Abstract
This study examines the impact of introducing humor passages under three levels of social density and two levels of spatial density. Results demonstrated that having subjects listen to humor effectively elevates mood levels under these experimental conditions. Compared to their counterparts under no humor conditions, subjects listening to humor passages felt more vigorous and less fatigued, experienced less irritation and annoyance, and reported greater involvement and interest in these sessions. Of particular note is the finding that the high spatial density environment produced a considerable enhancement in subjects' enjoyment of the humor. As expected, the combination of high social and high spatial density resulted in the greatest self-reported discomfort and stress. The presence of larger numbers of people resulted in higher levels of stress-related arousal (as measured by subjects' skin conductance levels), but high spatial density conditions produced the greatest number of negative consequences. Interestingly, female subjects under the close physical proximity conditions reported feeling less self-centered, less anxious, less regretful, and generally felt more positive toward other members of their group.