Inside Joke

An Inside Joke is a joke that requires shared knowledge or group experience for comprehension and appreciation.

• AKA: In-Joke, Private Joke, Esoteric Joke.
• Context:
  • It can typically strengthen Group Cohesion through exclusive understanding.
  • It can typically reference Shared History or common experiences.
  • It can often serve as Identity Marker for group membership.
  • It can often create Inclusion Boundary between insiders and outsiders.
  • It can range from being a Micro Inside Joke to being a Macro Inside Joke, depending on its group size.
  • It can range from being a Fresh Inside Joke to being a Classic Inside Joke, depending on its temporal persistence.
  • It can range from being a Explicit Inside Joke to being a Subtle Inside Joke, depending on its reference clarity.
  • It can range from being a Single-Reference Inside Joke to being a Multi-Layered Inside Joke, depending on its complexity level.
  • ...
• Examples:
  • Professional Inside Jokes, such as:
    • Engineer Inside Joke for engineering community.
    • Programmer Inside Joke for developer community.
    • Scientist Inside Joke for research community.
  • Organizational Inside Jokes, such as:
    • Company Inside Joke within specific organizations.
    • Team Inside Joke among project members.
  • Cultural Inside Jokes, such as:
    • Fandom Inside Joke within fan community.
    • Regional Inside Joke among local residents.
  • ...
• Counter-Examples:
  • Universal Joke, which requires no special knowledge.
  • Public Joke, which targets general audiences.
  • Explained Joke, which provides its own context.
• See: Joke, Humor, Group Cohesion, Shared Knowledge, Community Identity, Social Bonding, Cultural Reference, Group Dynamic.

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