Psychology of Stand-Up Comedy: Analytical Essay

Comedy is an underrated part of our lives. One often needs a bit of comedy just to get through the day. One tries to find this comedy in the form of the movies one watches, the things one observes and even the people one chooses to befriend. When we meet someone who appreciates our sense of humor we tend to find reasons to spend time with them because for scarce intervals of time it gives us a feeling that we belong and during those brief intervals we forget where our troubles lie. Therefore, a person who can see the comic beauty in the world around him gains an immeasurable social advantage (Fisher and Fisher, 1981). Once an individual realizes the humor in his misery, there is nothing that can dampen his mood and in turn that makes him a beacon of hope and a source of pleasure to others. A person who does Stand-Up comedy professionally, therefore, might often be considered a refreshing personality.

The psychology of a human being is complex, however, it is a result of the environment and the circumstances one grows up in. Therefore, those circumstances can be analyzed to understand which factors are the most affective in the development of a comic personality. The most significant tend to be an individual’s economic background, one’s personality type and most significantly one’s level of intelligence. Another aspect of Stand-Up comedy is that not only does the person have to write the joke but he also has to appear in front of a crowd and deliver it to perfection (Greengross, 2013). For most people just getting on stage is a major issue which filters out a lot of people who do not have a strong enough desire to pursue this career choice while others find a way to adjust. A famous comedian Seinfeld statistically addressed this issue, he said: 'According to most studies, people's Number 1 fear is public speaking. Number 2 is death. Death is Number 2. This means, to the average person, if you go to a funeral, you're better off in the casket than doing the eulogy.'(Mullinger, 2018, 10).

Theory:-

The initial hypothesis of this study would be that some factors from an individual’s childhood are more influential in determining their career paths than the others. Since, for a comic, it is stated that misery and the ability to view it from alternating perspective is a key factor therefore the first determinant to be analyzed would be the comedian’s economic backgrounds (Janus, 1975). The comedian’s in the study would be considered eligible only if they have been performing on the major media platforms for more than five years and are earning per appearance more than the average salary of a person in show business in America. Among these selected individual’s if the majority are from weak socio-economic backgrounds this would prove our hypothesis correct.

The second hypothesis would be that the personality traits are defining in one’s choice and then success in the field of Stand-Up comedy. It is hypothesized that due to cognitive disorganization and impulsive non-conformity found among these individuals they often find themselves having unusual experiences and in uncomfortable situations which makes for humorous material. Moreover, it is a general conceptualization that Stand-Up comedians are always extrovert personality types. This might be misconception as introvert personality types seem to often have an advantage in this field. Both these hypothesis will be tested among selected groups of comedians using questionnaires.

The most significant hypothesis of this study would be that, generally, Stand-Up comedians have a remarkably higher IQ than the average person. Comic jokes and funny anecdotes might be relatively easy for some people to come up with in daily life while they are engaged in conversation. However, for a live show people have bought tickets, travelled from their homes and are then seated, often tired, waiting for a person to appear on the stage and make them laugh by the mere words that he utters. Therefore, the comedian who is oing to travel around the world and has to entertain millions of people, needs to have generic content which would be relatable for most people that attend. This would require an understanding of the culture, the ongoing trends, the taboos of the society and most importantly an in depth understanding of the human brain and what makes it tick. Thus, an individual who would succeed in comprehending all of the aforementioned things would need to have a certain level of intellect which is above the general population. This was tested by compiling the IQ tests of the top comedians of one era and examining them.

Findings:-

Considering the most sought after comedians of the 21st century it can be observed that, in contrast to several other professions, a vast majority of them are from underdeveloped countries and it is not by chance. A study was conducted to test this hypothesis. A group 55 comedians all of whom were known on the national level and had been in the business for at least 10 years were considered. Out of the sample that was researched 85 percent were from lower-class socio economic backgrounds, 10 percent were from middle class homes and the remaining 5 percent were from upper and upper middle class homes (Janus, 1975). One reason would be that individuals who grow up in underdeveloped countries typically face issues in their lives which are quite bigger in magnitude than the challenges faced by children of the same age in developed countries. These people tend to have dealt issues like poverty, deadly diseases, inadequate living conditions and a general lack of resources. In comparison, when they are faced with problems from a first world country they tend to automatically find them laughable. Moreover, once they believe that the old problems are now gone they also find ways to portray them comically and the audience, believing those circumstances are exaggerated, find such jokes hilarious.

