The Effects of Humor on Sentence Memory
Christi Collins
Missouri Western State College
5-01-1997
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to see whether participants remember humorous sentences better that non humorous sentences. Past research shows that humorous material is remembered better than non humorous material. Forty-eight subjects, 16 male and 32 female, from an introductory psychology class participated in this study. The subjects were asked to read a group of sentences, complete a distracter task consisting of math problems, and then the subjects were asked to complete a recall test. Results showed a significant difference between the memory of humorous and non humorous sentences, with the memory of humorous material being significantly better than non humorous material.
Introduction
We may have difficulty defining humor but we know it when we "see" it. Humor is something that exists only in our minds and not in the real world. Humor is not a characteristic of certain events, although certain stimulus events are more likely than others to produce the perception of humor. Humor can be defined as a form of intellectual play ( McGhee, 1979). Studies of comparing memory of humorous and non humorous sentences have been done in the past. Past research found that humorous sentences were remembered better that non humorous sentences (Schmidt, 1994). Most of the research done on the effect of humor on memory has been done in an educational setting . For example, comparing memory for lecture material presented with serious or humorous examples, or the effects of humor in an educational television program. Studies indicated that students retain more information that has humor added to the content of the material being presented.
When considering the effects of humor on memory, numerous explanations can be offered. There are three hypotheses to be considered when explaining humor and memory. Hypothesis number one is that the effects of humor are a result of a physiological response or arousal. Arousal has a positive effect on memory. Arousal associated with humor is part responsible for enhanced memory for humorous materials (Schmidt, 1994).
The second hypothesis stated by Schmidt (1994) is that there is a difference between the attention given to humorous material and non humorous materials. Humor was a special case of physiological orienting response, and the orienting response in a index of increased attention. The third explanation of humor on the effects of memory is that participants rehearse humorous material more than non humorous material.
Humor serves as a cue for recalling information, allowing participants to pair what they have learned to the humor in what they have learned (Kaplan and Pasco, 1977). The purpose of this study is to find whether subjects remember humorous sentences better than non humorous sentences.
Methods
Subjects
The participants in this study included 48 introductory psychology students, 32 females and 16 males. Research and data were collected on a college campus in the Northwest corner of Missouri. The population on campus is approximately 5,000 undergraduate students.
Materials
Apparatus used in this study was a paper and pencil task. A handout was given to the students that consisted of both humorous and non humorous sentences. Participants also received a small mathematics assignment as a distracter task. A recall test was also included in the testing.
Procedure
Participants were given a sheet of paper consisting of both humorous and non humorous sentences. They were given 5-7 minutes to read and comprehend all that they could in that time limit. After reading the sentences, the participants were given a small distracter task that consisted of 8 basic computational math problems. They were given 3 minutes to complete the dissector task. When the math problems were completed, the participants were given a recall test. On the recall test, the first few words of each sentence were given as a clue and the participants had to fill in the rest of the sentence, or at least as much as the could remember. After the tasks were completed the tests were scored on how many sentences of each, humorous and non humorous that each participant got correct.
Results
A paired samples independent t -test was done to compare the recall for memory of humorous sentences to non humorous sentences, t(48) = 3.17, p < .01. There was a significant difference between the memory for humorous sentences and non humorous sentences. Participants remembered humorous sentences better than non humorous sentences.
Discussion
The results if this experiment conclude that sentence memory is better for humorous sentences than non humorous sentences. From this experiment, I was able to conclude that funny material sticks in a individuals mind longer that serious material. One of the things to be controlled in this experiment is the amount of time given to the participants. Participants should have enough time to comprehend as much as the can and should be able to take their time in completing the tasks. By doing the experiment in a classroom setting, you are taking away from the professors lecture time so the experimenter has to adjust their experiment to be considerate to the professor and the students lecture time, their education is important to. This experiment could be done off campus in area schools, for example area high schools, to help control the College Sophomore Problem. Many experiments are done on a college campus and change of setting could produce some different results.
It would be interesting to do this on an older population, to see if memory is different with age. Research shows that memory changes with age, but is it effected with humor and non humor. For future research, the experiment could be done with cued recall in the original sentences that the subject is to read to see if they are able to remember specific words than a whole sentence. The findings of my research prove that past research is correct, individuals remember humorous sentences better that non humorous sentences.
References
Kaplan, R.M., Pascoe, G.C. (1977). Humorous lectures and humorous examples: Some effects upon comprehension and retention. Journal of Educational Psychology, 69, 61-65.McGhee, P.E. (1979). Humor its origin and development. San Francisco: W.H. Freeman and Company.
Schmidt, S.R. (1994). Effects of humor on sentence memory. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 20, 953-967.
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