Some humor (such as black humor) makes people laugh, while other types of humor (such as funny stories) falls flat. When you tell a funny joke and it bombs -- or you're arrested for lewd conduct -- you may want to tell people to get a sense of humor. But is it them, or is it you?
Whether black humor, good jokes, and funny stories make people laugh depends on one thing: the sense of humor of the listener or viewer. A joke that makes one person burst into laughter can anger another person. One person's best joke is another's lawsuit for harassment.
Defining a sense of humor and what makes people laugh is no laughing matter! Humor is really difficult to pull off, even when people have similar senses of humor. It's hard to make people laugh because people's senses of humor are so different.
How Funny Stories Can Relieve Workplace Stress
Making a joke or finding the comedy in a stressful situation at work is like taking a mental break. Even (or especially) black humor can lighten the situation; for instance, paramedics can focus on the irony or humor in the situation. Using a sense of humor actually sharpens focus and cognitive abilities. The jokes paramedics tell can be funny or offensive, depending on one's perspective and sense of humor.
Does This Type of Humor Make People Laugh?
Here's a joke: "On January 1, two paramedics were cleaning up the brains and body of a man who shot himself in the head. Paramedic One: 'Well, I guess he got a bang out of the new year!'"
Whether you find this funny or offensive (or just boring) not only depends on your personality, it could also be affected by your experiences or your job. Maybe you've cleaned up more bodies than you care to remember. A sense of humor depends on a person's past and personality.
How Black Humor Works
Your job can change your sense of humor, and make you laugh at black humor. For instance, one PhD student studied more than 70 emergency-care personnel (paramedics included) and found a change in sense of humor styles. The majority of the subjects went from ethnic and sexual jokes at the beginning of their training to black humor at the end. The more experienced the paramedic, the "sicker" their humor was.
The same is often seen on television. Coroners or medical examiners who perform autopsies often make jokes about the body, or eat sandwiches while leaning against the table on which the body rests. This black humor fits in that world.
Black humor can serve as a defense against scary or heartbreaking situations. Black humor switches focus from the tragic to the tragically comical, from sad to silly. Seeing the irony or humor in even the bleakest situation can help you master situations and environments. In fact, some emergency personnel believe that coworkers who don't joke around seem more high strung, touchier, and more likely to burn out. Those who don't have a sense of humor don't last. Black humor doesn't just make people laugh, it decreases stress.
How Laughter Boosts Health
Noticing the funny parts of bad situations changes the chemicals in your brain and elevates mood. It even relieves physiological or body tension and boosts immunity! When you laugh or chuckle, your insides "go jogging" - and a little extra exercise never hurts!
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Laurie Pawlik-Kienlen - Laurie Pawlik-Kienlen is a full-time writer and blogger in Vancouver, BC, and the creator of the Quips and Tips blog series.
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