Incongruity Resolution Research Articles

From Lockdown to Laugh-town: Analyzing Saudi’s Humorous Memes during the COVID-19 Crisis.

This study delves into the realm of humor found in memes that proliferated across various digital platforms in Saudi Arabia in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. These memes emerged as instrumental means of communication, coping, and adaptation throughout the crisis. The research is driven by the objective of categorizing and comprehending the humor in these memes through a qualitative content analysis. The study adopts the incongruity-resolution (IR) framework to scrutinize 150 Saudi memes. The analysis is centered on incongruity-resolution strategies, the interaction between text and image, and contextual elements that contribute to comprehension. The results reveal that Saudi COVID-19 memes predominantly employ seven incongruity-resolution strategies, both with and without image integration. Notably, a substantial portion of the memes (30.5%) defies categorization within any specific IR class and is hence classified as ‘textless memes.’ These memes effectively convey compelling messages without any textual content, relying on shared experiences. The analysis has yielded valuable insights into the diverse methods employed in constructing humor, resolving incongruities, and the significance of contextual information in generating humorous effects. These findings carry implications for cross-cultural communication, digital media, public health communication, and the exploration of humor within crisis situations. Understanding the role of humor in navigating global crises and its evolutionary dynamics is pivotal for achieving effective communication and adaptation within the rapidly transforming digital landscape.

Attentional resource consumption of verbal-humor processing: An ERP study

As a high-demanding mental activity with both cognitive and emotional factors, verbal-humor processing consumes more attentional resources than non-humor processing, which has been demonstrated by behavioral studies, but little has been examined at a real-time scale. Based on the three-stage model (incongruity detection, incongruity resolution, and mirth), the current study used event-related potential (ERP) and event-related oscillation (ERO) to explore the attentional resource consumption of verbal-humor processing by employing a dual-task paradigm in which sentence comprehension (humorous, positive, neutral) was the primary task and arithmetical calculation (simple, difficult) was the secondary task.Participants’ (N=38) behavioral performance and ERP/ERO measures in two tasks were analyzed. ERP results of verbal-humor processing revealed significantly larger LAN, LLAN, and LPP activation, which indexed three stages. ERO results showed significant beta power changes in the detection stage and theta changes in the resolution and mirth stages. The behavioral data indicated that the Reaction Times (RTs) of the arithmetical task following verbal-humor processing were longer than those following non-humorous positive and neutral ones. The ERP results of arithmetical calculation found that the calculations following verbal-humor processing elicited significantly greater P2, P3b, and positive slow wave amplitudes than those following the other two processings, which reflected more resource allocation in the calculation to compensate for the resource preemption of verbal-humor processing. In addition, the calculation following positive sentence exhibited a greater ERP amplitude in the relatively early P2 time intervals than that following the neutral sentences. Collectively, the behavioral, ERP, and ERO results concurrently confirmed that verbal-humor processing consumed more attentional resources compared with non-humorous counterparts, and moreover, the comparison of ERP following humorous and positive sentences suggested that the processing of the cognitive factor consumes more attentional resources than the emotional factor although both factors play a role in the process.

Dynamism of context: A case of joke interpretation

Abstract While the recognition of context as a dynamic construct is pervasive, the process of selecting context during utterance comprehension in real time remains largely unexamined. This paper addresses this issue by exploring the dynamism of context as part of joke interpretation. We assume a relevance-theoretic definition of context understood as a set of mental representations involved in inferential processes that operate on a propositionally incomplete linguistic form and yield a speaker-intended meaning, consisting of the explicit and implicit import. We also adopt a model of joke comprehension combining the standard notion of incongruity resolution with that of weak communication, positing that when the punchline comes there is a broad array of assumptions that suddenly become manifest to the hearer, as a result of which he experiences an effect of inferential overload. This effect hinges on the ability to obtain access to, or to inferentially construct contextual assumptions that were previously not immediately accessible to the hearer or not represented in their cognitive resources at all. By analysing jokes of various structure (with or without a build-up, one-liners) we explore details of the dynamism of context selection and construction, in which the hearer’s encyclopaedic knowledge is essential. We provide arguments in favour of the view of context as an entity dependent on the hearer’s mental representations, inferential abilities and the universal drive to maximize relevance in utterance comprehension.

