Examining the Relationship between the Sense of Humor and the Social Exclusion Perceived by Gifted and Talented Students

Abstract

This research aimed to establish the relationship between the social exclusion perceived by gifted and talented students and their sense of humor. Besides, the goal was to evaluate the relationship between the variables of the use of humor, the process of coping through a sense of humor, and the appreciating humor in cases of ignoring and avoiding during social exclusion. A relational screening model was used in the research. Among the research variables included in the model, social exclusion (ostracism) is considered as a dependent variable, while the sense of humor is an independent variable. The study group is composed of 202 students who are diagnosed as gifted and talented students. Within the scope of the study, the “Multidimensional Sense of Humor Scale for Children” developed by Akın and Bilgin (2015) and the “Social Exclusion Scale for Adolescents” developed by Sertelin Mercan (2016) have been applied. When the data collected as a result of the study was examined, it was revealed that there was a positive relationship between the sub-dimensions of generating a sense of humor, coping through humor, and appreciating humor, which is the sense of humor sub-dimensions of gifted and talented students and the exclusion subdimension of social exclusion. This situation shows that gifted and talented children generate a sense of humor, cope with this situation through humor, and appreciate humor when they face exclusion in their social environment.