Cultural Dimensions of Verbal Humor in American and Chinese Sitcoms

Liang  Changchao,

Cultural Dimensions of Verbal Humor in American and Chinese Sitcoms

Abstract:

This paper examines the linguistic and cultural dimensions of verbal humor in American and Chinese sitcoms, focusing on "Growing Pains" and "Home with Kids." Situational comedies (sitcoms) serve as a platform to explore the manifestation of culture through humor, employing Grice’s conversational maxims and Politeness Principles. The study analyzes 200 utterances from these sitcoms, which were instrumental in generating humor or laughter. The findings reveal distinct cultural approaches to humor. The American sitcom "Growing Pains" predominantly features a tendency to deliver false statements without factual backing, emphasizing humor over reality. This reflects an American cultural orientation towards verbosity and extravagance in dialogue. Conversely, "Home with Kids," the Chinese sitcom, indicates a subtle shift from the traditional norms of modesty and humility, typical in Chinese culture. These results highlight how cultural norms and orientations are deliberately flouted in sitcoms to create humor. The study contributes to understanding the convergence and divergence in humor expression between American and Chinese cultures. Furthermore, it suggests future research avenues, including the analysis of violations of conversational and politeness principles in emerging television genres and the exploration of humor in a multimodal environment.

References:

AKKUŞ ÇUTUK, Z. (2021). Investigating the Relationship Among Social Media Addiction, Cognitive Absorption, and Self-Esteem. Malaysian Online Journal of Educational Technology, 9(2), 42–51. https://doi.org/10.52380/mojet.2021.9.2.211
Ek, A. Şi̇., & Şİmşek, E. (2007). Journal of Organizational Behavior. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 28(5), 641–642. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.467
Francisca, O., Okafor, N., & Angela, I. (2018). The influence of cyberloafing on library and information studies students at the University of Ibadan , Nigeria. Journal of Educational Research and Review, 6(July), 54–60.
Hartanto, H. W., & Franksiska, R. (2021). The influence of cyberloafing to generation z’s productivity: looking at role of creativity as mediating factor. Kinerja, 18(1), 121–133. http://journal.feb.unmul.ac.id/index.php/KINERJA/article/view/8395
Huma, Z. E., Hussain, S., Thurasamy, R., & Malik, M. I. (2017). Determinants of cyberloafing: a comparative study of a public and private sector organization. Internet Research, 27(1), 97–117. https://doi.org/10.1108/IntR-12-2014-0317
Kaytarma, S., Teorik, K., & Bakış, B. (2022). A Theoretical Overview To The Concept Of Cyberloafing. 1995, 302–303.
Khairy Zein El Din, Y. (2019). Nurses’ Cyberloafing and Its Relationship to Procrastination and Conscientiousness in Damanhour National Medical Institute. American Journal of Nursing Science, 8(2), 48. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajns.20190802.13
Khan, J., Saeed, I., Fayaz, M., Zada, M., & Jan, D. (2022). Perceived overqualification? Examining its nexus with cyberloafing and knowledge hiding behaviour: harmonious passion as a moderator. Journal of Knowledge Management, ahead-of-p(ahead-of-print). https://doi.org/10.1108/jkm-09-2021-0700
Knapp, A. (2020). Making eLearning Engaging: The Effect of Technology Strategies on Student Engagement and Content Knowledge Development in a Secondary Mathematics Digital Classroom. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, 143. https://search.proquest.com/dissertations-theses/making-elearning-engaging-effect-technology/docview/2457884202/se-2?accountid=49069
Koay, K.-Y., & Soh, P. C.-H. (2019). Does Cyberloafing Really Harm Employees’ Work Performance?: An Overview (Issue January). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-93351-1_71
Koay, K. Y., Lim, V. K. G., Soh, P. C. H., Ong, D. L. T., Ho, J. S. Y., & Lim, P. K. (2022). Abusive supervision and cyberloafing: A moderated moderation model of moral disengagement and negative reciprocity beliefs. Information and Management, 59(2), 103600. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.im.2022.103600
Saleh, et al. (2018). The effect of cyberloafing on employee productivity. International Journal of ADVANCED AND APPLIED SCIENCES, 5(4), 87–92. https://doi.org/10.21833/ijaas.2018.04.011
Syed, S. (2020). The Impact of Cyberloafing on Employees’ Job Performance: A Review of Literature. Journal of Advances in Management Sciences & Information Systems, 6(November), 16–28. https://doi.org/10.6000/2371-1647.2020.06.02
Varol, F., & Yıldırım, E. (2019). Cyberloafing in Higher Education: Reasons and Suggestions from Students’ Perspectives. Technology, Knowledge and Learning, 24(1), 129–142. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10758-017-9340-1
Yeik, K. K. (2018). Assessing Cyberloafing Behaviour among University Students : A Validation of the Cyberloafing Scale SOCIAL SCIENCES & HUMANITIES Assessing Cyberloafing Behaviour among University Students : A Validation of the Cyberloafing Scale. March.