No laughing matter : what the experiences of women working in the Aotearoa-New Zealand comedy industry can tell us about male-dominated, unregulated workplaces : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Clinical Psychology at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand
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Date
2023
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Massey University
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Abstract
With the international development of the #MeToo movement, a similar moment occurred in the Aotearoa-New Zealand (A-NZ) comedy industry. Women shared their experiences of harassment in the industry, and a Working Group emerged with the aim of making the A-NZ comedy industry safer and more inclusive. Drawing upon the existing literature about #MeToo and the challenges women face in male-dominated and unregulated industries, this study aimed to understand women’s experiences in an industry where these factors intersect. The study was based on interviews with 15 women working in the A-NZ comedy industry. A feminist phenomenological thematic analysis of these interviews provided insight into these women's experiences and meaning-making. Three superordinate themes were produced from this analysis. The first, ‘comedy requires negotiating a male-as-norm world’, discussed women's challenges in this male-dominated industry. These included being made to feel that women do not belong in the industry, being judged as a woman rather than on merit, and often feeling isolated as a woman. The second theme, ‘feeling unsafe in an unregulated space,’ discussed how the informal nature of the comedy industry creates additional challenges when combined with comedy being male-dominated. These challenges included women reporting feeling unsafe and unable to speak up. Finally, in the theme, ‘experiencing Aotearoa-New Zealand comedy’s #MeToo moment’, participants reflected on the positive changes they have observed since the initial #MeToo discussions and the challenges of implementing formal solutions in an informal space. These findings align with existing research and demonstrate the importance of the #MeToo moment for women working in the comedy industry and the factors reducing its chance of leading to significant change. Supporting this conclusion, the thesis finishes with a reflection on the specific context in which the study was undertaken, including the implications of a recent decision for the Working Group to stop accepting complaints and what this means for women comedians currently working in Aotearoa-New Zealand.
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Work environment, New Zealand, Psychological aspects, Women comedians, Psychology, Attitudes, Male domination (Social structure), Stand-up comedy