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The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science
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Toward a Sense of Organizational Humor: Implications for Organizational Diagnosis and Change

William A. Kahn

School of Management at Boston University, 621 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215.

This article focuses on the use of humor as a tool for organizational diagnosis and change. The guiding assumption is that humor is a means for organization members to make statements, consciously or unconsciously, about themselves, their relationships, their groups, and their organizations-statements that may be more difficult to make and to hear in other ways. Examples from the author's and others' experiences and from secondary sources are presented to explore the processes by which organization members use humor. The author discusses ways of interpreting the data couched in humorous messages and incidents, presenting five primary functions that humor serves for individuals and groups. These functions are linked by a theoretical framework underlying the use of humor in the diagnostic process. The author also offers some thoughts on using humor sparingly and carefully in the process of creating organizational change.

The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, Vol. 25, No. 1, 45-63 (1989)
DOI: 10.1177/0021886389251004
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