"One of the most surprising findings was that relatively few participants (23%) reported that their therapists used humor appropriately. Not only was appropriate humor generally absent during the course of therapy, but inappropriate humor was amazingly prevalent, reported by almost 94% of the participants. Participants described some dismaying instances of hurtful jokes and related put-downs. One participant, for example, wrote that her therapist joked about her being suicidal; another described how her therapist belittled her for her fear during a biopsy for her fear during a biopsy for breast cancer. Such findings suggest that graduate training programs might devote more time to exploring the uses and misuses of humor in therapy."

The Therapist As Patient