RESEARCH PAPER
“I have problems and I have fun”: Funniness ratings of memes about psychological problems reflect how people relate them to themselves and correlate with rumination, reflection, self-liking, and self-competence
1
University of Silesia, Katowice, Poland
Submission date: 2025-04-06
Final revision date: 2026-03-13
Acceptance date: 2026-03-23
Online publication date: 2026-06-11
Publication date: 2026-06-26
Current Issues in Personality Psychology 2026;14(2):116-125
KEYWORDS
TOPICS
ABSTRACT
Background:
Some internet memes relate to specific psychological problems, such as pessimism, anxiety, procrastination, depression, masking feelings, social isolation, and coping with problems. We compared participants’ funniness ratings and perceived self-relatedness of these memes, moderated by humor styles. Moreover, we investigated the relationships between ratings of the funniness and relatedness of memes and cognitive processes of rumination and reflection and participants’ self-liking and self-competence, controlling for humor styles.
Participants and procedure:
A sample of 225 Polish participants (58 men and 167 women) aged 20 to 35 (M = 23.33, SD = 2.90) consented to participate in an anonymous online study. Participants watched internet memes about psychological problems and rated their funniness and relevance to their situation. Then, participants provided information about their rumination, reflection, self-liking, self-competence, and humor styles.
Results:
Participants found memes about depression the funniest, and they found procrastination memes the most relatable to their situation. Rumination correlated more with relating memes about psychological problems to one’s situation, and reflection correlated more with ratings of the funniness of these memes. Self-liking and self-competence correlated negatively with ratings of the funniness and relatedness of memes about psychological problems. Affiliative humor predicted relatedness of psychological problems memes negatively, and aggressive and self-defeating humor predicted such relatedness positively.
Conclusions:
Our study is the first to examine perceptions of internet memes about a broad range of psychological problems. Our results show the interplay between psychological variables and the reception of humorous messages about serious contemporary issues.
Some internet memes relate to specific psychological problems, such as pessimism, anxiety, procrastination, depression, masking feelings, social isolation, and coping with problems. We compared participants’ funniness ratings and perceived self-relatedness of these memes, moderated by humor styles. Moreover, we investigated the relationships between ratings of the funniness and relatedness of memes and cognitive processes of rumination and reflection and participants’ self-liking and self-competence, controlling for humor styles.
Participants and procedure:
A sample of 225 Polish participants (58 men and 167 women) aged 20 to 35 (M = 23.33, SD = 2.90) consented to participate in an anonymous online study. Participants watched internet memes about psychological problems and rated their funniness and relevance to their situation. Then, participants provided information about their rumination, reflection, self-liking, self-competence, and humor styles.
Results:
Participants found memes about depression the funniest, and they found procrastination memes the most relatable to their situation. Rumination correlated more with relating memes about psychological problems to one’s situation, and reflection correlated more with ratings of the funniness of these memes. Self-liking and self-competence correlated negatively with ratings of the funniness and relatedness of memes about psychological problems. Affiliative humor predicted relatedness of psychological problems memes negatively, and aggressive and self-defeating humor predicted such relatedness positively.
Conclusions:
Our study is the first to examine perceptions of internet memes about a broad range of psychological problems. Our results show the interplay between psychological variables and the reception of humorous messages about serious contemporary issues.
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