The relationship between humor and trust

Abstract

A series ofstudies has shown t hat humor andintimacy are closely related. Since trust is an essentialpart ofintimacy, it was hypothesized that there wouldbe a dose correlation between humor and trust. The Trust versus Mistrust Scale of the Measures of Psychosocial Development, Coping Humor Scale, Multidimensional Sense of Humor Scale, and Situational Humor Response Questionnaire were given to 89 subjects. There were significant correlations between the Trust versus Mistrust Scale and each of the humor scales. The positive relationship between trust and humor was explained in terms ofsuch mediating variables äs extroversion, stress reduction, and seif-esteem. It was suggestedthatfuturestudiesshouldinvestigatetherelationshipbetweenhumor and other variables associated with intimacy and trust, such äs self-disclosure.A number ofstudies (Mutthaya 1987; Kampes 1992; and Hampes 1994) have shown that those high in humor also tend to be high in intimacy. According to Erikson (1963) trust is one of the necessary conditions for intimacy to occur. Sternberg (1986: 121) Claims that intimacy involves "being able to count on the loved one in times of need." Therefore since intimacy is closely associated with trust, it was hypothesized that there would be a significant positive correlation between trust and humor. Method SubjectsThe subjects were 67 female and 22 male freshmen and sophomores at a Community College in the midwestern United States. These students, Humor 12-3 (1999), 253-259 0933-1719/99/0012-0253 © Walter de Gruyter Brought to you by | University of Queensland -UQ Library Authenticated Download Date | 6/17/15 6:22 AM

Online humour as a community-building cushioning glue

“…In conclusion, findings show that humour functions as a pervasive instrument of cohesion between participants, as they discursively build reciprocal support through constitutive laughter (Hampes 1999;Hubler & Bell 2003) by publishing sympathetic posts and spreading a pervasive social smile (Ziv 2010), which confirms the facilitative nature of humour in naturally occurring online interactions (Graham 1995). On the other hand, the overwhelmingly positive use of humour seems to challenge superiority theories of humour (Martineau 1972), at least in designdriven online environments.…”

Humor as a relationship‐building tool in online negotiations

“…For example, research has found (Hampes, 1999) that the two individual traits of humor and trust also tend to be associated with the traits of extroversion and self-esteem, making it more likely that those who display humor may be thought of as individuals who may well be extroverted and have high self-esteem, traits that may be attractive to another. Or, the increased positive affect that humor generates may also help explain this result.…”

“…The relationship between humor and trust has also been predominantly examined as a personality trait of individuals instead of as an interactive (or inter-personal) one. For example, research has shown a positive correlation between ratings on each the Coping Humor Scale, the Multidimensional Sense of Humor Scale, and Situational Humor Response Questionnaire with the Trust (vs Mistrust) Scale (Hampes, 1999). In the present research, we look beyond the individual level and instead explore the effects that humor may have on the interaction of two communicators in a virtual context.…”

Conversational Agents and the Construction of Humorous Acts

“…Trust is an essential aspect of intimacy and the hypothesis that there also exists a correlation between humor and trust has been confirmed (Hampes 1999). There are three key factors that help us to understand this relationship.…”