Infant humor: the theory of the absurd and the empowerment theory

Abstract

This study looked at how six infants in a group child care setting produced and appreciated humor. With the use of multiple qualitative methods, participant and non-participant observations, journal writing, videotaping, interviewing, and document review this study looked at children’s humor as indicated through their smiles and laughter. Findings of this study suggest that there are two theories that best describe young children’s humorous behavior, namely the Theory of the Absurd and Empowerment Theory. The Theory of the Absurd includes events that are out of the ordinary and violate children’s existing schemata. It emphasizes the incongruity of an event through funny gestures or positions, the incongruous use of materials and actions. Empowerment Theory describes young children’s ability to violate the expectations of their caregivers and use humor to empower themselves. It highlights a different form of incongruity which has to do with the violation of expectations, intentionally or otherwise. ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]; Copyright of International Journal of Early Years Education is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)