Presenter Information

Connor BrownFollow

Academic Level at Time of Presentation

Senior

Major

Psychology

Minor

Organizational Communication

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Jana Hackathorn

Presentation Format

Poster Presentation

Abstract/Description

How and when does someone decide to tell a joke? The current study is focused primarily on examining the relationship between using humor to communicate and empathy. It was hypothesized that there will be a positive correlation between using humor to communicate and empathy. This furthers previous research which has only commonly looked at enjoying humor as it correlates to empathy (Hampes, 2001; 2010). The current study was administered as an online survey to undergraduate participants (N = 70), and measured using communicative humor, and empathy, as well as other individual difference traits such as openness and conscientiousness. Results of a Pearson’s r correlation analyses indicate that there is no correlation, positive or negative, between using communicative humor and empathy (r = .007, p = .954). This suggests that empathy does not play as large of a role as previously thought in the role of using humor, and that individual factors should be examined more closely. Specifically, openness was significantly correlated with both empathy (r = .35, p = .003) and all the various dimensions of humor, such as using it for communication, effectiveness, and frequency of use (all ps < .001). Future research should include further inquiries into how empathy and humor interact, as it appears to be more complicated than once believed.

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Psychology: Completed Projects

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Am I Laughing at what you're Laughing at?: the relationship between humor and empathy

How and when does someone decide to tell a joke? The current study is focused primarily on examining the relationship between using humor to communicate and empathy. It was hypothesized that there will be a positive correlation between using humor to communicate and empathy. This furthers previous research which has only commonly looked at enjoying humor as it correlates to empathy (Hampes, 2001; 2010). The current study was administered as an online survey to undergraduate participants (N = 70), and measured using communicative humor, and empathy, as well as other individual difference traits such as openness and conscientiousness. Results of a Pearson’s r correlation analyses indicate that there is no correlation, positive or negative, between using communicative humor and empathy (r = .007, p = .954). This suggests that empathy does not play as large of a role as previously thought in the role of using humor, and that individual factors should be examined more closely. Specifically, openness was significantly correlated with both empathy (r = .35, p = .003) and all the various dimensions of humor, such as using it for communication, effectiveness, and frequency of use (all ps < .001). Future research should include further inquiries into how empathy and humor interact, as it appears to be more complicated than once believed.