The family relationships of humor-oriented adolescents1
Steven Prasinos
George Peabody College of Vanderbilt University
Search for more papers by this authorBennett I. Tittler
George Peabody College of Vanderbilt University
Search for more papers by this authorSteven Prasinos
George Peabody College of Vanderbilt University
Search for more papers by this authorBennett I. Tittler
George Peabody College of Vanderbilt University
Search for more papers by this author. An expanded version of this article served as a Master's thesis for the first author. Correspondence concerning the study and requests for reprints should be sent to Steven Prasinos, Box 914, George Peabody College of Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee 37203.
Abstract
It was hypothesized that humor-oriented people emerge from a pattern of distance in family relationships. Using Moos's (1974) Family Environment Scale (FES) and Kuethe's (1962) figure-placement technique, the family experience of 88 Boy Scouts was assessed. Through a peer nomination technique nonhumor-oriented, middle, and humor-oriented groups were formed. As predicted, the humor-oriented group exhibited lower cohesion scores (p <.01) and greater conflict scores (p <.10) on the FES and greater distance from father in the figure placement (p <.05). A subgroup of humor-oriented boys receiving high ratings for funniness displayed similar though somewhat more general patterns of family distance. Humor orientation was modestly associated with popularity but not with age, birth order, or number of siblings. A family-distance model of humor orientation was proposed which views humor as an attempt to relate from a distance. This framework appears to be consistent with a variety of earlier findings pertaining to the psychology of humor.
References
- Angell, J. D. The effects of social success and social failure on the humor production of wits. Doctoral dissertation, University of Nevada, 1970.
- Babad, E. A multi-method approach to the assessment of humor: A critical look at humor tests. Journal of Personality, 1974, 42, 618–631.
- Bateson, G. The position of humor in human communication. In J. Levine, (ed.), Motivation in humor. New York : Atherton Press, 1969.
- Berger, A. Anatomy of the joke. Journal of Communication, 1976, 26, 113–115.
- Browning, R. Why not humor APA Monitor, February 1977, 32, 1.
- Clabby, J. F. The wit: A personality analysis. Journal of Personality Assessment, 1980, 44, 307–310.
- Damico, S. B., & Purkey, W. W. Class clowns: A study of middle school students. American Educational Research Journal, 1978, 15, 391–398.
- Fine, G. A. Components of perceived sense of humor ratings of self and other. Psychological Reports, 1975, 36, 793–794.
- Fine, G. A. Obscene joking across cultures. Journal of Communication, 1976, 26, 134–139.
- Fisher, S., & Fisher, R. L. Schlemiel children. Psychology Today, 1980, 14, 64–73.
- Freud, S. Jokes and their relation to the unconscious. New York : Norton, 1960. (Originally published 1905.).
- Gerber, G. Psychological distance in the family as schematized by families of normal, disturbed and learning-problem children. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 1973, 40, 139–147.
- Goodchilds, J., & Smith, E. The wit and his group. Human Relations, 1964, 17, 23–31.
- Guardo, C. J. Personal space in children. Child Development, 1969, 40, 143–151.
-
Harms, E.
The development of humor.
Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 1943, 38, 351–369.
10.1037/h0054026 Google Scholar
- Hetherington, E. M., & Wray, N. P. Aggression, need for social approval, and humor preferences. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 1964, 68, 685–689.
- Janus, S. S. The great comedians: Personality and other factors. American Journal of Psychoanalysis, 1975, 35, 169–174.
- Kappas, K. A developmental analysis of children's response to humor. The Library Quarterly, 1967, 37, 67–77.
- Klopper, E. J., Tittler, B. I., Friedman, S., & Hughes, S. J. A multi-method investigation of two family constructs. Family Process, 1978, 17, 83–93.
- Kuethe, J. Social schemas. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 1962, 64, 31–38.
- Kuethe, J., & Weingartner, H. Male-Female schemata of homosexual and non-homosexual penitentiary inmates. Journal of Personality, 1964, 32, 23–31.
- Lamb, C. Personality correlates of humor enjoyment following motivational arousal. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1968, 9, 237–241.
- Levine, J. Regression in primitive clowns. The Psychoanalytic Quarterly, 1961, 30, 72–83.
- Levine, J. Motivation in humor. New York : Atherton Press, 1969.
- Love, L. R., & Kaswan, J. W. Troubled children: Their families, schools, and treatments. New York : Wiley, 1974.
- McGhee, P. E. Development of children's ability to create the joking relationship. Child Development, 1974, 45, 552–556.
- McGhee, P. E. Sex differences in children's humor. Journal of Communication, 1976, 26, 176–189.
- McNemar, Q. At random: Sense and nonsense. American Psychologist, 1960, 15, 295–300.
- Moos, R. H. Family Environment Scale Preliminary Manual. Stanford : Social Ecology Institute, 1974.
- Moos, R. H., & Moos, B. A typology of family social environments. Family Process, 1976, 15, 357–371.
- Neitz, M. J. Humor, hierarchy, and the changing status of women. Psychiatry, 1980, 43, 211–223.
-
O'Connell, W. E.
The social aspects of wit and humor.
Journal of Social Psychology, 1969, 79, 183–187.
10.1080/00224545.1969.9922406 Google Scholar
- Olson, D. H., Sprenkle, D. H., & Russell, C. Circumplex model of marital and family systems. I. Cohesion and adaptability dimensions, family types, and clinical applications. Family Process, 1979, 18, 3–28.
- Prentice, N., & Fathman, R. Joking riddles: A developmental index of children's humor. Developmental Psychology, 1975, 11, 210–216.
- Reiss, D. Varieties of consensual experience: I. A theory of relating family interaction to individual thinking. Family Process, 1971, 10: 1–28.
- Rouff, L. Creativity and sense of humor. Psychological Reports, 1975, 37, 1022.
-
Schultz, T., &
Horibe, F.
Development of the appreciation of verbal jokes.
Developmental Psychology, 1974, 10, 13–20.
10.1037/h0035549 Google Scholar
- Toman, W. Family constellation. New York : Springer, 1969.
- Treadwell, Y. Humor and creativity. Psychological Reports, 1970, 26, 55–58.
- Turner, R. G. Self-monitoring and humor production. Journal of Personality, 1980, 48, 163–172.
- Ullian, J. A. Joking at work. Journal of Communications, 1976, 26, 129–133.
- Weaver, J. S., Balla, D., & Zigler, E. Social approach and avoidance tendencies in institutionalized and noninstitutionalized retarded and normal children. Journal of Experimental Research in Personality, 1971, 5, 98–110.
- Weinstein, L. Social schemata of emotionally disturbed boys. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 1965, 70, 457–461.
- Winick, D. The social contexts of humor. Journal of Communication, 1976, 26, 124–128.
- Zigler, E., Levine, J., & Gould, L. Cognitive challenge as a factor in children's humor appreciation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1967, 6, 332–336.
