Teachers\u27 perceptions of the use of humor as an intervention with students exhibiting behavior and/or academic problems

The primary purpose of this study was to examine teachers\u27 perceptions about their use of humor as an intervention with students exhibiting behavior and/or academic problems in their classroom. The primary focus of the study was the frequency with which teachers perceived they used humor as an intervention. These perceptions were measured by the Humor Intervention Questionnaire (HIQ) and a Humorous Incident Report (HIR). Information from 161 regular education teachers and 235 special education teachers was gathered using the HIQ, while 261 regular and special education teachers returned a completed HIR. The information from the HIQ was used to describe teachers\u27 perceptions about the use of humor as an intervention, their personal use of humor in this manner, and the frequency with which they employ humor for this purpose. This information was also used to compare perceptions between the regular education and the special education teachers. The information from the HIR was used to categorize different patterns of humor used as an intervention, different interventions described, and the problems which were intervened within the descriptions. Findings of the study suggest teachers do perceive humor as an intervention when dealing with students exhibiting behavior and/or academic problems. Differences were found between the two teacher groups concerning the frequency with which they used humor for this purpose. Special education teachers reported more frequent use of humor as an overall intervention and as an academic intervention, while regular education teachers reported more frequent use of intentional humor. The study also found four patterns of humor described as an intervention in the HIR. Three categories of behavior interventions were identified, while five categories of academic interventions were found. Problems which were intervened within the HIR were categorized for behavior and academic interventions. It appeared the intervention category, behavior or academic, could be used to categorize the type of problem being exhibited by the student