Managing with Humor - A Novel Approach to Building Positive Employee Emotions and Psychological Resources

This book focuses on an emerging area of study in management: managerial humor and its impact on employees' outcomes. Drawing from theoretical work that advocates humor as a managerial tool and building on existing theory and documented evidence on humor, the book explores how managers can use humor to positively affect employees' short-term emotional states and long-term psychological resources at work, and thus reduce the likelihood of their leaving the organization. 

First, the book develops a theoretical framework for humor events at work and provides evidence-based findings on employees' humor behavior within actual work contexts. Second, it explores how humor can be used to positively impact employees' emotional states at work. In doing so, the book takes a multidisciplinary approach to humor by integrating theory and findings from the emotions literature, Positive Organizational Behavior, and Broaden and Build Theory into the humor literature. 

The book sheds new light on the consequences of managers' use of humor for employees. It provides practical guidelines on how managers can use humor as an effective tool at work to bring about desired employee outcomes.

Nilupama Wijewardena is a Research Fellow in the Department of Management, Monash University, Australia. Her research interests include humor, emotions in work life, and creating positive work environments.

Ramanie Samaratunge is an Associate Professor at the Monash Business School, Monash University, Australia. She is an internationally renowned management scholar with 30 years of experience working in the public and private sector, including consultancies in Australia and Asia. Her research interests include international management, international public policy and management, cross-cultural management, CSR, entrepreneurship and immigrants in Australia.

Charmine Härtel is Chair of Occupational Health and Work Psychology at the University of Queensland Business School, Australia. She is a leading expert in the areas of work-related emotions and wellbeing, workforce diversity and inclusion, HRM innovation, and health and safety.