Humor as a Facilitator of Insight Problem Solving

Humor can improve a performance of creative problem solving; this phenomenon was repeatedly demonstrated in various studies. However, mechanisms underlying this phenomenon are still unclear. We analyze the possible mechanisms of how humor facilitates creative problem solving. The experiment demonstrates that preliminary humor production facilitates insight problem solving. There is no such an effect in noninsight problems. Humor and stress relief similarly facilitate visual insight problem solving. We suggest that facilitation effect of humor and stress relief is based on the attentional mechanisms of defocusing.