Being funny is a stereotypically male trait, and that probably comes back to the qualities associated with being funny. So in a sense it’s a more emasculating form of anxiety. So guys and people in general who feel more socially anxious would be less funny. I would imagine if a social situation is creating anxiety, a person is not likely to see humor or produce humor. Is feeling unfunny as a man maybe comparable to feeling anxiety?Īnxiety is negatively related different dimensions of senses of humor. And some guys are going to struggle in a lot of ways socially, even if it’s just talking to other people, and being funny is just one way they’re likely to struggle interpersonally. Some men are just more socially gifted and interacting with people is just easier, more rewarding, fun, and energizing for these extroverted guys.
Extroversion is probably one of the most highly correlated with the ability to be funny. Humor production is associated with a number of different kinds of personality traits like extroversion.
Ford suspects that anxiety around humor has everything to do with anxiety about gender and that the only way for unfunny men to find peace is to be honest with themselves about their shortcoming.Įven though humor is subjective to some extent, is it scientifically accurate to say that some men are just not that funny? “We think enjoying this kind of humor is a way for them to distance themselves the qualities that are a threat to them, mainly femininity,” Ford explains.Īlthough a large body of research looks at how humor helps men attract women, achieve social dominance, and advance in their careers, very little has examined why some men aren’t funny and the ways in which that creates social problems. Ford and his research team have found that when men score high on Precarious Manhood Beliefs, an inventory of implicit and rigid understandings about sexuality, or believe their status is at risk, use derogatory jokes to play defense. “If we’re not good at being funny - like if we’re not tall or not making money –we might feel a masculinity threat where we don’t feel like we’re living up to our own internal standards of what we should be as men,” says Thomas Ford, a psychology professor at Western Carolina University.
0 kommentar(er)
