published_or_final_version / Education / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

Thesis presented for the degree of Doctor of Medicine at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. / WHSLYP2017

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hong Kong, 2005. / Also available in print.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Columbia University, 1933. / Vita. Bibliography: p. 61-63.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Michigan, 1920. / "Reprinted from the Journal of applied psychology, December, 1922, vol. VI." Bibliography: p. 375-377.

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Because of the recent upsurge in the investigation of physiological measures as indicators of emotional states, this project was performed on the basis of Eckhard Hess' and Michel Janisse's differing ideas concerning pupil diameter as an emotional indicator. Auditory humor, 3 pre-rated levels of jokes, was recorded and presented to 10 male and 10 female subjects while respiration, skin conductance and pupil diameter were recorded. The data were subjected to various analyses of variance. Only the main effect of time samples was found to be significant. Although this effect does not support either Hess' or Janisse's hypotheses, it does show that there was some reaction and possibly could mean that the auditory stimuli utilized were not diverse enough to produce a significant pupil reaction. The investigation did show that although physiological arousal does not reveal itself, the subjects still subjectively judged the jokes to be significantly different.