An investigation of worry and sense of humor

To investigate the relationship between worry and sense of humor, the author administered the Worry Domains Questionnaire (WDQ; F. Tallis, M. Eysenck, & A. Matthews, 1992) and the Multidimensional Sense of Humor Scale (MSHS; J. A. Thorson & F. C. Powell, 1993) to 140 undergraduates. Worry was negatively related to sense of humor. Results of a stepwise regression, using the WDQ as the criterion and the MSHS factors as predictors, showed that the humor production factor of the MSHS loaded negatively on Step 1 and the coping with humor factor loaded positively on Step 2. The results are discussed in relation to W. E. Kelly and M. J. Miller's (1999) cognitive model of worry and worry as a coping strategy.