Gender, formal organizational status and humor use: perceptions of social acceptance
Journal of Managerial Psychology
ISSN: 0268-3946
Article publication date: 10 December 2021
Issue publication date: 8 April 2022
Abstract
Purpose
Humor can be a useful tool in the workplace, but it remains unclear whether humor used by men versus women is perceived similarly due to social role expectations. This paper explored whether female humorists have less social latitude in their use of aggressive and affiliative humor in the workplace. This paper also examined how formal organizational status and the target's gender can impact audience perceptions.
Design/methodology/approach
Two scenario-based studies were conducted where participants rated the foolishness of the humorist. For Study 1, participants responded to a scenario with an aggressive, humorous comment. For Study 2, participants responded to a scenario with an affiliative, humorous comment.
Findings
Results suggested that high-status female humorists who used aggressive humor with low-status women were viewed as less foolish than low-status female humorists who used aggressive humor with low-status women. Conversely, status did not impact perceptions of male humorists who used aggressive humor with low-status women. Results also indicated that high-status women who used affiliative humor were viewed as less foolish when their humor was directed toward low-status men versus low-status women. Conversely, no differences existed for high-status men who used affiliative humor with low-status men and women.
Practical implications
Narrower social role expectations for women suggest that interpersonal humor can be a riskier strategy for women.
Originality/value
This study suggests that women have less social latitude in their use of humor at work, and that organizational status and target gender influence perceptions of female humorists.
Keywords
Citation
Moake, T.R. and Robert, C. (2022), "Gender, formal organizational status and humor use: perceptions of social acceptance", Journal of Managerial Psychology, Vol. 37 No. 4, pp. 332-345. https://doi.org/10.1108/JMP-11-2020-0593
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2021, Emerald Publishing Limited