Singapore

Humour not only just makes for a pleasant addition to a romantic relationship but also acts as a powerful tool to build interest and improve quality, a new study has revealed.

Advertisment

Previous researchers have established that humour is recognised as a significant and desirable factor in any romantic relationship but the new study has specifically focused on how it affects relationships over time.

“My co-authors and I have been investigating humour in relationships, but from a relationship initiation perspective. Typically, humour is seen to precede attraction, where humorous individuals are seen to be more attractive,” said study author Kenneth Tan, an assistant professor of psychology at Singapore Management University.

“However, it could also be the case that when you are attracted to someone, you start finding them humorous (Li et al., 2009). We also heard anecdotally that when you are happy in the relationship, you find your partner funny, even if they are objectively not that funny in the first place. Hence, we wanted to examine the association between humour and relationship quality in the case of established relationships,” he added.

Advertisment

How was the research conducted?

The researchers roped in 108 couples, with an average relationship duration of 18.27 months. They were assessed on a daily basis for seven consecutive evenings. 

Watch: New evidence suggests size of the Sun could be smaller

Advertisment

×

Each day, participants reported their perceptions of humour within their relationships and their levels of relationship satisfaction, commitment, and perceived partner commitment.

They also analysed the link between humour and the quality of relationships over time.

Results

The experts noted that those couples who were more satisfied and committed to the relationship on a particular day found their partners more humourous both on the same day as well as the next.

“On days where you were less satisfied and committed with your relationship, you found your partner less humorous both on the same day as well as the next. On the other hand, we did not find consistent evidence of the reverse. On days where you perceived and initiated more humour, it was not associated with greater commitment the next day, only satisfaction,” said Tan.

Also read: Couples therapist shares 5 secrets to a happy and fulfilling relationship | Exclusive

It was also revealed that men produced more humour in a relationship.

It is to be noted that the research included couples who were studying in college, and it could have varying results if older adults are taken into account.

(With inputs from agencies)