Funny or risky? Humour in health-related social media

Social media has emerged as a vital platform for health communication, facilitating audience engagement and disseminating health-related information. It offers opportunities to implement innovative approaches to help audiences acquire health knowledge, presenting a compelling alternative to traditional fear-based campaigns. The paper is part of a doctoral study exploring how Queensland Health uses social media to communicate with the public, providing insights into the use of humour in health-related social media. Using a Constructivist Grounded Theory methodology, interviews were conducted with nineteen social media administrators employed by a large Australian health organisation to explore their experiences and perceptions of social media health messaging. The findings reveal that humour can enhance engagement and potentially improve health literacy, but they also highlight its risks, including the possibility of miscommunication and loss of trust. The study suggests that humour’s role in health messaging must be carefully managed, balancing its benefits with cultural sensitivity. Future research should further investigate the multifaceted role of humour in health communication to optimise its effectiveness.