Cognitive effects of humorous drawings on learning: An eye‐tracking study

AbstractAlthough humor is frequently used in face‐to‐face courses and computer‐based training, there is no consensus in the literature on its effects on students' learning. The aim of the present study was therefore to assess the cognitive effects of adding humorous drawings in a computer‐based course on both learning outcomes and learning behaviors (eye movements). It was assumed that humorous drawings would improve learning through the active resolution of incongruity. To isolate this effect from those of the illustrations, a nonhumorous drawings condition was also compared with the text‐only condition. Eye‐movement data showed that humor increased visiting duration for the drawings. Learning outcomes were not affected by the nonhumorous drawings, whereas humor had a positive effect on comprehension, though not on retention. This effect of humor was not mediated by visiting time for the slides. Our results argue in favor of the use of content‐relevant cartoons to improve students' learning.

Blurred lines or Word crimes? On cognitive linguistic contributions to the study of musical parody by ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic

The paper argues for the multiple advantages of applying cognitive linguistic concepts and frameworks to the study of basic mechanisms and conceptual, pragmatic and social aspects of musical parody a as a polyvalent, flexible, multimodal phenomenon, understood both as a musical genre which revolves around replication or imitation of pre-existing music, and as a comedic statement utilizing the latter technique. Points of convergence, and important differences, between traditional concepts offered by the most influential linguistic theories of humour, viz. Raskin’s (1985) Semantic Script Theory of Humour and Attardo & Raskin’s (1991) General Theory of Verbal Humour, are addressed, with particular emphasis on how the status and treatment of concepts of incongruity and its resolution are accommodated within the interpretative frameworks of frame- shifting (Coulson, 2001) and Blending Theory (Fauconnier & Turner, 2002). Both emerge as useful heuristics offered within the cognitive linguistic paradigm and suggested as applicable to (multimodal) humour research. These are argued to encompass and cater for both the sequential and the (predominately) non-sequential aspects of incongruity resolution (Ritchie, 2009) underlying musical parodies as sources of humorous amusement. Further motivating factors for the development and appreciation of parodies as humorous stimuli, such as the role of (word) play and listener familiarity with the borrowed music are addressed by focusing on the description of the distinctive cognitive-cultural mechanisms and goals underlying the opus of a particular artist, ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic, by applying the abovementioned concepts and interpretative frameworks to the analysis of the techniques and goals behind his use of comedy music.

Using different advertising humor appeals to generate firm-level warmth and competence impressions

An online experiment and a large-scale correlational study show that the effects of a humor appeal in product advertising go beyond consumers’ general attitudes toward the ad and the advertised product. A humor appeal influences consumers’ perceptions of the advertised firms’ competence and warmth. Importantly, the competence and warmth signaling values of humor in advertising vary with the nature of the humor appeal. We specifically find that an incongruity resolution humor appeal enhances consumers’ impressions of the firms’ competence but only when consumers can resolve the incongruity. A tension relief humor appeal enhances consumers’ impressions of the firms’ warmth. Humorous self-disparagement reduces impressions of the firms’ competence, while other-disparagement reduces both warmth and competence firm impressions. We discuss how firms can use humor appeals in their marketing communication to signal their different qualities.

