Caleb Warren (What Makes Things Funny)

Danielle Krage interviews Caleb Warren, Associate Professor of Marketing at the University of Arizona. Caleb researches and writes about what makes things funny, what makes things cool, and what helps people reach their goals. In this conversation, Caleb shares some of his key findings about humour and how it works.

 

 

00:00 Introduction to Consumer Psychology and Humour

01:20 How Caleb Got into the Study of Humour

04:01 Physical Comedy and Empathy

06:00 Psychological Distance and Humour

07:27 The Role of Absurdity in Comedy

08:21 Psychological Distance and Animation

09:08 The Difference Between Comedy and Serious Settings

09:39 The Flawed Theory of Surprise in Humour

10:40 The Relationship Between Surprise and Humour

11:36 The Benign Violation Experiment

13:19 The Difference Between Humour and Coolness

14:18 Coolness as a Positive Deviation from the Norm

15:10 How Coolness and Humour Overlap

16:00 The Importance of Autonomy and Enjoyment in Goal Pursuit

18:27 The Importance of Product in Marketing

19:54 The Role of Humour in Marketing

20:20 The Benefits of Humour in Enjoyment and Happiness

21:46 How Humour Translates and Changes with Distance

22:44 How Sense of Humour Changes with Age

23:46 The Evolution of Humour and Cultural Norms

26:56 Research on Coolness Across Different Cultures

28:57 The Personality Traits of Cool People

30:06 The Role of Effort in Coolness and Status

32:27 The Tension Between Marketing and Coolness

35:23 The Importance of Being Good vs. Being Cool

36:54 Caleb's Band and Songwriting

 

You can find Caleb here:

Research website: https://www.calebwarrenresearch.com/
TedX talks:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jxh-ispLUmA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Z7hkfkCEno
Band website: https://bandoftownies.com/

 

You can find the transcript at:

https://comedymasterclass.com

 

And Danielle’s socials here:

https://twitter.com/daniellekrage

https://www.instagram.com/dekrage

https://bsky.app/profile/daniellekrage.bsky.social