Theory and Implications Regarding the Utilization of Strategic Humor by Leaders

Abstract

Humor, a communicative tactic used to engender support, is often employed, but rarely understood. Literature in the field of humor has attempted to define situations where humor could be beneficial. Even today few definitive answers exist relating humor to effective leadership communicative behavior. Thus, the purpose of this research is to present current research findings about the symbolic nature of leadership as enacted through humor. Initially, this research details the important symbolic realm within which leaders work. Next, some of the relevant literature dealing with humor is discussed. Specifically, humor is defined and the purposes of humor are elaborated. This research also reviews contemporary leadership literature dealing with humor. Finally, this research evaluates the appropriateness of each form of humor and specific guidelines for effective humor are discussed.

Individual differences in managers’ use of humor. Subordinate perceptions of managers’ humor

“…Managers recognized as effective leaders are more likely to "possess a good sense of humor" (Bass & Avolio 1994;Crawford, 1994;Jago, 1982;Shamir, 1995). Corporate trainees identified humor as an important characteristic of memorable leaders (Bass & Avolio, 1994).…”

“…Corporate trainees identified humor as an important characteristic of memorable leaders (Bass & Avolio, 1994). In addition, a good sense of humor is consistently cited as one of the keys to improving management style (Crawford, 1994) and is frequently related to leadership 0ago, 1982).…”

“…Findings repeatedly indicate that humor use promotes creativity and group cohesion, while reducing fear, anxiety, and stress (Cade, 1982;Duncan, 1982;Murdock & Ganim, 1993;Winnick, 1976) and is related to effective leadership styles (Avolio, et al, 1996;Crawford, 1994;Jago, 1982). Abramis (1992) investigated humor in healthy organizations and found that people who communicated positive humor at work had higher mental health, job satisfaction, and job involvement.…”

Okul Yöneticilerinin Mizah Yönelimleri

“…Bu durumu Lindop (1969), lideri lider yapan karakteristik özellikler arasında mizahın yer alması gerektiği şeklinde açıklamıştır. Benzer şekilde Crawford (1994), Decker (1987), Lippitt (1982) ve Dienstbier (1995), yöneticilerin mizahi yapıya sahip olmalarının işgören motivasyonlarını ve grup performansını artırdığını (Cross, 1989) belirtmişlerdir. Mizah kullanımı ile yönetim süreçlerinin kalbi olarak nitelendirilen "karar verme" (Bursalıoğlu, 2015) ve ilişki kurma becerilerinin geliştirildiği (Weaver ve Wilson, 1997), örgüt içi sosyal birlikteliği güçlendirdiği (Holmes ve Marra, 2006;Cann and Matson, 2014) belirlenmiştir.…”

Rindo do que? Como consultores reagem ao humor crítico e à ironia sobre sua profissão

“…Dentro dessa perspectiva, o uso do humor em empresas tem sido associado ao aumento da moral entre os trabalhadores (Grunner, 1997), à criação de uma cultura organizacional mais positiva (Clouse e Spurgeon, 1995), à melhoria da coesão de grupos (Duncan, 1982), à redução de conflitos nas empresas (Duncan et al, 1990;Abramis, 1992;Rothwell, 1996;Smith et al, 2000), à facilitação da expressão de emoções negativas (Martineau, 1972;Pollio, 1995), à canalização da hostilidade (Wilson, 1979), à manutenção da ordem social (Dwyer, 1991), ao estímulo da criatividade individual e grupal (Csikszentmihaly, 1996;Murdock e Ganim,1993), ao aumento da motivação (Crawford, 1994;Dienstbier, 1995;Lippitt, 1982), ao incremento da produtividade (Clouse e Spurgeon, 1995;Duncan e Feisal, 1989;Avolio et al, 1999), ao aumento da eficácia de processos de mudanças nas empresas (Bovey, 2001;Kahn, 1989), ao estímulo de novas perspectivas (Dixon, 1980), ao estímulo ao comprometimento no grupo (Duncan, 1982;Martin e Lefcourt, 1983;Ziv e Gadish, 1990), e ao estímulo do aprendizado e do desenvolvimento (Boverie et al, 1994).…”