The Relationship between Semantic Joke and Idiom Comprehension in Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Semantic jokes involve resolving an incongruity emerging from wordplay or from a violation of world knowledge. The research has shown individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) demonstrate a lower performance on humor tasks involving social situations; however, less is known about their semantic joke comprehension. This study examines semantic joke comprehension among adolescents with ASD and its possible relationship to vocabulary size, theory of mind (ToM), and idiom comprehension. Thirty-two adolescents with ASD and 32 typically developed (TD) peers participated. Semantic joke comprehension was assessed via a multiple-choice questionnaire and time-limited computer program. Vocabulary, ToM abilities, and idiom comprehension were also tested. The results reveal that adolescents with ASD are as fast in processing semantic jokes as their age- and vocabulary-matched TD peers, but less accurate. Age and idiom comprehension significantly contributed to semantic joke comprehension among both groups. As semantic joke comprehension is based on incongruity resolution, the greater difficulties in comprehension among the adolescents with ASD may have been due to deficits in simultaneously retaining two alternative interpretations and selecting the relevant one (and not due reduced ToM abilities). Similar to the TD group, semantic joke comprehension among the ASD group appeared to be more developed with age.

Associations between personality and humor structure appreciation

The current study investigates the associations between personality and humor structure appreciation. A total of 509 participants completed the Big Five Inventory–2 and the Humor Structure Appreciation Scale. The results showed that, as expected, open-mindedness was associated with a preference for nonsense (NON) over incongruity-resolution (INC-RES) humor, and it was negatively related to the aversiveness scores of NON humor. On the other hand, conscientiousness correlated with a preference for INC-RES over NON humor, and the facet of organization accounted primarily for this relationship. Focusing on the facets of open-mindedness, we found that aesthetic sensitivity and intellectual curiosity were related to preferring jokes with residual incongruities (NON humor) over jokes with a full resolution (INC-RES humor). Finally, we confirmed that extraverted individuals enjoyed humor more of all types, whereas negative emotionality related to generally finding both types of humor as not funny, but there was no significant association between negative emotionality and the total aversiveness score. The results are discussed in relation to previous theoretical accounts and empirical findings, and future avenues for further research are considered.

A Complexity Science Account of Humor

A common assumption of psychological theories of humor is that experienced funniness results from an incongruity between stimuli provided by a verbal joke or visual pun, followed by a sudden, surprising resolution of incongruity. In the perspective of complexity science, this characteristic incongruity-resolution sequence is modeled by a phase transition, where an initial attractor-like script, suggested by the initial joke information, is suddenly destructed, and in the course of resolution replaced by a less probable novel script. The transition from the initial to the enforced final script was modeled as a succession of two attractors with different minimum potentials, during which free energy becomes available to the joke recipient. Hypotheses derived from the model were tested in an empirical study where participants rated the funniness of visual puns. It was found, consistent with the model, that the extent of incongruity and the abruptness of resolution were associated with reported funniness, and with social factors, such as disparagement (Schadenfreude) added to humor responses. The model suggests explanations as to why bistable puns and phase transitions in conventional problem solving, albeit also based on phase transitions, are generally less funny. We proposed that findings from the model can be transferred to decision processes and mental change dynamics in psychotherapy.

Humor Structure Appreciation Scale: Analysis of the psychometric properties of the Czech version

Objectives. The aim of the study was to assess the psychometric properties of a Czech adaptation of the Humor Structure Appreciation Scale (HSAS) which measures appreciation of two structural dimensions of humor: incongruity-resolution (INC-RES), and nonsense (NON). Differences in humor structure appreciation were investigated between a Czech and a Macedonian sample, and measurement invariance was tested.Participants and setting. Two online studies were conducted. After a back-translation of the scale, the first proposal of the Czech version of the HSAS was given to 145 participants from the Czech Republic. In the second study, the HSAS-CZ was completed by a Czech sample of 346 subjects. A measure of the need for closure was also completed to assess construct validity. The Macedonian sample comprised of 562 subjects filled in only the original version of the HSAS.Results. Principal component analysis showed that the sum of variance explained by the two dimensions was 60.8%, and the factor loadings were satisfactory. The second study confirmed the factor structure of the scale. The results of the Confirmatory factor analyses showed that the two-factor model had an acceptable fit (RMSEA = .053 [.034, .072], CFI = .986, TLI = .981). The standardized factor loadings were high for INC-RES (λ = .62 to .79), as well as for NON humor (λ = .57 to 80). Initial construct validity was obtained. The HSAS-CZ scales were theoretically related to the need for closure. The jokes were found funnier by the Macedonian sample in comparison to the Czech by one third to one half standard deviation. Finally, a strict measurement invariance model comparing the Czech and Macedonian versions of the test showed an acceptable fit. However, significant differences were found in factor loadings as well as in residual variances.Limitations. The main limitation of the study is the use of convenience samples.

