Abstract
Humor can be a means of social control and establishing boundaries between social groups. Disparagement humor, which is belittling and degrading while laughing at a target, is such a means of social control. Through the use of disparagement humor, people establish in-groups and out-groups and audiences of disparagement can enjoy vicarious superiority, as long as they are not members of the targeted out-group. In this paper, we look at the way disparagement humor is used on a mass stage, the popular reality television program American Idol. Using qualitative content analysis, we explore the ways in which social outsiders are marked as out-groupers and the ways their outsider status primes them as easy targets for aggressive humor. We find that disparagement humor is more often directed at social outsiders than insiders and audiences are directed to view such contestants as inferior. We also find that the gender and power of judges impacted the use of disparagement humor.
About the authors
Beth Montemurro is an associate Professor of Sociology at Penn State University, Abington. Her research focuses on social constructions of culture, gender, and sexuality. She is the author of Deserving Desire: Women’s Stories of Sexual Evolution (Rutgers University Press, 2014) and Something Old, Something Bold: Bridal Showers and Bachelorette Parties (Rutgers University Press, 2006).
Jacob A. Benfield is an Assistant Professor of Psychology at Penn State University, Abington, who specializes in applied social and environmental psychology. His interest in humor focuses on its use as a social tool to either facilitate or hinder interpersonal relationships. Disparagement and superiority over others overlap with his more general research interests in aggressive behaviors.
References
Bibel, Sara. 2014. TV Ratings Wednesday American Idol Wins Night…” Zap2it. http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2014/01/23/tv-ratings-wednesday-american-idol-wins-night-modern-family-suburgatory-nashville-chicago-p-d-rise-arrow-down/231301/.Search in Google Scholar
Brodzinsky, David M., KarenBarnet & John R.Aiello. 1981. Sex of subject and gender identity as factors in humor appreciation. Sex Roles7(5). 561–573.10.1007/BF00288632Search in Google Scholar
Cash, Thomas F. 1995. Developmental teasing about physical appearance: Retrospective descriptions and relationship with body image. Social Behavior and Personality23. 123–130.10.2224/sbp.1995.23.2.123Search in Google Scholar
Connell, R. W. 1995. Masculinities. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.Search in Google Scholar
Coser, Rose Laub. 1959. Some social functions of laughter. Human Relations12. 171–182.10.1177/001872675901200205Search in Google Scholar
Deggans, Eric. 2014. “Will fans return to a nicer ‘Idol’?” All Things Considered. National Public Radio, January 15, 2014. http://www.npr.org/2014/01/15/262788985/will-fans-return-to-a-nicer-idol.Search in Google Scholar
Dubrofsky, Rachel. 2006. The bachelor: Whiteness in the harem. Critical Studies in Media Communication23(1). 39–56.10.1080/07393180600570733Search in Google Scholar
Eggenberger, Nicole. 2014. American Idol’s Top 30 includes first openly gay contestant, M. K. Nobilette. US Magazine. February 13, 2014 AT 9:10 AM http://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/news/american-idols-top-30-includes-first-openly-gay-contestant-mk-nobilette-2014132#ixzz2wFOqh9TF.Search in Google Scholar
Ferguson, Mark A. & Thomas E.Ford. 2008. Disparagement humor: A theoretical and empirical review of psychoanalytic, superiority, and social identity theories. Humor21(3). 283–312.Search in Google Scholar
Ford, Thomas E.. 2000. Effects of sexist humor on tolerance of sexist events. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin26(9). 1094–1107.10.1177/01461672002611006Search in Google Scholar
Ford, Thomas E., Christie F.Boxer, JacobArmstrong & Jessica R.Edel. 2008. More than ‘just a joke’: The prejudice-releasing function of sexist humor. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin34(2). 159–170.10.1177/0146167207310022Search in Google Scholar
