ABSTRACT
Background: The professional courses such as engineering, medical, paramedical and architecture are demanding and intense in nature. Similarly, it is observed that not only do students indulge in aggressive behaviour but also use humour as a coping mechanism. The purpose of this study was to understand the relationship between humour, mindfulness and aggression and also to assess if these variables had an effect on the participants gender and the courses they were enrolled in. Methodology: The sample consisted of 80 people between 18 to 25 years of age who were enrolled in professional courses (such as, engineering, architecture, medical and paramedical) from Maharashtra, India. The scales used were the Sense of Humour Scale (SOH), Mindfulness Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS) and Brief Aggression Questionnaire (BAQ). Results: A significant low positive correlation was observed between SOH and BAQ and a significant moderate negative correlation was observed between BAQ and MAAS. However, an insignificant relationship was found between SOH and MAAS. Furthermore, no significant difference was observed in males and females for mindfulness and aggression. However, a difference was found in males and females for sense of humour. Another test result represented no significant differences between the participants enrolled in engineering, architecture and healthcare courses in consideration with sense of humour, mindfulness and aggression. Conclusion: This study stated that an increase in sense of humour leads to an increased level of aggression whereas, an increase in mindfulness would lead to a decrease in the level of aggression. However, no significance was found between humour and mindfulness.