Eat to the Beat: Musical Incongruity Resolution in Restaurant Advertising

Music is considered as an effective tool in shaping consumers’ responses to advertising. The present study examines the effects of mildly incongruent background music upon consumers’ responses to restaurant advertising. It integrates country of origin and genre congruity of music in a single congruity framework through focusing more closely upon the twin components of congruity (expectancy and relevancy) and examines how various quadrants of musical in/congruity affect consumers’ cognitive responses and behavioral intentions. Between-subjects experiment was conducted to explore participants’ responses to an advertisement promoting a fictitious Italian restaurant. Findings indicate how the deliberate crafting of musical incongruity can be used to engage and amuse consumers, proposing that resolving mild musical incongruity may enhance consumers’ attitude toward advertising, perception of brand image and quality, as well as their purchase intent. The present research develops, refines, and redefines the concept of musical congruity in advertising and offers the first empirical evidence for the positive effects of using purposeful, mildly incongruent music upon consumers’ cognitive responses to advertising as well as their behavioral intentions.

A linguistic and literary analyses study of selected cartoons on the novel Covid-19 pandemic in Nigeria

ABSTRACT The world is currently facing a global pandemic, code-named the Covid-19, which is seriously wrecking a devastating blow on world health care system. Since the first index case was reported in Lagos, Nigeria, in February, 2020, the Federal and State Governments have put measures in place to curtail the spread of the deadly virus in the country. Some of the measures include the constitution of the Presidential Task Force (PTF), provision of isolation and treatment centres for confirmed cases, and the pronouncement of lockdown order by the President and some State Governors. Amidst these measures, cartoonists (artists, or authors in literary context) have taken to the media to creatively present humorous and satirical depictions of the pandemic and social realities in the fight against it. This study, thus, analyses the humorous and satirical depiction of the pandemic, the state of the Nigerian health sector, and the country’s major actors in the fight against the scourge, using selected cartoons from the Nigerian context. These cartoons can be classified as graphic literary texts that can be subjected to different interpretations. The cartoons/texts are selected from the Facebook pages of popular Nigerian cartoonists/authors. A total number of ten (10) cartoons/texts were randomly selected between March and April 2020. The number of cartoons was limited to ten (10) in order to accommodate the rigour of qualitative analysis, which, in turn, informed one of the limitations of the study. This study adopts two (2) models/theories in interpreting the cartoons, which are Suls’s (1983) Incongruity Resolution (IR) model, a linguistic tool of lexicalisation, re-lexicalisation, and shared sociocultural knowledge used to explicate humour and satire in the cartoons, and Structuralism, which requires human behaviour (as represented in texts or cartoons) to be understood in the context of a broad social system (otherwise called structures) in which they exist. This study observed that the cartoons are not just independent texts or images, but that they are products of the Nigerian social condition, and that understanding them requires a level of familiarity with their contexts of production.It also revealed that, as a means of visual communication, the cartoons exposed the realities in the country and refused to be relegated to simply satirical images of issues and events in the country’s history. The analysis showed that cartoons are an important part of the discourse on the pandemic. Equally, the paper revealed that, the cartoonists have deployed both verbal and non-verbal incongruity to present comical images that show beliefs of Nigerians about the pandemic and the level of the country’s preparedness in flattening the curve of the contraction of the virus. Although the paper is concerned with Covid-19 in the Nigerian context, it is limited to the linguistic and literary analysis of the pandemic in selected cartoons.

