Perception of cartoon humor as a function of familiarity and anxiety level

Used familiar and unfamiliar cartoon strips to test L. Zajonc's hypothesis that mere exposure enhances one's attitude toward a stimulus object, and Scheldon's optimal-level hypothesis of novelty response. The MA scale and a cartoon test were administered to 203 college students, with 96 used in an extreme group design. Predictions derived from Zajonc's and Sheldon's hypotheses were supported by these results: (a) familiar cartoons were preferred over unfamiliar cartoons; (b) the unfamiliar cartoons showed an increased humor rating with repeated exposure, while the rating for familiar cartoons remained unchanged; and (c) the high-anxiety group rated the familiar cartoons higher and the unfamiliar cartoons lower than the low-anxiety group.