Ford, Thomas E., Erin R.Wentzel & JoliLorion. 2001. Effects of exposure to sexist humor on perceptions of normative tolerance of sexism. European Journal of Social Psychology31(6). 677–691.10.1002/ejsp.56Search in Google Scholar
Gamson, Joshua. 1998. Freaks talk back: Tabloid talk shows and sexual nonconformity. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.10.7208/chicago/9780226280639.001.0001Search in Google Scholar
Gilligan, Carol. 1982. In a different voice: Psychological theory and women’s development. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.Search in Google Scholar
Gray, Jared Alan & Thomas E.Ford. 2013. The role of social context in the interpretation of sexist humor. Humor26(2). 277–293.10.1515/humor-2013-0017Search in Google Scholar
Gross, Larry. 1994. What is wrong with this picture? Lesbian women and gay men on television. In R.Jeffrey Ringer (ed.), Queer words, queer images: Communication and the construction of homosexuality, 143–156. New York: NYU Press.10.18574/nyu/9780814769447.003.0012Search in Google Scholar
Gruner, Charles R. 2000. The game of humor: A comprehensive theory of why we laugh. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction publishers.Search in Google Scholar
Gutman, Jonathan & Robert F.Priest. 1969. When is aggression funny?Journal of Personality and Social Psychology12(1). 60–65.10.1037/h0027357Search in Google Scholar
Heisterkamp, Brian L. & Jess K.Alberts. 2000. Control and desire: Identity formation through teasing among gay men and lesbians. Communication Studies51(4). 388–403.10.1080/10510970009388533Search in Google Scholar
Hemmasi, Masoud, A.Graf & Gail S.Russ. 1994. Gender‐related jokes in the workplace: Sexual humor or sexual harassment?Journal of Applied Social Psychology24(12). 1114–1128.10.1111/j.1559-1816.1994.tb02376.xSearch in Google Scholar
Hobbes, Thomas. 1996/1651. Leviathan. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Search in Google Scholar
Holmes, Janet & MeredithMarra. 2002. Over the edge? Subversive humor between colleagues and friends. Humor15(1). 65–88.10.1515/humr.2002.006Search in Google Scholar
Janes, Leslie M. & James M.Olson. 2000. Jeer pressure: The behavioral effects of observing ridicule of others. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin26(4). 474–485.10.1177/0146167200266006Search in Google Scholar
Keith-Spiegel, Patricia. 1972. Early conceptions of humor: Varieties and issues. In Goldstein, Jeffrey H. and Paul E.McGhee (eds.), The Psychology of Humor, 4–39. New York, NY: Academic Press.10.1016/B978-0-12-288950-9.50007-9Search in Google Scholar
Keltner, Dacher, LisaCapps, Ann M.Kring, Randall C.Young & Erin A.Heerey. 2001. Just teasing: A conceptual analysis and empirical review. Psychological Bulletin127(2). 229.10.1037/0033-2909.127.2.229Search in Google Scholar
Kendall, Lori. 2002. Hanging out in the virtual pub: Masculinities and relationships online. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.10.1525/california/9780520230361.001.0001Search in Google Scholar
Kimmel, Michael. 2013. The gendered society. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.Search in Google Scholar
Klapp, Orrin E. 1949. The fool as a social type. American Journal of Sociology55. 157–162.10.1086/220485Search in Google Scholar
La Fave, Lawrence, JayHaddad & NancyMarshall. 1996 [1976]. Superiority, enhanced self-esteem, and perceived incongruity humor theory. In Chapman, Anthony J. and Hugh C.Foot (eds.), Humor and laughter: Theory, research, and applications, 63–91. New York: Wiley and Sons.10.4324/9780203789469-5Search in Google Scholar
Landis, J. Richard & Gary G.Koch. 1977. An application of hierarchical kappa-type statistics in the assessment of majority agreement among multiple observers. Biometrics33. 363–374.10.2307/2529786Search in Google Scholar
Maio, Gregory R., James M.Olson & Jacqueline E.Bush. 1997. Telling jokes that disparage social groups: Effects on the joke teller’s stereotypes. Journal of Applied Social Psychology27(22). 1986–2000.10.1111/j.1559-1816.1997.tb01636.xSearch in Google Scholar
