“Toot, Toot, Tooty, Toot”: An Investigation of Humor in Sibling Dyads in Early Childhood

• In Event: Poster Session 09
  In Poster Session: PS 09 Topic - Family Context & Processes

Abstract

Children are funny, dynamic individuals and often share humor within the context of their close relationships, including family, friends, and peers (Buhrmester, 1992; Mireault et al., 2011; Paine et al., 2019). In particular, sibling relationships are important as they provide affection, validation, and many opportunities for play (Buhrmester, 1992). Humor production is related to creativity and facilitates social communication in children (Loizou, 2005; Coates & Coates, 2019), but remains an understudied domain of child development (Bergen, 2019). The present study investigated siblings’ humor during play and differences in humor production as a function of sibling structural variables (dyad gender composition and age group). We coded humor in a sample of children in early childhood who participated in an observational study of play between siblings. This sample included 65 focal children from middle-class, Caucasian families (M age = 4.7 years old; SD= 5.71 months); 37 children had a younger sibling (M age = 2.9 years; SD = 5.3 months) and 28 had an older sibling (M age = 6.3 years; SD = 5.3 months). Thirty-three sibling dyads included same-gender pairs (16 sister pairs, 17 brother pairs) and 32 mixed-gender pairs (15 sister-brother pairs, 17 brother-sister pairs). Sibling dyads were observed in their homes in a semi-structured play session with a toy set (farm, village, or train set) and were video-recorded for 15 minutes. The video recordings and transcripts of the interactions were coded for humor (Paine et al., 2019). Seven categories of humor were coded: performing incongruities, sound play, word play, preposterous statements and humorous anecdotes, banter, taboo, and clowning (Table 1). Other variables of interest included gender composition and age group of the sibling dyad. Dyads’ conversational turns were controlled in all analyses. Descriptive data for humor categories is also presented in Table 1. Most sibling dyads in the study produced humor (63/65; 96.9%). The mean number of humor instances in the dyads was 13.39 (SD = 13.64, range = 0 - 67.37). Sibling dyads’ total production of humor was positively associated with conversational turns r = .31, p = .01. There were no differences in dyads’ humor production according to play set. Total humor and humor categories did not differ as a function of sibling dyadic gender composition. A significant main effect of dyadic age group on total use of humor was found, F(1, 62) = 5.07, p = .03, partial η2 = 0.08; older sibling pairs produced more humor overall than younger sibling pairs. The main effect of group on the categories of children’s humor was not significant. Given the extensive role that humor plays in social communication at all ages, it is important to study its expression, function, and contribution to early childhood relationships during play (Bergen, 2019). This research demonstrates that the sibling relationship is a rich context for humor in early childhood and provides a platform for future research to examine the role and function of humor in child development.

Authors

• Victoria Gilmore, Concordia University
  Presenting Author

• Amy Louise Paine, Cardiff University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Nina Howe, Concordia University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Ganie B DeHart, State University of New York College at Geneseo (SUNY Geneseo)
  Non-Presenting Author