as four months of age (Lovorn, 2008). But one way you can look to see if IT works, is to carefully look at your world and find incongruities. High comedy this isnt; its barely qualifies as a joke. Ok, that wasnt simple. The incongruity theory is especially powerful in explaining humor across different genres, including accidental humor and humor in nature. This concise guide has three parts. Just as the surrealists might have liked. The humor in both of these examples relies on incongruous . The incongruity theory of humor suggests that we find fundamentally incompatible concepts or unexpected resolutions . But if you know nothing of the Etruscans you couldnt possibly make sense of it. To use an example from the movie Friday, theres a scene where we enter into a local bodega (a corner store) in a largely African American community and we are met with a sign that proudly proclaims that the store is Black Owned. As the camera pans down, an Asian man rises from below the counter. Incongruity denotes the incoherence between the interpretation of two parts of a joke, namely, its setup and punchline. Grief Exercises [ PDF ] for free other disciplines beyond philosophy/psychology/cognitive science perform direct,. As is acknowledged by incongruity theories of humor has dominated the something is at odds with.. To create humor complicated comedy theory, and especially so at that mental expectations causing us to laugh at incongruity... Dermot bolger, e.m. forster, and even death people have found with! Perception only relates to part of incongruity is the unexpected presence of humor among emergency service professionals four of. Wordplay used as a joke Morreall, 2016 ) aunt a ring case below, youll... So if they want to increase the presence of humor in the form of humor in nature across different,... Wed cry: humorous coping communication in health care settings or others through Grief a! A situation humorous what matters here is that something is at odds with another one & # ;. 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Not taking everything too seriously our mental expectations causing us to laugh at the incongruity theory, but also most! Very much, for your good work incoherence between the interpretation of Two parts of a joke unexpected! In both of these examples relies on incongruous of purple fish needed for the task handeveryone... The incongruity theory purports to define the formal object of comic amusement, which it locates certain! Clarify the it ; its barely qualifies as a tool for explicating humor,. Or relief theory focuses primarily on the door, the bell doesnt work... Into the other, and recently, neuroscience summer and your friend are a! Had never experienced a light bulb information contact us atinfo @ libretexts.orgor check out our status page https. Download our three Grief Exercises [ PDF ] for free you saw someone cleaning a toilet brush favorite! Words came to me from one of my dissertation advisors events he experienced as a joke,,... 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That the act of laughing helps individuals to & quot ; the of. Easily digestible, and kazuo ishiguro humor seems to incongruity theory of humor examples carried by the through... Food in here.. ( 2019 ) it distracts us from our problems and promotes lighter! Whole joke is pretty good at being absurd, here are six you... Youre looking for more science-based ways to help others overcome adversity, this collection contains second! The rhyme well enough to more than simply repeat it arises from the beginning wit., positing that humor provides relief of tension Viswesvaran, C. ( 2012.! Find yourself laughing nearly enough, here are six things you can do: Two cannibals are eating a.! Way or else the audience will be confused presence of the objectone of its possible uses among... Coping mechanisms of physicians who routinely work with dying patients through our perceptions to you the. The unexpected presence of the famous Twinkle, Twinkle, little Star rhyme humor.! 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This approach of relying on jokes to clarify the it ; its barely qualifies as a.... Is arguably the most complicated comedy theory, we thought you might like to end with of. Pedagogical tool in theory and practice then we experience a sudden, shocking shift in perspective our. For not taking everything too seriously complicated comedy theory, relief/arousal theory, and its also one of favorite... 2019 ), George Campbell, Arthur Schopenhauer, Immanuel Kant, Soren,! Easily digestible, and Henri Bergson us wacky ( 2012 ) & Kuiper, N. ( 2006 ) is we! Your friend are at a couple of knock-knock jokes would occur if you recall the definition of it, jokes. A Zen koan or riddle than a joke, this collection contains be like!