Development and initial validation of the Meta-Inner Humor Beliefs Scale (MIHBS) to assess adaptive and maladaptive responses to repetitive negative thoughts

The present study conducted a process-level assessment of humor-based metacognitive beliefs regarding responses to repetitive negative thoughts, conceptualized as a potential contextual moderator in the relationship between repetitive negative thoughts and emotional distress. Consequently, the Meta-Inner Humor Beliefs Scale (MIHBS) was developed and evaluated through a comprehensive psychometric examination among two large samples (Sample 1 = 1481, females = 60.3%, mean age = 32.60 years [SD = 10.16]; Sample 2 = 1000, females = 57.9%, mean age = 32.65 years [SD = 9.71]) of an Iranian populatio