Reveals a three-way interaction between cue, perception, and response. Suggests that background cues contributed the most to this interaction and that negative and neutral responses had the largest effects. Finds that respondents were more likely to perceive humorous intent overall, and that they were more likely to respond positively when they…

Guidelines for using humor in training are as follows: (1) use a modicum of apt, relevant humor in an informative presentation; (2) self-disparaging humor enhances the presenter's image; (3) humor is only one factor that enhances interest; (4) apt, relevant humor does not affect persuasiveness; and (5) satire has unpredictable results. (SK)

Finds that Humor Orientation (HO) was positively correlated with communication traits of communicator adaptability, concern for eliciting positive impressions, affective orientation, and situational sense of humor. Finds that high HOs were perceived to be funnier than low HOs both by participant-observers and by independent coders who listened to…

Finds that higher Humor Orientation (HO) was associated with lower levels of loneliness; acquaintances' perceptions of HO and self-reported HO were positively related; people seen as more humorous were seen as socially attractive; and verbally aggressive individuals did not report more loneliness, but were perceived to be less socially attractive,…

This paper examines some of the various findings contained in the current literature on humor in the workplace. In recent years, the communicative role of humor in the workplace has received attention--particularly in management-related publications. Consequently, the paper explores the emergence of humor as a management tool and the advantages…

Explores humor from a functional perspective. Finds three primary functions: positive affect, expressiveness, and negative affect. Finds positive relationships between positive affect humor and interpersonal competence. Supports the validity of the Uses of Humor Index. (SR)

Humor, a communicative tactic used to engender support, is often used, but rarely understood. The literature in the field of humor has attempted to define situations where humor could be beneficial, although few definitive answers exist relating humor to effective leadership communicative behavior. This paper presents current research findings…

Explores the factors affecting the outcomes experienced by distressed persons (undergraduate students) when their comfort providers use humor during comforting interactions. Explains that results indicate the skillfulness of the comforting behavior, specific qualities of humor used, and the relationship between interactants predicted behavior.…

Finds that New Zealand students sampled were significantly less willing to communicate and experienced greater communication apprehension than U.S. students. Finds significant negative correlations for United States students between communication apprehension and humor variables (liking of humor, sensitivity to humor, and coping humor), whereas…

The 47 references, dating mostly from 1976 to 1990, in this annotated bibliography provide information about the effect of humor in written and spoken messages and its role in interpersonal relationships, especially within the context of small groups and organizational environments. The materials in the bibliography are cited according to academic…

A study explored sex differences among tellers of sexually oriented jokes. One hundred forty-seven undergraduate students wrote and told sexually oriented jokes to same, opposite, and mixed sex audiences. These jokes were analyzed to determine whether they were biased against men or women, in favor of men or women, biased against both sexes, or…

Listeners generally rate speakers of high initial ethos (such as university professors) using mildly self-deprecating humor highly on traits like "wittiness" and "funniness." A three-part study investigated whether a speaker of lower initial ethos (such as a student) can "get away" with such self-deprecation. In Experiment 1, college students read…