The RK processor: A program for analysing metaphor and word feature-listingdata.

Feature-listing tasks are an invaluable resource for exploring how words, categories, and metaphors are represented. However, manually coding the generated features is time-consuming and expensive, and involves subjective judgments from the experimenter. The purpose of this paper is to introduce the "RK processor", a program that was developed in our lab to analyse metaphor feature data but which can also be applied to other feature-listing data. After detailing the steps of processing, we demonstrate that the processed feature data align with previous findings in which metaphor features were processed manually and that the processed features predict dimensions of metaphor judgments pertaining to comprehensibility and metaphor goodness. Lastly, we present several other applications for research on word similarity, compound words, categories and concepts, semantic ambiguity, incongruity resolution and computational modelling. The RK processor offers researchers a valuable tool to save time and resources and to maintain consistency in processing.

A Linguistic and Literary Analyses of Selected Cartoons on the Novel COVID-19 Pandemic in Nigeria

The world is currently facing a global pandemic, named COVID-19, which is seriously wreaking a devastating blow on the world healthcare system. Since the first index case was reported in Lagos, Nigeria, in February, the federal and state governments have put measures in place to curtail the spread of the virus in the country. Some of the measures include the constitution of the presidential task force (PTF), provision of isolation and treatment centres for confirmed cases, and pronouncement of lockdown order by the president and some state governors. Amidst these measures, cartoonists (artists, or authors in literary context) have taken to the media to creatively present humorous and satirical depictions of the pandemic and social realities in the fight against it. This study thus analyses the humorous and satirical depiction of the pandemic in the Nigerian context using selected cartoons. These cartoons can be classified as graphic literary texts that can be subjected to different interpretations. The cartoons/texts are selected from the Facebook pages of popular Nigerian cartoonists/authors. A total of 10 cartoons/texts were randomly selected between March and April 2020. The study adopts two models/theories in interpreting the cartoons: Suls's incongruity resolution (IR) model operationalizes linguistic tool of lexicalization, re-lexicalisation, and shared sociocultural knowledge to explicate humour and satire in the cartoons, and Structuralism, which requires human behaviour (as represented in texts or cartoons) to be understood in the context of a broad social system (otherwise called structures) in which they exist. The study observed that the cartoons are not just independent texts or images but that they are products of the Nigerian social condition. It equally revealed that the cartoonists have deployed verbal and non-verbal incongruity to present comical images that show beliefs of Nigerians about the pandemic and the level of the country's preparedness in flattening the curve of the contraction of the virus.

Involvement of the Right Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex in Numerical Rule Induction: A Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation Study.

Numerical inductive reasoning has been considered as one of the most important higher cognitive functions of the human brain. Importantly, previous behavioral studies have consistently reported that one critical component of numerical inductive reasoning is checking, which often occurs when a discrepant element is discovered, and reprocessing is needed to determine whether the discrepancy is an error of the original series. However, less is known about the neural mechanism underlying the checking process. Given that the checking effect involves cognitive control processes, such as the incongruent resolution, that are linked to the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), this study hypothesizes that the right DLPFC may play a specific role in the checking process. To test the hypothesis, this study utilized the transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), a non-invasive brain stimulation method that could modulate cortical excitability, and examined whether and how the stimulation of the right DLPFC via tDCS could modulate the checking effect during a number-series completion problem task. Ninety healthy participants were allocated to one of the anodal, cathodal, and sham groups. Subjects were required to verify whether number sequences formed rule-based series, and checking effect was assessed by the difference in performance between invalid and valid conditions. It was found that significantly longer response times (RTs) were exhibited in invalid condition compared with valid condition in groups of anodal, cathodal, and sham tDCS. Furthermore, the anodal tDCS significantly shortened the checking effect than those of the cathodal and sham groups, whereas no significantly prolonged checking effect was detected in the cathodal group. The current findings indicated that anodal tDCS affected the process of checking, which suggested that the right DLPFC might play a critical role in the checking process of numerical inductive reasoning by inhibiting incongruent response.

