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Risky Business: Humour, Hierarchy, and Harmony in New Zealand and South Korean Workplaces

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The Palgrave Handbook of Humour Research

Abstract

This chapter illustrates some of the complexities of workplace humour through comparing two different cultural contexts. Our ethnographic research approach across two separate studies has garnered nuanced humour examples from New Zealand (Western) and South Korean (Eastern) workplaces. In particular, we analyse humour observations where the humour provides insights to contrasting cultural assumptions related to hierarchical organisational relationships. Although the use of humour seems to serve some similar roles in both New Zealand and South Korean organisations, our analysis suggests that harmony is maintained differently depending on the organisational context. We argue that hierarchy has a significant impact on humour interactions and defines who can, or cannot, be funny at work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Auckland Business School, Auckland, New Zealand

    Barbara Plester

  2. Maeji School of Business, Yonsei University, Gangwon-do, Republic of Korea

    Heesun Kim

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  1. Barbara Plester
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  2. Heesun Kim
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Correspondence to Barbara Plester .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Global Institute for Transcultural Research, Römerberg, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany

    Elisabeth Vanderheiden

  2. Department of Industrial Psychology and People Management, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa

    Claude-Hélène Mayer

  3. Kulturwissenschaftliche Fakultät, Europa Universität Viadrina, Frankfurt (Oder), Germany

    Claude-Hélène Mayer

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Plester, B., Kim, H. (2021). Risky Business: Humour, Hierarchy, and Harmony in New Zealand and South Korean Workplaces. In: Vanderheiden, E., Mayer, CH. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Humour Research. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-78280-1_13

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