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The other significant trait for a comedian is the type of his personality. Different comedian have a range of contrasting personalities, however, there are some factors of similarity that influence their career choice, although some might argue that they have more similarities with schizophrenia patients than they do with each other. A study was conducted among a group of comedians in comparison to a group of actors and a group of people who had non-creative jobs. The merits of the questionnaire were unusual experiences, cognitive disorganization, introversive anhedonia and impulsive non-conformity, and the group of comedians scored significantly higher in all four of the psychotic personality traits (Kellend, 2014). Another study compared the significant personality traits among comedians and actor and in that study as well, surprisingly, comedians score very low on extraversion even though a career Stand Up comedy requires one to stand on a stage and perform live in front of thousands of people (Greengross& Miller, 2009). Even though their performance requires a certain level of extraversion, the jokes they write are often best done by keen examinations of their surroundings which is something that would give an introverted personality type an advantage. Moreover, Stand Up comedians also tend to be low on conscientiousness since an integral part of the humor that they have to deliver is the calm flow and a hint of clumsiness to which the audience can relate. If the comedian can portray a graceful presence on stage the audience involuntarily feels a connection with his struggles which makes it easier to captivate the audience and then blind-side them with a hilarious anecdote.

As human beings we are typically aware of the significance of a sharp mind. For this reason we spend years acquiring knowledge and learning to solve complex problems so that we can enhance our thinking capacities. A universal standard that is often used to measure our intelligence is called the Intelligence Quotient (IQ). In most career paths having a high IQ gives one an advantage, however, it is not a necessity. Contrastingly, for a career in Stand Up comedy it seems to be. According to Janus (1975) the average IQ of human beings is between 90 and 100, however, the average IQ of a Stand Up comedian is approximately 138. Which is significantly above the average human. This signifies the level of intelligence that is required in order to pursue this career choice. The reason for this is that there is a complete journey of a joke which is then delivered to the audience. After a joke is constructed its merits have to be tested and just because the comedian finds the joke funny does not mean the audience will as well. The same joke has different connotations among different audiences in different parts of the world. Moreover, the joke has to be clever enough that the audience feels pride in comprehending it but also simple enough that they are able to. In order to understand the audience’s overall caliber a high level of social interaction and intelligence is required. Additionally, the comedian has to be cautious that when a sensitive topic is addressed, it is done in a way that would not offend the audience even if it goes against their belief system. An example is Eddie Izzard’s line:'If God had written the Bible, the first line should have been 'It's round.''(Mullinger, 2018, 23). He addresses two sensitive topics in a humorous style.

Discussion:-

An example of a comedian from weak socio-economic background would be a famous comedian of today, Trevor Noah, who efficiently addresses the magnanimity of the hurdles he faced in his childhood in his book “Born a Crime”. Born, in the South African apartheid-era, a poor mixed-race child grew up without a father with a constant fear of being murdered, kidnapped or even executed by his own country’s government, the author learned how to adapt and to make the most of his experiences. Growing up he saw the transparency of his country’s government, the savagery of the people around him and the means people resort to at their low points in life. Due to this he was able to predict the upcoming presidency in the United States in 2016 and criticize it from a satirical point of view which made the general audience see the humor in a time of tension to such an extent that he was awarded a regular night time comic show on a prime time television network (Armstrong, 2018).

If one was to take a representative of the highly intellectual comedians one famous individual that comes to mind would be Dr. Ken Jeong. Famous for his roles some movies like “The Hangover” and “Ride Along” this person is praised by people around the world. Since he has a doctorate, while practicing as a physician he used to do comedy bits on the side and due to his high intellect he succeeded very quickly which earned him the title: 'The Funniest Doctor in America.'. It was not chance that carried Ken Jeong to success as even before he moved to Los Angeles his medical school counselor said to him: 'You will be a great doctor because you are a great comedian, and you will be a great comedian because you are a great doctor.' (“Ken Jeong”, 2014).This shows the extent to which high intellect and a successful career in comedy are co-related.

Additionally the life of a comedian is typically not very glamorous especially compared to the other artists. There are no unions available to protect or sponsor comedians nor any proper education systems unlike the resources available to musicians and actors. They also do not have any awards or publication setting like the Grammys or Oscars (Janus, 1975). In order to become known in the business they have to find their own way and then develop their publicity, reputations and career themselves by travelling the whole year round from one comedy club to the next. Converting this career into a glamorous one requires an indefinite perception and acuity to find the best opportunities and make the most of them. This is why individuals who actually enjoy the process of constructing the joke tend to stay in the business while the ones in the hunt for glory usually drop out. Intelligence plays a key aspect in the realization of when the time is to keep trying and when the time is to stop.

Conclusion:-

In summation, the three influential factors which cause one to pursue and succeed at Stand-Up comedy are one’s socio economic background, their personality traits and their intellect. As proved by the findings it can be seen that one’s socio economic background is a key influencer for pursuing this career choice while the personality traits and the intellect are more significant in terms of the success to be achieved. However, it was also shown that some personality traits and the effect of the socio-economic background seem to be inter-connected to some extent especially in terms of unusual experiences. A person’s psychology is deeply affected by the people one meets and the circumstances one encounters. It depends on the person himself on how he chooses to channel it. Individuals tend to be better off if they have nothing to lose and are motivated by the do or die process, whereby, quitting is not an option. Observing statistically, although the chances of being successful in this field are thin, individuals which have a combination of these characteristics tend to have a slight advantage. Also, since, Stand Up comedy is more common in developed countries, an approach that most individuals tend to follow is to move to such countries and then keep touring while working on the side, which for them in some cases might be better than being back home.