Does Conceptual Integration Theory Possess the Cognitive Toolkit to Explain the Comic? Building Bridges Between Diverse fFelds of Linguistics in Respect of the English Humour

In this paper, I would like to display the workings of the mechanism of conceptual integration theory (CIT for short), aka blending, as envisaged by Fauconnier and Turner (1998 & 2002). I wish to demonstrate that blending is a potential candidate for a humour theory. On the basis of a few chosen examples of English humour, specifically a joke, a cartoon and a scene from a sitcom, I hope to prove that CIT possesses a toolkit for an in-detailed analysis of any humour type. Further, I wish to argue that some examples of comedy may require the cognitive procedure of frame-shifting alongside CIT, in order to account for the funniness in a systematic way. Frame-shifting is a term proposed by Seana Coulson to be used in joke analysis (Coulson 2017). I would like to point to the fact that it may boost CIT in humour explanation. Yet it needs to be stressed that frame-shifting on its own canntot explain humour. It ought to be regarded as a parameter to be included within CIT. Futher, it is especially important to verify whether or not frame-shifting is always obligatory when studying comedy. Certainly, it is valid for shorter pieces of discourse, but its presence may not be required for all the other types of humour. The paper aims to refer to this issue in conclusive remarks, following the analyss of the comic. Additionally, I would like to demonstrate that blending can function as a higher-order theoretical paradigm which explicates humour origin and which interlinks with other well-established processes involved in any comic study, e.g. incongruity perception and/or resolution. I put forward that CIT is capable of complementing incongruity resolution theories in its power to explain the source of the comic. What is more, I would like to postulate that in its power to throw light on the humour source and origin, CIT may be assigned the status of a cognitive tool with which to explicate humour.

Expectations matter: Evaluation of brand’s pro-environmental initiatives based on consumers’ brand schemas and brand familiarity

ABSTRACTThis manuscript focuses on how consumers evaluate a brand’s pro-environmental messages, its pro-environmental initiatives, and the brand itself as the effect of consumers’ schema-congruity and their ability to resolve incongruity. The study uses brands both familiar and unfamiliar to participants. An online experiment was conducted using 402 respondents. Findings indicated that consumers’ perceived message persuasiveness, their trust toward the brand’s pro-environmental initiatives, brand affect, attitude toward the brand, and eventually their behavioral intention were most favorable for congruent messages, followed by when incongruity was resolved and least when incongruity was not resolved. These findings were applicable to both familiar and unfamiliar brands. In addition, consumers’ attitude toward the brand before and after message exposure were different, with change being most positive for incongruity resolution for unfamiliar brands and least for incongruity nonresolution for familiar brands. The findings are important for established apparel brands that suffer from negative reputations but are willing to revitalize their images, and for new ventures who want to establish their image as pro-environmental. In addition, the findings contribute and extend theory by identifying a boundary condition for the schema-congruity theory.

