Humor Appreciation, Social Competence, and Self-esteem in Children with Asperger Syndrome

Abstract

This study examined the humor appreciation ability, social competence (peer relations and self-management/compliance), and self-esteem of children with Asperger Syndrome (AS) as compared with typically developing children, which were matched on age and gender. 10 boys and 1 girl, aged 8-12, were recruited for each group. Results showed no significant impairment in humor appreciation for children with AS, and they are comparable to typical ones in comprehending humorous materials. The two groups also differed in their social competence (peer relations and self-management/compliance) significantly. Besides, humor appreciation ability plays an important role of the social competence and self-esteem for AS children but was less to do with typical children. The humor appreciation ability of AS children predicts relatively stronger their peer relations and nonetheless their level of self-esteem. In concluding sections, separate investigations of positive and negative styles of humor, and more specific domains in social competence with AS children were suggested, as different humor styles could predict contrary results, and also predict various social skills quality with different magnitudes.