Martineau, William H. 1972. A model of the social functions of humor. In Goldstein, Jeffrey H. and Paul E.McGhee (eds.), The psychology of humor, 101–125. New York, NY: Academic Press.10.1016/B978-0-12-288950-9.50011-0Search in Google Scholar
McQueen, DeAnna. 2007. Valley grandmother wants apology from Simon Cowell. http://abclocal.go.com/kfsn/story?id=4953566Search in Google Scholar
Meizel, Katherine. 2010. Idolized: Music, media, and identity in American idol. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.Search in Google Scholar
Middleton, Russell. 1959. Negro and white reactions to racial humor. Sociometry22(2). 175–183.10.2307/2786021Search in Google Scholar
Millner, Martin. 2004. Freaks, geeks, and cool kids: American teenagers, schools, and the culture of consumption. New York, NY: Routledge.Search in Google Scholar
Mills, C. Wright. 1959. The sociological imagination. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Search in Google Scholar
Montemurro, Beth. 2003. Not a laughing matter: Sexual harassment as ‘material’ on workplace-based situation comedies. Sex Roles: A Journal of Research48(9/10). 433–445.10.1023/A:1023578528629Search in Google Scholar
Montemurro, Beth. 2007. Toward a sociology of reality television. Sociology Compass1. 1–23.10.1111/j.1751-9020.2007.00064.xSearch in Google Scholar
Pascoe, C. J. 2007. Dude, you’re a fag: Masculinity and sexuality in high school. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.10.1525/9780520941045Search in Google Scholar
Priest, Robert F. & Paul G.Wilhelm. 1974. Sex, marital status, and self/actualization as factors in the appreciation of sexist jokes. The Journal of Social Psychology92(2). 245–249.Search in Google Scholar
Quail, Christine. 2011. Nerds, geeks, and the hip/square dialectic in contemporary television. Television and New Media12(5). 460–482.Search in Google Scholar
Robinson, Dawn T. & LynnSmith-Lovin. 2001. Getting a laugh: Gender, status, and humor in task discussions. Social Forces80(1). 123–158.Search in Google Scholar
Shapiro, Jeremy P., Roy F.Baumeister & Jane W.Kessler. 1991. A three-component model of children’s teasing: Aggression, humor, and ambiguity. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology10(4). 459–472.10.1521/jscp.1991.10.4.459Search in Google Scholar
Skvoretz, John & Thomas J.Fararo. 1996. Status and participation in task groups: A dynamic network model. American Journal of Sociology101(5). 1366–1414.10.1086/230826Search in Google Scholar
Smeltzer, Larry R. & Terry L.Leap. 1988. An analysis of individual reactions to potentially offensive jokes in work settings. Human Relations41(4). 295–304.10.1177/001872678804100402Search in Google Scholar
Tragesser, Sarah L. & Louis G.Lippman. 2005. Teasing: For superiority or solidarity?The Journal of General Psychology132(3). 255–266.10.3200/GENP.132.3.255-266Search in Google Scholar
West, Candace & D.Zimmerman. 1987. Doing gender. Gender and Society1. 125–151.10.1177/0891243287001002002Search in Google Scholar
Williams, Kipling D. 2007. Ostracism. Psychology58(1). 425.10.1146/annurev.psych.58.110405.085641Search in Google Scholar
Wills, Thomas A. 1981. Downward comparison principles in social psychology. Psychological Bulletin90. 245–271.10.1037/0033-2909.90.2.245Search in Google Scholar
Wolff, Harold A., Carl E.Smith & Henry A.Murray. 1934. The psychology of humor. The Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology28(4). 341.10.1037/h0075400Search in Google Scholar
Wood, Julia T. 1994. Gendered lives: Communication, gender, and culture. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.Search in Google Scholar
Zillmann, Dolf & Joanne R.Cantor. 1972. Directionality of transitory dominance as a communication variable affecting humor appreciation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology24(2). 191.10.1037/h0033384Search in Google Scholar
Zillmann, Dolf & Joanne R.Cantor. 1976. A disposition theory of humour and mirth. In Chapman, Antony J. & Foot, Hugh C. (eds.), Humor and laughter: Theory research and applications, 93–115. Piscataway, NJ: Transaction Publishers.10.4324/9780203789469-6Search in Google Scholar
©2015 by De Gruyter Mouton
