The relationship between sense of humor and teamwork-management styles of business managers

Managers from a Fortune 500 company completed two measurement instruments to determine if sense of humor was significantly related to their teamwork-management style. The two instruments used were the Situational Humor Response Questionnaire and the Styles of Teamwork Inventory. In addition, selected demographic information was collected and analyzed to determine if any of the demographic variables were significantly related to sense of humor or teamwork-management style.;Recommendations of the study include the following: (1) In the business world, managers do not need to be concerned with sense of humor as it relates to teamwork-management style. In the classroom, business educators preparing managers for the business world do not need to be concerned with sense of humor as it relates to teamwork-management style; (2) Training and education need to be stressed in companies because managers with less education tend to be less concerned with task quality and less concerned with teamwork than managers with more education and training.;Further research should be conducted, keeping the following points in mind: (1) Smaller dimensions of sense of humor, such as joking and creativity, need to be examined to better understand their effects on the workplace; (2) Smaller dimensions of teamwork-management style, such as problem solving and leadership, need to be examined to better understand their effects on the workplace; and (3) Use of different sense-of-humor and teamwork-management style measurement instruments may result in a significant relationship between sense of humor and teamwork-management style.;Little information is known regarding humor's effect on teamwork-management style and other important leadership dimensions. Continued research on the role of humor in a company may provide valuable insight into a manager's ability to motivate team members and to help a company maximize its resources. This continued research on humor will also be helpful to teachers preparing managers for the business world.;Findings indicated that sense of humor was not significantly related to teamwork-management style. None of the selected demographic variables were significantly related to sense of humor. However, tenure in position and level of education were significantly correlated to two of the teamwork-management styles.