A temperament approach to humor

Abstract

There is bothywvutsrponmlihgfedcba interindividual (i.e., between individuals) and intraindividual (i.e., across situations) variation in humor behavior. Some people tend habitually to appreciate, initiate, or laugh at humor more often, or more intensively, than others do. In everyday language this enduring disposition typically is ascribed to the possession of a "sense of humor" and various type nouns (e.g., cynic, wit, wag) and trait-describing adjectives (e.g., humorous, witty, cynical) exist to describe individuals extreme in one form or the other. Aside of interindividual differences with a relative stability over time there are also actual dispositions for humor which do vary over time. We are all inclined to appreciate, initiate, or laugh at humor more at given times and less at others. In everyday language phrases like to be in good humor, in the mood for laughing, out of humor, ill-humored, in a serious mood or frame of mind etc. refer to such states of enhanced or lowered readiness to respond to humor or act humorously. The temperamental basis of humor In the present chapter we present a state-trait approach relevant for the behavioral and experiential domain of humor. We argue that cheerfulness, seriousness, and bad mood as traits form the temperamental basis of humor, and that cheerfulness, seriousness, and bad mood as states represent intrapersonally varying dispositions for humor. The present approach considers that humor is not (a) unidimensional (people differ on more than one dimension), (b) unipolar (humorlessness needs to be represented as well), and (c) covers affective and mental factors (the dispositions need to relate to moods/temperaments and frame of mind). Furthermore, (d) it acknowledges that the disposition for humor varies intra-and interpersonally and that the utilization of the same concepts as both states and traits allows us to study the relevance of homologous actual and habitual dispositions. Finally, (e) while we attempt to define some traits considered to be relevant for the domain of behavior a "sense of humor" concept should predict, we do not (yet) utilize this concept. We take the position that the "sense of humor" is still more of a folk-concept and has

Positive emotions elicited by clowns and nurses: An experimental study in a hospital setting.

“…The state version of the State-Trait-Cheerfulness-Inventory (STCI-S<30>; Ruch, Köhler, & van Thriel, 1997) is a widely used, reliable and valid 30-item state measure of the three dispositions for the induction of exhilaration, that is, cheerfulness, seriousness, and bad mood (Ruch & Hofmann, 2012). For the present experiment three items were used, each one best representing the corresponding scale ('I am cheerful', 'I am in a serious frame of mind', and 'I am in a bad mood').…”

Temperamental basis of sense of humor: validating the state-trait-cheerfulness-inventory in Mainland China

“…There are several forms of the STCI available for use (see Ruch and Hofmann 2012). The long trait form of the State-Trait-Cheerfulness Inventory (STCI-T; Ruch et al 1996) is a 106-item questionnaire (STCI-T<106>) in a 4-point answer format providing scores for the three traits of cheerfulness (STCI-T CH; 38 items), seriousness (STCI-T SE; 37 items), and bad mood (STCI-T BM; 31 items) and their 5, 6, and 5 definitional facets, respectively.…”

The influence of a virtual companion on amusement when watching funny films

“…Furthermore, the current mood influences the effects of the increased amusement due to the presence of a companion: Only high state cheerful individuals smiled more by the mere presence of another person, but this was not so for individuals that were not in a cheerful mood (e.g., Deckers 2007). Also, personality may influence such amusement elicitation processes (see Ruch and Hofmann 2012).…”

“…Furthermore, it needs to be clarified whether individuals either predisposed to experience amusement (i.e., those high trait cheerfulness) or habitually having higher thresholds for amusement (i.e., low trait cheerful individuals; see Ruch and Hofmann 2012) respond differently to the amusement elicitation with a virtual companion. Trait cheerfulness has been postulated and empirically validated to be an enduring disposition to experience and express positive emotions (starting with Meumann 1913, who saw cheerfulness as one of 12 basic temperaments, for an overview: Ruch and Hofmann 2012).…”

“…Trait cheerfulness has been postulated and empirically validated to be an enduring disposition to experience and express positive emotions (starting with Meumann 1913, who saw cheerfulness as one of 12 basic temperaments, for an overview: Ruch and Hofmann 2012). Therefore, trait cheerfulness is an important predictor for the elicitation of amusement (i.e., when watching funny films), but it is unknown how the trait interacts with the presence of a virtual companion on the elicitation of amusement.…”