Gender and the Punchline: Humour Types in Stand-Up Performance

Abstract

Despite extensive research on humour and gender, limited studies have systematically compared the diversity and distribution of humour types across male and female stand-up comedians. Consequently, it remains unclear whether and how gender influences the selection and variation of humour types in contemporary stand-up comedy discourse. This study addresses this gap by examining gender differences in the use of humour types in stand-up comedy. The analysis is grounded in a conceptual framework synthesising 22 humour types identified in the literature, including anecdotal comedy, dark comedy, observational comedy, satire, and self-deprecating humour. Adopting a qualitative approach with purposive sampling, the data consist of the first 30 minutes of two American stand-up performances: A Speck of Dust (2017) by Sarah Silverman and Louis C.K: 2017 (2017) by Louis C.K. Both performers are established American comedians representing different genders. Importantly, the video recordings sourced from YouTube provide observable audience responses, particularly laughter, which serve as indicators for identifying humour occurrences. Content analysis of utterances reveals notable gender-based variation in humour production. The female comedian demonstrates a wider range of humour types, employing 12 different types across 27 humorous utterances, compared to the male comedian, who employs only 6 humour types across 23 humorous utterances. Anecdotal comedy predominates in the female performance, while dark comedy is most prominent in the male performance. These findings suggest that gender may influence not only the frequency but also the diversity and thematic orientation of humour in stand-up comedy discourse.

Keywords: humour types, gender differences, stand-up comedy, cultural values