This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Duncan, W. J. Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

The Superiority Theory of Humor At Work

Joking Relationships as Indicators of Formal and Informal Status Patterns in Small, Task-Oriented Groups

University of Alabama in Birmingham

A study of six small, task-oriented groups was conducted to examine the superiority of humor as it applied to the formal and informal status structures of the focal groups. Three of the groups were units in business firms and three were units in health care organizations. Questions were raised regarding the conventional wisdom of joking be havior on the job. The relatively more professional and highly trained groups in health care displayed humor patterns different from those predicted by the superionty theory of humor. Specifically, high-status individuals were integral parts of the humor network and enjoyed no particular "joking monopoly."

Small Group Research, Vol. 16, No. 4, 556-564 (1985)
DOI: 10.1177/104649648501600412


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?