Humor and A1C: the interaction between humor and diabetes control

Abstract There is increasing evidence of specific medical and psychological benefits associated with humor within diabetes populations. The benefits of maintaining good diabetes control are also well established. The more general relationship between humor and diabetes control however remains unexplored. The purpose of this study was to examine if there was a difference between people with diabetes with an A1C ≤ 6.99% versus those ≥7.0% on four disparate types of humor. The sample consisted of 284 participants, 65.5% with type 1 diabetes, 68.3% female, 89.1% Caucasian, and 68.7% college educated. Participants completed the Humor Styles Questionnaire (HSQ) and were divided into two groups, A1C ≤ 6.99% and A1C ≥ 7.0%. The A1C ≤ 6.99% group scored significantly higher on both types of positive humor, affiliative humor (P < 0.01) and self-enhancing humor (P < 0.05). There was no significant difference between participants on either type of negative humor, aggressive humor (P > 0.05) or self-defeating humor (P > 0.05). Results indicate that good control (A1C ≤ 6.99%) is associated with positive humor. These findings provide evidence that there is an association between American Diabetes Association recommended levels of control and positive humor styles. Implications regarding positive humor and good diabetes control are discussed.