Humor Group

Humor is one of the most prevalent and useful forms of human communication because of its multifunctionality. On every continent of the world, humans use humor because of its ability to create joy on a cognitive level and its utility in social settings. Within groups and organizations, humor is used as a coping strategy, a defense mechanism, a divisive tactic, or a method to achieve and enhance cohesiveness. The different social functions of humor, however, depend on the context in which it is enacted. Humorous contexts include the physical setting, the involved participants and their previous relationships to one another, sequences of interactions, the social and professional norms that give meaning and a sense of order to immediate situations, and larger societal values and discourses that constrain the humor. Scholars have studied humor in a variety of settings, including families, groups, organizations, professions, industries, cultures, and countries. Within a humor group, defined as a small number of interdependent people working together to achieve specific tasks and positive social outcomes, the most important part of the humorous context are the participants involved in the co-production of humor.

Any comprehensive list of humor topics should include an analysis of humor groups because of the multidimensional nature of humor in social interactions and its ever-present use across a variety of groups. Humans are naturally members of many different groups throughout our lives, so it is important to understand the challenges and benefits associated with humor groups and humor in groups. Specifically, small group literature could benefit from more humor research and provide humor scholars with opportunities for future projects. This entry first discusses the lenses through which small group research has focused on humor. It then highlights two specific functions of humor in groups: humor as professional identity and humor as social maintenance.