Laughter, the Best Mediation: Humor as Emotion Management in Interaction

Francis, Linda E.

doi:10.1525/si.1994.17.2.147

Cited by 131 publications

(82 citation statements)

References 17 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Although such teasing may seem alienating, it made me feel welcome. Workplace researchers repeatedly note humor as a key part of socializing newcomers, relieving tension, and building a sense of group camaraderie (Francis 1994). As such, participating in playful repartee and good-humored teasing not only reinforced my acceptance as an insider but also helped participants become more comfortable with me (and I with them).…”

Section: Setting and Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Managing Pet Owners’ Guilt and Grief in Veterinary Euthanasia Encounters

Morris

2012

Journal of Contemporary Ethnography

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Through examining the emotion-laden encounters between veterinarians and bereaved pet owners, this study focuses attention on a group of medical professionals who manage the emotions of their clients in light of opposing contextual goals. While negotiating possible outcomes for animal patients, veterinary emotion work is designed to assuage guilt and grief to facilitate timely and rational decisions. However, after clients make the difficult decision to euthanize their pet, veterinary emotion work is geared toward creating "safe" emotional space for grieving clients. This study illustrates that veterinarians have a growing commitment to comforting the owners of euthanized animals and to validating their feelings of grief, pain, and sorrow. On a broader, theoretical level, this study also applies and extends concepts developed in previous sociological analyses of emotion management and human-animal relationships.

show abstract

Section: Setting and Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Managing Pet Owners’ Guilt and Grief in Veterinary Euthanasia Encounters

Morris

2012

Journal of Contemporary Ethnography

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Emotion work may be accomplished individually, as when a college student personally tries to control his or her anxiety when sitting down to take an exam (Albas and Albas 1988), or when a person vents anger when sitting down to pray (Sharp 2010). Emotion work can be also accomplished interpersonally (Cahill and Eggleston 1994;Francis 1994). Interpersonal emotion management may involve one person trying to control the emotions of others in a unidirectional fashion, such as when a leader of a therapeutic group tries to heal the emotional wounds of the widowed, divorced, or seekers of true selves (Francis 1997;Thoits 1996).…”

Section: Theoretical Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

Managing Emotional Manhood

2011

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Based on two years of fieldwork and over 100 interviews, we analyze mixed martial arts fighters' fears, how they managed them, and how they adopted intimidating personas to evoke fear in opponents. We conceptualize this process as ''managing emotional manhood,'' which refers to emotion management that signifies, in the dramaturgical sense, masculine selves. Our study aims to deepen our understanding of how men's emotion work is gendered and, more generally, to bring together two lines of research: studies of gendered emotion management and studies of emotional identity work. We further propose that managing emotional manhood is a dynamic and trans-situational process that can be explored in diverse settings.While fighters in the locker room prepared for combat in the cage, two men from the previous fight staggered in. Juan 1 -the victor-had shiny contusions under both eyes and made it to a folding chair where he sat staring into space. As two paramedics tried to keep him conscious, he cracked a smile with swollen lips and tried unsuccessfully to communicate meaningfully. As the paramedics carried Juan off on a stretcher, Mikehis opponent-leaned against a wall and talked with his trainer. As blood flowed from his nose and mouth, Mike began to sob. His trainer handed him a towel, which he brought to his face with shaking hands. When asked if he was upset about Juan, he pulled away the bloodied towel and said, ''I don't like losing.'' Juan and Mike's post-fight experiences highlight what competitors of mixed martial arts (MMA) most often say they fear: injury and losing. Competitions generally occur in a locked cage and fighters wear thin, open-fingered gloves and are allowed to punch, kick, wrestle, and use martial arts techniques. Fights are broken into rounds and end when one fighter submits

show abstract

“…Lively / RECIPROCAL EMOTION MANAGEMENT 33 Reciprocal emotion management refers to the horizontal coping strategies of similar others that arise in response to the instrumental demands of their jobs and their interpersonal relationships with status superiors. Although reciprocal emotion management occurs in most occupations, most emotional labor studies have focused only on two types of emotion management: individual emotion management, which refers to individual attempts to manage their own emotions (Hochschild, 1983;Pierce, 1995;Smith & Kleinman, 1989), and interpersonal emotion management, which refers to the attempts that individuals make to manage the emotions of others (Francis, 1994;Hochschild, 1983;Rafaeli & Sutton, 1990;Thoits, 1996;Van Maanen & Kunda, 1989). Based primarily on observations of service workers, emotional labor researchers have consistently found that lower status service workers are often formally or informally required to manage their own emotions and/or the emotions of higher status others with whom they interact in the course of their paid employment.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Reciprocal Emotion Management

Lively

2000

Work and Occupations

230

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Using qualitative evidence, the concept of reciprocal emotion management is introduced and the role it plays in the reproduction of status inequality in the workplace is illustrated. Reciprocal emotion management is the reciprocal effort of similar others to manage one another's emotions. Three norms that exist in the workplace are also identified: professionalism, deference, and caretaking, and it is proposed that as paralegals strive to appear professional, they display deference to attorneys and accept having deference withheld. Reciprocal emotion management is one mechanism through which they are able to manage their emotional reactions to the status inequity in their daily interactions with attorneys. Ironically, pursuit of professionalism in these ways tends to perpetuate their marginal or inferior status in law firms.

show abstract

Laughter, the Best Mediation: Humor as Emotion Management in Interaction

Cited by 131 publications

References 17 publications

Managing Pet Owners’ Guilt and Grief in Veterinary Euthanasia Encounters

Managing Pet Owners’ Guilt and Grief in Veterinary Euthanasia Encounters

Managing Emotional Manhood

Reciprocal Emotion Management

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About