![[PDF]](/pb-assets/Icons/adobe-pdf-icon-1498649896243.png){kind=icon}
Abstract
In order to extend previous early years humor research into early adolescence, the authors adapted an innovative ecological research method such that at-risk adolescents could be filmed during an entire waking day in their life. Community youth advocates nominated one 15-year-old female and one 14-year-old male as doing well despite adverse circumstances. We examined the types and functions of these youths’ humor within their social contexts. Their humor included joking, teasing, physical play, light tones, irony, sarcasm, and mocking/parody. Humor served many socioemotional roles, such as navigating complex socially sensitive topics and situations, and facilitating affiliation with friends and family. Humor assists in traversing challenging social terrain and can serve as a protective factor under risky circumstances.
Keywords resilience, early adolescence, youth, cultural, humor, development, socioemotional functioning
|
Bergen, D. ( 1998). Development of the sense of humor. In W. Ruch (Ed.), The sense of humor: Explorations of a personality characteristic (Humor Research Series, Vol. 3; pp. 176-189). New York: Mouton de Gruyter. Google Scholar | |
|
Cameron, C.A. ( 2004). Schools are not enough: It takes a whole community. In M. L. Stirling , C. A. Cameron , N. Nason-Clark , & B. Mediema (Eds.), Understanding abuse: Partnering for change (pp. 269-294). Toronto, Ontario, Canada: University of Toronto Press. Google Scholar | |
|
Cameron, E.L. , Accorti Gamannossi, B. , Gillen, J. , & Cameron, C.A. ( 2010). Humour. In J. Gillen & C. A. Cameron (Eds.), International perspectives on early childhood research: "A day in the life" (pp. 136-154). London: Palgrave Macmillan. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
Cameron, E.L. , Kennedy, K. , & Cameron, C.A. ( 2008). "Let me show you a trick!": A toddler’s use of humor to explore, interpret, and negotiate her familial environment during a day in the life. Journal of Research in Childhood Education , 23(1), 5-18. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
Chafe, W. ( 2001). Laughing while talking. In D. Tannen & J. E. Alatis (Eds.), Linguistics, language and the real world: Discourse and beyond. Georgetown University round table on language and linguistics (pp. 36-49). Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press. Google Scholar | |
|
Creusere, M.A. ( 1999). Theories of adults’ understanding and use of irony and sarcasm: Applications to and evidence from research with children. Developmental Review, 19, 213-262. Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
|
Demorest, A. , Meyer, C. , Phelps, E. , Gardner, H. , & Winner, E. ( 1984). Words speak louder than actions: Understanding deliberately false remarks. Child Development, 55, 1527-1534. Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
|
Dews, S. , Kaplan, J. , & Winner, E. ( 2007). Why not say it directly? The social functions of irony . In R. W. Gibbs & H. L. Colston (Eds.), Irony in language and thought (pp. 297-317). New York: Erlbaum . Google Scholar | |
|
Erickson, S.J. , & Feldstein, S.W. (2007). Adolescent humor and its relationship to coping, defense strategies, psychological distress, and well being. Child Psychiatry and Human Development, 37, 255-271. Google Scholar | Crossref | Medline | ISI | |
|
Führ, M. ( 2001). Some aspects of form and function of humor in adolescence . Humor: International Journal of Humor Research, 14, 25-36. Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
|
Führ, M. ( 2002). Coping humor in early adolescence. Humor: International Journal of Humor Research, 15, 283-304. Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
|
Garbarino, J. ( 1999). Lost boys. New York: Free Press. Google Scholar | |
|
Gardner, H. ( 1983). Frames of mind: The theory of multiple intelligences . New York: Basic Books. Google Scholar | |
|
Gibbs, R.W. ( 2007). On the psycholinguistics of sarcasm. In R. W. Gibbs & H. L. Colston (Eds.), Irony in language and thought (pp. 173-200). New York: Erlbaum. Google Scholar | |
|
Gibbs, R. W , & Colston, H. L. (Eds.). (2007). Irony in language and thought. New York: Erlbaum. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
Gillen, J. , Cameron, C.A. , Tapanya, S. , Pinto, G. , Hancock, R. , Young, S. , et al. (2006). "A day in the life": Advancing a methodology for the cultural study of development and learning in early childhood. Early Child Development and Care, 177, 207-218. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
Gilligan, C. ( 1982). In a different voice: Psychological theory and women’s development. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Google Scholar | |
|
Harms, E. ( 1943). The development of humor. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 38, 351-369. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
Klein, A.J. ( 2003). Humor in children’s lives: A guidebook for practitioners . West-port, CT: Praeger. Google Scholar | |
|
Koller, M.R. ( 1988). Humor and society: Explorations in the sociology of humor . Houston, TX: Cap and Gown Press . Google Scholar | |
|
Kuiper, N.A. , Martin, R.A. , & Olinger, L.J. ( 1993). Coping humour, stress, and cognitive appraisals. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science, 25, 81-96. Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
|
Martin, R.A. ( 2007). The psychology of humor: An integrative approach. Burlington, MA: Elsevier. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
McGhee, P.E. ( 1979). Humor: Its origin and development. San Francisco: W. H. Freeman. Google Scholar | |
|
McGhee, P. ( 1989). Humor and children’s development. New York: Haworth. Google Scholar | |
|
Pink, S. ( 2006). Doing visual ethnography: Images, media and representation in research (2nd ed.). London : SAGE. Google Scholar | |
|
Pipher, M. ( 1994). Reviving Ophelia. New York: Grosset/Putnam. Google Scholar | |
|
Pollack, W. ( 1998). Real boys. New York: Owl Books. Google Scholar | |
|
Reddy, V. ( 2001). Infant clowns: The interpersonal creation of humor in infancy. Enfance, 52, 247-256. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
|
Sanford, S. , & Eder, D. ( 1984). Adolescent humor during peer interaction. Social Psychology Quarterly, 47, 235-243. Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
|
Schmitz, T.W. , De Rosa, E. , & Anderson, A.K. (2009). Opposing influences of affective state valence on visual cortical encoding. Journal of Neuroscience, 29, 7199-7207. Google Scholar | Crossref | Medline | ISI | |
|
Schneider, W. , & Bullock, M. ( 2009). Human development from early childhood to early adulthood . New York: Psychology Press. Google Scholar | |
|
Shultz, T.R. , & Robillard, J. ( 1980). The development of linguistic humor in children: Incongruity through role violation. In P. M. McGhee & A. J. Chapman (Eds.), Children’s humor (pp. 59-90). New York: John Wiley. Google Scholar | |
|
Southam, M. ( 2003). Therapeutic humor: Attitudes and actions by occupational therapists in adult physical disability settings. Occupational Therapy in Health Care, 17, 23-41. Google Scholar | Crossref | Medline | |
|
Sroufe, L.A. , & Wunsch, J.P. ( 1972). The development of laughter in the first year of life . Child Development, 43, 1326-1344. Google Scholar | Crossref | Medline | ISI | |
|
Susman, E.J. ( 2001). Mind-body interaction and development: Biology, behavior and context. European Psychologist, 6, 163-171. Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
|
Susman, E.J. ( 2007). Toward a psychobiologic understanding of youth health disparities. Journal of Adolescent Health, 41, 1-2. Google Scholar | Crossref | Medline | ISI | |
|
Ungar, M. (Ed.). (2005). Handbook for working with children and youth: Pathways to resilience across cultures and contexts. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE. Google Scholar |
