Analysis of LIP Insertion in Chinese Sitcoms

The number of LIPs (laugh track insertion points) in representative sitcoms from the US and China was counted, and the difference in trends between the two countries was examined from both a quantitative and textual perspective using a chi-square test (significance level = 0.05). The major categories with significantly higher rates in Chinese sitcoms were “perception of superiority” and “change in framing,” and the minor categories were “stingy behavior,” “exaggeration,” “adding lies to lies or mistakes,” “strange proposals,” “successful strategies,” “violent acts,” “overinterpretation,” “display of disgust,” “mishearing homonyms or similar sounds,” “failure due to lack of understanding of one’s own culture or another,” “unexpected situations in relation to rules,” and “reversal or change of position.” In the textual analysis, a framework was used from superiority theory, which is considered useful in sitcom analysis, to examine the “perception of superiority” that was prominent in Chinese sitcoms.