Making Others Laugh is the Best Medicine: Humor Orientation, Health Outcomes, and the Moderating Role of Cognitive Flexibility: Health Communication: Vol 36, No 4 (tandfonline.com)

Humor orientation is related to numerous prosocial outcomes. This study examined the relationships between humor orientation and mental well-being, loneliness, headaches, and sleep disturbances. We also tested cognitive flexibility as a moderator of these associations among (N = 406) young adults. The results showed that humor orientation was associated with increased mental well-being, lower levels of loneliness, and less headaches. The direct effect from humor orientation to sleep disturbances was not significant. The interaction effects between humor orientation and cognitive flexibility on all four health outcome variables were significant. The implications of the results are discussed in detail.