Editing Humour (section)

== Studies ==
{{main|Humor research}}

=== Laughter ===
[[File:Killian Couppey.jpg|thumb|upright|A man laughing]]

One of the main focuses of modern psychological humour theory and research is to establish and clarify the correlation between humour and laughter. The major empirical findings here are that [[laughter]] and humour do not always have a one-to-one association. While most previous theories assumed the connection between the two almost to the point of them being synonymous, psychology has been able to scientifically and empirically investigate the supposed connection, its implications, and significance.

In 2009, Diana Szameitat conducted a study to examine the differentiation of emotions in laughter. They hired actors and told them to laugh with one of four different emotional associations by using auto-induction, where they would focus exclusively on the internal emotion and not on the expression of laughter itself. They found an overall recognition rate of 44%, with joy correctly classified at 44%, [[Tickling|tickle]] 45%, [[schadenfreude]] 37%, and taunt 50%.<ref name="Szameitat2009">Szameitat, Diana P., et al. Differentiation of Emotions in Laughter at the Behavioural Level. 2009 Emotion 9 (3).</ref>{{rp|399}} Their second experiment tested the behavioural recognition of laughter during an induced emotional state and they found that different laughter types did differ with respect to emotional dimensions.<ref name="Szameitat2009" />{{rp|401–402}} In addition, the four emotional states displayed a full range of high and low sender arousal and valence.<ref name="Szameitat2009" />{{rp|403}} This study showed that laughter can be correlated with both positive (joy and tickle) and negative (schadenfreude and taunt) emotions with varying degrees of arousal in the subject.

This brings into question the definition of humour, then. If it is to be defined by the cognitive processes which display laughter, then humour itself can encompass a variety of negative as well as positive emotions. However, if humour is limited to positive emotions and things which cause positive affect, it must be delimited from laughter and their relationship should be further defined.

=== Health ===

Adaptive Humour use has shown to be effective for increasing resilience in dealing with distress and also effective in buffering against or undoing negative affects. In contrast, maladaptive humour use can magnify potential negative effects.<ref name="Humor styles - International Journal of Environmental Research"/>

Madelijn Strick, Rob Holland, Rick van Baaren, and Ad van Knippenberg (2009) of Radboud University conducted a study that showed the distracting nature of a joke on bereaved individuals.<ref name="Strick">{{cite journal | last1 = Strick | first1 = Madelijn | display-authors = etal | year = 2009| title = Finding Comfort in a Joke: Consolatory Effects of Humor Through Cognitive Distraction | doi = 10.1037/a0015951 | pmid = 19653782 | journal = Emotion | volume = 9 | issue = 4 | pages = 574–578 | s2cid = 14369631 | hdl = 2066/77089 | hdl-access = free }}</ref>{{rp|574–578}} Subjects were presented with a wide range of negative pictures and sentences. Their findings showed that humorous therapy attenuated the [[negative emotion]]s elicited after negative pictures and sentences were presented. In addition, the humour therapy was more effective in reducing negative affect as the degree of affect increased in intensity.<ref name="Strick" />{{rp|575–576}} Humour was immediately effective in helping to deal with distress. The escapist nature of humour as a coping mechanism suggests that it is most useful in dealing with momentary stresses. Stronger negative stimuli requires a different therapeutic approach. {{citation needed|date=April 2012}}

Humour is an underlying character trait associated with the positive emotions used in the [[broaden-and-build]] theory of cognitive development.

Studies, such as those testing the [[undoing (psychology)|undoing hypothesis]],<ref name="Fredrickson">{{cite journal | last1 = Fredrickson | first1 = Barbara L. | year = 1998| title = What Good Are Positive Emotions? | doi = 10.1037/1089-2680.2.3.300 | journal = Review of General Psychology | volume = 2 | issue = 3| pages = 300–319 | pmid=21850154 | pmc=3156001}}</ref>{{rp|313}} have shown several positive outcomes of humour as an underlying positive trait in amusement and playfulness. Several studies have shown that positive emotions can restore autonomic quiescence after negative affect. For example, Frederickson and Levinson showed that individuals who expressed [[Smile#Duchenne smile|Duchenne smiles]] during the negative arousal of a sad and troubling event recovered from the negative affect approximately 20% faster than individuals who did not smile.<ref name="Fredrickson" />{{rp|314}}

Using humour judiciously can have a positive influence on cancer treatment.<ref>{{cite web|access-date=22 January 2017|url=https://allusdoctors.com/cancer-treatment/humor-in-cancer|title=Humor in Cancer Treatment|archive-date=19 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181019041138/https://allusdoctors.com/cancer-treatment/humor-in-cancer|url-status=dead}}</ref> The effectiveness for humour‐based interventions in patients with schizophrenia is uncertain in a Cochrane review.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Tsujimoto | first1 = Y. | last2 = Nakamura | first2 = Y. | display-authors = etal | year = 2021 | title = Humour-based interventions for people with schizophrenia | journal = Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews | volume = 2021 | issue = 10 | pages = CD013367 | doi=10.1002/14651858.CD013367.pub2| pmid = 34644398 | pmc = 8514248 }}</ref>

