To be humorous or not?: To be humorous or not?: Different views from the East Different views from the East

and the Westand the West

Feng JiangFeng JiangCity University of Hong KongCity University of Hong Kong

fenjiang@cityu.edu.hkfenjiang@cityu.edu.hk26 Feb, 201126 Feb, 2011

What is Humor? What is Humor?

Function of HumorFunction of Humor

• Improves our health condition (Fry, 1994; Hubert, et al., 1993; Kuiper, et al., 1993)

• Enhance our cognitive and emotional responses (Martin, 2001; 2007)

Cross-cultural comparisonCross-cultural comparison• Chinese undergraduates use less humor to cope

with stress than their Canadian counterparts (Chen & Martin, 2005)

• Chinese undergraduates thought themselves as being less humorous than American undergraduates (Liao, 2001)

• For “good sense of humor”,– Chinese : “aggression-disruption.” – Canadian: “sociability-leadership” (Chen, Rubin, &

Sun, 1992).

QuestionQuestion

• Is this behavioral difference due to their different attitudes toward humor?

However…However…

• More recent attitudinal surveys showed:

– Chinese people value humor very much (Hao, Yue, Qi, & Lan, 2007; Hao, Yue, Qi, & Qin, 2007; Yue, 2008; 2009).

• These surveys did not involve cross-cultural comparison directly.

• They focused on explicit attitude toward humor only.

Views on humorViews on humor• Chinese

– Taoism• Values humor as an attempt of having witty,

peaceful and harmonious interaction with the nature (Liao, 2001; Yao, 1989; Yue, 2008; 2009)

Laozi Zhuangzi

• Chinese– Buddhism

• Encourages humor as a symbol of

lighting up. (Hyers, 1989; Yue,2008)

• Chinese– Confucianism

• Emphasize social hierarchy and interpersonal relatedness. (Bond, 1996)

• Ren (moral principle)

• Junzi (the person who obey moral principle)

• American– Plato & Aristotle:

• Natural and pure-hearted expression

– A part of their personality (Mindess, et al., 1985)

– A positive characteristic of creativity (Sternberg, 1985)

• “Humor is ubiquitous in American society and nothing escapes from becoming its target. Humor in its numerous techniques and forms is directed at the population through all conceivable channels – newsprint, magazines, books, visual and plastic arts, comedy performances, and amateur joke-telling contests, as well as many types of artifacts such as T-shirts, watches, bumper stickers, greeting cards, sculptures, toys, and so forth” (Apte, 1987)

HypothesesHypotheses

• Implicit attitude– Chinese: negative– American: positive

• Explicit attitude– No difference between China and America

MethodsMethods

• Participants – 53 Chinese undergraduates– 33 American undergraduates

• Measures– Implicit Association Test (IAT) measures – Questionnaires measures

Target words: humor vs. seriousness

Attribute words: pleasant vs. unpleasant

Word materialsWord materials

Logic of IATLogic of IAT

• It assesses implicit attitudes by having people rapidly categorize stimulus words using two response key.

• Shorter reaction time suggests the stronger connection between two concepts (e.g., “humor and pleasant”)

Implicit attitudesImplicit attitudes• IAT effect

Chinese:t(52)=6.82, p<0.001

Americans:t(32)=6.36, p<0.001

Explicit attitudeExplicit attitude

• Explicit attitude toward humor– No significant difference (t=1.75, p=.084, ns)

ConclusionConclusion

• Appreciation of Humor (Both American and Chinese Explicit Attitudes)– Deprivation-based preferences

– Globalization

• Devaluation of Humor (Chinese Implicit Attitude Only)

Future directionsFuture directions

• Is it the same pattern in public and private settings?

• Whether jokes or humor are socially less desirable in East Asian than in American culture? If it is, how?

• How might the these norms be changing with time and exposure to Western media in the process of globalization?

Thank you!