Recently there has been an increase in scientists, educators, and activists moving into comedy to tell the climate story. Could using humour as an educational method encourage a greater response to the climate crisis? The present research addresses this question by exploring the impact that an environmental-based comedy show had on various…

Research into the persuasiveness of satirical news has found mixed results. Two possible explanations lie in the lack of clarity about mechanisms underlying the influence of consuming different types of satirical content. In six experiments (N[subscript total] = 3,139), we investigated how (different types of) humorous versus nonhumorous…

Empathy in college-age students is decreasing at unprecedented rates. Understanding empathy in children can act as primary prevention in tackling the problem. This study considers laugh tracks' capacity to bias reality, foster empathy, and investigate differences across time and gender in 181 fifth grade students. Findings from this…

Humor in advertising is known to enhance product liking, but this attitude change is often considered nonpredictive of product choice. Previous research relied exclusively on explicit self-report measures to assess attitudes and purchase intentions. The present research shows that unobtrusive association of a product with humor can affect…

This study investigated two questions: (1) Can a humorous persuasive message increase the amount of persuasion compared with a serious control message? (2) Can humor external to and contiguous with a persuasive message increase its persuasiveness? The research on the first question attempted to determine intervening variables responsible for prior…

Shows how the rhetoric of selected woman humorists from 1820 to 1880 exemplifies the operation of various comic literary reference frames. Asserts that their comic frame disintegrated because these writers were unable to foster identification between females and males and failed to provide a world view that could accommodate social change. (MM)

Methods of helping students reduce test anxiety are discussed, including guided fantasy which leads students to imagine a setting in which they feel competent and relaxed. Catastrophic-anastrophic expectations teach that different expectations create different feelings and make students aware that they are in charge of their own attitudes. Anxiety…

Presents an entertaining look at changes in educational trends and attitudes. This humorous treatment compares and contrasts constructivist versus behaviorist learning approaches, intrinsic versus extrinsic motivation, portfolio versus multiple choice testing, qualitative versus experimental research, and intuition versus logical reasoning. (SLW)

Describes humorous presentations to heighten adults' awareness of their dependence on printed materials in contrast to children's high level of comfort with electronic media, and the changes in information delivery that are already in place. (KRN)

Educational researchers can provide unusual perspectives to their research if they include humor and irony. Looking at topics from the reverse (the critical attitude, the aesthetic perspective) allows researchers to see patterns, details, and meanings which are normally hidden from view. This aesthetic perspective enables artists, critics, and…

These proceedings, consisting of unit outlines, presentation summaries, handouts, overhead masters, and sample forms, were designed to provide nursing home inservice instructor coordinators with the materials that were presented at a two-day workshop dealing with the principles of adult education and their application in nursing homes. Addressed…