Impairments of humour comprehension in multiple sclerosis

BackgroundSociocognition is an important field of neuropsychology involving human interactions. In relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis, it was recently demonstrated that sociocognition is severely and precociously impaired. Among sociocognitive abilities, humour has not yet been considered in this disease despite its important social functions, including during doctor-patient communication. Its main functions are to reduce stress when interactions become strained and to convey difficult messages in a gentle form. Thus, the inability to perceive this second degree of language is likely to generate a major social handicap. As humour is a higher cognitive process, its assessment requires the control of lower levels according to a serial model. MethodsThe present humour comprehension protocol, based on a serial cognitive model, consisted of a first incongruity detection step (normality identification task) and a second incongruity resolution step (funniness identification task). This protocol was administered using both verbal and visual material (stories and cartoons). For each type of material, the participant had to decide which of three proposed endings was normal (normality identification) and which was funny (funniness identification).A group of 21 relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis patients was compared to a control group of 38 healthy participants. In view of the severe impairment demonstrated for MS patients in other sociocognitive abilities, we predicted a deficit of humour comprehension in these patients in comparison with healthy participants. In reference to the serial model of humour, and considering the variability of MS lesions, our main goal was to test the hypothesis of a primary deficit in incongruity resolution (selective to funniness identification) in some MS patients whereas others may suffer a non-specific comprehension impairment (affecting both normality and funniness identification). ResultsGroup analyses (non-parametric tests, Mann-Whitney) revealed lower scores for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis patients compared to controls for the visual tasks (normality and funniness). No significant difference was found in the verbal tasks. At the individual level, 62% of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis patients showed impairment compared to controls for the funniness tasks. Moreover, 38% presented a selective deficit in the funniness tasks. ConclusionThese preliminary results suggest that a high proportion of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis patients may be impaired in humour comprehension, some as a primary deficit and others as a secondary deficit to more general comprehension difficulties. On a theoretical level, the dissociations obtained between verbal and visual material do not support an amodal humour comprehension model.

Anodal transcranial direct current stimulation of MPFC enhances humor processing

ABSTRACTThe purpose of this study was to investigate whether the comprehension of a specific type of humorous situation requires the involvement of brain regions associated to mentalization or Theory of Mind processing and if the electrical stimulation of these areas would facilitate the comprehension of humor. To this aim, we analyzed the effects of tDCS stimulation on the MPFC and rTPJ during the presentation of humorous and non-humorous comic strips. In particular, the stimulus set included strips containing humorous scenes that required ToM abilities in order to be comprehended (Humorous ToM), non-ToM humorous strips (Humorous non-ToM), non-humorous strips which were semantically coherent but not funny (Congruent), and non-humorous strips which were semantically incoherent (Incongruent). Results suggest that the MPFC appears to be involved in both humor processing and in the incongruity resolution process: MPFC stimulation improved the ability to identify a non-humorous incongruent element and to recognize the humorous element of the scene. On the other hand, RTPJ activity doesn’t seem to be specifically involved in humorous processing network and appears to be more related to the ability to understand the cognitive element of a social context.

Dynamics of impaired humour processing in schizophrenia – An EEG effective connectivity study

Specific language and communication abilities, such as humour comprehension, are commonly impaired in schizophrenia. The present study investigates the dynamics of the humour-related neural network underlying this deficit. Specifically, we focused on the abnormalities of information flow in schizophrenia within the fronto-temporo-parietal circuit. We estimated the direction and strength of cortical information flow in the time course of humour processing by the EEG Directed Transfer Function. The study included 40 schizophrenia outpatients and 40 healthy controls (age-sex-education matched) assessed with an EEG punchline-based humour comprehension task (written and cartoon jokes). The linear mixed models procedure was used to test group effects across three processes: 1. incongruity detection, 2. incongruity resolution and elaboration, 3. complete humour processing. Conjunction maps for both types of jokes were created to investigate fundamental between-group differences, beyond the context of modality. Clinical subjects indicated a lower level of understanding of the funny punchlines, indicated absurd punchlines as more understandable and gave higher funniness ratings to both absurd and neutral punchlines. The EEG effective connectivity results revealed that humour processing in schizophrenia engages alternative circuits, exhibiting a pronounced abnormal leftward shifted lateralization related to diminished activity of the right hemisphere in fronto-temporo-parietal regions. In conclusion, the present paper presents the dynamics of cortical propagation of information in the humour-related circuit as a neural substrate of humour impairment in schizophrenia.