Summary: We often assume that showing embarrassment after a small social stumble—like tripping, waving at the wrong person, or forgetting a name—demonstrates humility and respect for social norms. New research indicates that when the error is minor and harmless, laughing at yourself is usually a better way to recover your reputation. Self-amusement signals confidence, reduces tension, and leads observers to view you more positively than a display of embarrassment.
Across six preregistered experiments involving more than 3,000 participants, the researchers found that people who laughed at their own harmless blunders were judged as warmer, more competent, and more authentic than people who showed embarrassment.
Key Findings
- Reputational advantage: Laughing at yourself communicates social confidence and signals to others that you recognize the mistake was minor and unintentional.
- Overstated embarrassment: Observers often see conventional embarrassment as excessive for small mistakes, which can make a person seem less genuine or socially awkward.
- Harmlessness matters: Self-laughter works only for blunders that cause no real harm. If a mistake injures someone or damages property, laughter is seen as inappropriate and insensitive.
- Warmth and competence: People who can make light of minor faux pas are rated higher in both interpersonal warmth and professional competence than those who dwell in shame.
- Tension reduction: Self-deprecating humor acts like a social reset button, quickly defusing awkwardness for everyone involved.
Source: APA
When your misstep is low-stakes—tripping over a curb, calling someone by the wrong name—laughing at yourself can improve how others perceive you, according to research published by the American Psychological Association.
“People frequently overestimate how harshly others will judge minor social mistakes,” said study co-author Övül Sezer, PhD, of the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business. “For small, harmless blunders, laughing at yourself signals social confidence, reduces tension, and communicates that the slip-up was accidental and not serious.”
The study appears in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
Previous work has shown benefits to displaying embarrassment after a faux pas: embarrassment can signal remorse and adherence to social norms. Still, people often respond to minor mistakes by laughing at themselves, and this set of studies asks whether that response can be more effective—and under what circumstances.
In six online experiments with a combined sample of over 3,000 participants, researchers presented brief scenarios describing common social blunders—walking into a glass door at a party, waving at the wrong person in a theater, or misnaming a colleague. Participants then saw how the person in each scenario reacted: either with embarrassment or with laughter. In some cases the reaction was described in text; in others participants saw photographs of an embarrassed or laughing person.
Overall, the individuals who laughed at their own minor mistakes were judged to be warmer, more competent, and more authentic than those who displayed embarrassment. Observers often perceived embarrassed reactions as disproportionate to the incident, while laughter conveyed that the actor understood the faux pas was benign.
However, the advantage for laughter disappeared when the mistake caused real harm. In vignettes where a person tripped and broke their own arm, or where someone knocked over a colleague and caused injury, subjects judged laughter as inappropriate and insensitive. In those contexts, embarrassment—or sincere concern—was the more appropriate and better-received response.
“The key is calibrating your reaction to the seriousness of the mistake,” Sezer said. The researchers emphasize that laughter works best for low-stakes, non-harmful blunders.
Future research will examine how culture, gender norms, workplace environments, and other factors influence when humor is socially effective versus risky. Understanding these moderators will help clarify when self-directed amusement enhances reputation and when it backfires.
Key Questions Answered:
A: No. Laughing works for low-stakes errors—spilling coffee on your own desk or tripping while walking to a meeting. It shows humility and composure. For serious mistakes—missing deadlines, botching a client deliverable—genuine remorse and corrective action are far more appropriate.
A: Laughing at a minor error signals emotional self-regulation and confidence. Observers interpret that calm response as a sign of emotional intelligence and steadiness, traits they often associate with competence.
A: The study suggests it can be helpful to lead with a light, self-directed laugh. By doing so you normalize the reaction and give others permission to see the situation as harmless rather than awkward.
Editorial Notes:
- This article was edited by a Neuroscience News editor.
- The original journal article was reviewed in full.
- Additional context was added by editorial staff.
About this psychology research news
Author: Lea Winerman
Source: APA
Contact: Lea Winerman – APA
Image: The image is credited to Neuroscience News
Original Research: Closed access. “Transcending Embarrassment: On the Reputational Benefits of Laughing at Yourself” by Goksel, S., Sezer, O., & Berman, J. Z., Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. DOI: 10.1037/pspa0000477
Abstract
Transcending Embarrassment: On the Reputational Benefits of Laughing at Yourself
How do observers judge people who commit common faux pas? Across six preregistered studies (N = 3,204), the authors find that judgments depend on how the faux pas is presented and whether it harms others. For minor, non-harmful faux pas, actors who display amusement—laughing at their mistake—are seen as warmer, more competent, and more authentic than those who display embarrassment. Both amusement and embarrassment function as appeasement displays, but embarrassment is often viewed as excessive, signaling undue self-consciousness. Amusement, by contrast, signals emotional calibration: the actor recognizes the faux pas is benign and does not warrant intense shame. When a faux pas harms others, amusement is perceived as insufficiently self-conscious and can signal disregard for others’ welfare. As harm increases, the reputational benefits of amusement decline or reverse, while embarrassment becomes relatively more appropriate. These findings outline when amusement versus embarrassment will reflect positively on people who commit everyday social mistakes.