Humor, marital typology and expectations in new marriages

This research investigates the use of humor regarding expectation negotiation among newlywed individuals, paying particular attention to differences between gender and marital typology. Newlyweds were surveyed to determine the relationship between gender, conflict avoidance, humor use and marital typology regarding expectation negotiation. Results indicate that the use of humor to negotiate expectations in new marriages does differ across both gender and marital typology. Overall, the findings provide additional evidence as to the challenges of the newlywed period. Many of the characteristics of this important stage are observed in this study, however it is clear that our understanding of the newlywed period is not yet exhaustive.