Health Message Outcomes of Humor Appeals: A Systematic Review

To address inconclusive prior research, we conduct a comprehensive evaluation and systematic review of humor appeals’ usefulness in health communication on message processing, attitudinal, and behavioral outcomes. Specifically, we investigate previously examined boundary conditions and intervening processes. Following PRISMA guidelines, this systematic review examines the state of knowledge based on 48 eligible articles presenting 62 experimental studies that manipulate humorous message appeals. We find that humor appeals influence attitudinal and behavioral message outcomes but caution against their use with certain audiences (e.g., youth and parents), severe or high-risk health conditions, or conditions that affect vulnerable populations. In addition, fear arousal, anxiety, argument strength, and reactance intervene in humor appeals’ relationships with message processing and persuasion outcomes in health communication campaigns. Findings identify some advantages of humor appeals for public health message design strategies. First, humor appeals appear particularly useful among audiences who lack the motivation or ability to process health messages. Second, humor appeals help defuse emotional distress related to health conditions or treatments.