At whose expense? System justification and the appreciation of stereotypical humor targeting high- versus low-status groups

Abstract

Many popular comedians tell complicated jokes that involve multiple levels of interpretation. The same joke may be perceived as criticizing or reinforcing the societal status quo, depending on perceivers’ assumptions about the target of the punchline (e.g., whether the joke is at the expense of high- or low-status groups). We focused on how such jokes are experienced by listeners who are psychologically prone to justifying (vs. challenging) the status quo. In a sample of Mechanical Turk workers (N = 179), we explored whether individual differences in system justification would be associated with the appreciation of group-based (stereotypical) humor, depending on the perceived target of the joke. As hypothesized, high system-justifiers found jokes targeting low-status groups (e.g., women, poor people, racial/ethnic minorities) to be funnier than low system-justifiers did. In some cases, low system-justifiers found jokes targeting high-status groups (rich people, European Americans) to be funnier than high system-justifiers did. These results expand upon previous demonstrations that humor appreciation is linked to relatively stable ideological dispositions and suggest that different individuals may perceive complex group-based humor in divergent ways.

I'm just joking! Perceptions of sexist humour and sexist beliefs in a Latin American context

“…Several studies have shown consistent results with the notion that individual differences observed in the enjoyment of group‐based humour are linked to ideological orientations (e.g., Baltiansky et al, 2021; Hodson et al, 2010; Hunt & Gonsalkorale, 2014). In this regard, ambivalent sexism is a fundamental factor related to both funniness and offensiveness perceptions of humour.…”

The effect of relational status on perceptions of gay disparaging humor

“…Social dominance orientation (SDO) seems to be connected to disparagement humor through cavalier humor beliefs (i.e., dismissive attitudes towards the social implications of disparagement humor) while right wing authoritarianism (RWA) and personal need for structure (PNS) do not seem to play a role (Hodson et al, 2010a;Hodson et al, 2010b). Similarly, people who score high on system justification enjoy jokes targeting lower status groups while people who score low on system justification enjoy jokes targeting high status groups (Baltiansky et al, 2021).…”

Humor Styles, Impoliteness, and Online Viewers’ Appreciation of Egyptian vs. American Pedestrian Questions: A Cross-cultural Study

“…However, from a psychological perspective, humor has been perceived as a broad term that refers to anything that people say or do that is perceived as funny and tends to make others laugh (Martin, 2007, p. 5); from a cognitive perspective as a frame of mind, a manner of perceiving and experiencing life … which has a great therapeutic power (Mindess, 1971, p. 21); from a social interactional perspective as a common element of human communication (Abbas, 2019;Crawford, 2003) and as a strategy for creating power and solidarity (Hay, 2000). Characterizations of humor, however, often overlook its dark side, its ability as a double-edged sword to create pleasure and amusement for some at the expense of others who may be subjected to belittlement and deprecation (Baltiansky et al, 2021;Plester, 2016). Hence, several humor theories (see Section 4.1) and styles (see Section 4.2) usually integrate to account for the different aspects of humor.…”