Humour can serve as a strong distancing mechanism in coping with adversity. In 1997, Kelter and Bonanno found that Duchenne laughter correlated with reduced awareness of distress.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Keltner | first1 = D. | last2 = Bonanno | first2 = G. A. | year = 1997 | title = A study of laughter and dissociation: Distinct correlates of laughter and smiling during bereavement | journal = Journal of Personality and Social Psychology | volume = 73 | issue = 4| pages = 687–702 | doi=10.1037/0022-3514.73.4.687| pmid = 9325589 }}</ref> Positive emotion is able to loosen the grip of [[negative emotion]]s on people's thinking. A distancing of thought leads to a distancing of the unilateral responses people often have to negative arousal. In parallel with the distancing role plays in coping with distress, it supports the [[broaden and build]] theory that positive emotions lead to increased multilateral cognitive pathway and social resource building.

=== Ageing ===

Humour has been shown to improve and help the [[ageing]] process in three areas. The areas are improving physical health, improving social communications, and helping to achieve a sense of satisfaction in life.

Studies have shown that constant humour in the ageing process gives health benefits to individuals. Such benefits as higher [[self-esteem]], lower levels of depression, [[anxiety]], and perceived [[stress (biological)|stress]], and a more positive self-concept as well as other health benefits which have been recorded and acknowledged through various studies.<ref name="Abel, M. 2002">{{cite journal | last1 = Abel | first1 = M | year = 2002 | title = Humor, stress, and coping strategies | journal = International Journal of Humor Research | volume = 15 | issue = 4| pages = 365–381 | doi=10.1515/humr.15.4.365| s2cid = 35616418 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Kupier | first1 = N. A. | last2 = Martin | first2 = R. A. | year = 1993 | title = Humor and self-concept | journal = International Journal of Humor Research | volume = 6 | issue = 3| pages = 251–270 | doi = 10.1515/humr.1993.6.3.251 | s2cid = 145015804 }}</ref> Even patients with specific diseases have shown improvement with ageing using humour.<ref name="Crew Solomon 1996 249–271">{{cite journal|last=Crew Solomon|first=Jennifer|title=American Behavioral Scientist|journal=Humor and Aging Well: A Laughing Matter or a Matter of Laughing?|date=January 1996|volume=39|issue=3|series=3|pages=249–271|doi=10.1177/0002764296039003004|s2cid=143126889}}</ref> Overall there is a strong correlation through constant humour in ageing and better health in the individuals.

Another way that research indicates that humour helps with the ageing process, is through helping the individual to create and maintain strong social relationship during transitory periods in their lives.<ref name="Crew Solomon 1996 249–271" /> One such example is when people are moved into [[nursing home]]s or other facilities of care. With this transition certain social interactions with friend and family may be limited forcing the individual to look elsewhere for these social interactions. Humour has been shown to make transitions easier, as humour is shown reduce stress and facilitate socialisation and serves as a social bonding function.<ref>Shelley A. Crawford & Nerina J. Caltabiano (2011): Promoting emotional well-being through the use of humour, The Journal of Positive Psychology: Dedicated to furthering research and promoting good practice, 6: 3, 237–252</ref> Humour may also help the transition in helping the individual to maintain positive feelings towards those who are enforcing the changes in their lives. These new social interactions can be critical for these transitions in their lives and humour will help these new social interactions to take place making these transitions easier.

Humour can also help ageing individuals maintain a sense of satisfaction in their lives. Through the ageing process many changes will occur, such as losing the right to drive a car. This can cause a decrease in satisfaction in the lives of the individual. Humour helps to alleviate this decrease of satisfaction by allowing the humour to release stress and anxiety caused by changes in the individuals life.<ref name="Crew Solomon 1996 249–271" /> Laughing and humour can be a substitute for the decrease in satisfaction by allowing individuals to feel better about their situations by alleviating the stress.<ref name="Abel, M. 2002" /> This, in turn, can help them to maintain a sense of satisfaction towards their new and changing life style.

=== Physiology ===

In an article published in ''[[Nature Reviews Neuroscience]]'', it is reported that a study's results indicate that humour is rooted in the [[frontal lobe]] of the [[cerebral cortex]]. The study states, in part:<blockquote style="text-indent: -0.5em; margin-top: -0.5em;">"Humour seems to engage a core network of cortical and subcortical structures, including temporo-occipito-parietal areas involved in detecting and resolving [[Theories of humor#Incongruous juxtaposition theory|incongruity]] (mismatch between expected and presented stimuli); and the [[Dopaminergic pathways|mesocorticolimbic dopaminergic system]] and the [[amygdala]], key structures for [[Reward system|reward]] and [[salience (neuroscience)|salience]] processing."<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Vrticka|first1=Pascal|last2=Black|first2=Jessica M.|last3=Reiss|first3=Allan L.|title=The neural basis of humour processing|journal=[[Nature Reviews Neuroscience]]|date=30 October 2013|volume=14|issue=12|pages=860–868|doi=10.1038/nrn3566|pmid=24169937|s2cid=12734138}}</ref></blockquote>