To find out more about what it takes to understand a joke, and what things we find funny tell us about our personalities, Bored Panda reached out to Janet M. Gibson, Ph.D.,the Professor of Psychology at Grinnell College said that it takes a lot of work.
“We have to use cognitive, social, and emotional brain power to form expectations of what was supposed to happen, see how the punchline or unexpected event puts a playful spin on things, figure out the social context to know whether the unexpected event was intended or offensive, and we have to empathize with the joke teller, a character in the joke, or audience to know what is going on,” Prof. Gibson explained.
Moreover, people have to be ready to have fun, whether it is with language, social expectations, or be amused by the absurdities of the situation. “If we are lucky, there are cues to help, like the joke teller is smiling or others are laughing, and then we try to figure out why, search for alternate meanings, and pull from memory what other meanings are possible in this context,” Prof. Gibson told us.
Moreover, people have to be ready to have fun, whether it is with language, social expectations, or be amused by the absurdities of the situation. “If we are lucky, there are cues to help, like the joke teller is smiling or others are laughing, and then we try to figure out why, search for alternate meanings, and pull from memory what other meanings are possible in this context,” Prof. Gibson told us.
However, if the joke requires too much work to figure it, we are likely to end up feeling puzzled rather than amused or entertained.
A good deal of research investigates correlations between types of jokes and personality, but Prof.Gibson says that there’s no straightforward answer. “For example, if you like jokes that poke fun at death, this does not mean you have death anxiety or are sick. If you like the Three Stooges, it does mean you are a knucklehead.”
“In fact, people who like sick jokes tend to score high on openness to experience and high on social intelligence,” he argues.
Moreover, “there is a correlation between liking aggressive humor if you have an aggressive personality, but these categories are very general, and, for the most part, many people with diverse personalities like the same kind of humor.”
Most importantly, we tend to like humor that elevates the mood, to help everyone feel good. “Our cultural attitudes play a large role in whether we like jokes with predictable punchlines. Your world views and beliefs help shape whether you like jokes where animals act like humans, for example."
Some preferences for particular jokes may indeed indicate darker personality traits, but Prof. Gibson argues that it depends on the context and why the jokes were being told. “The social situation might drive our amusement more than the joke itself.” Interestingly, “Introverts have a sense of humor, but extroverts show it more, because they are more comfortable sharing humor in front of others.”
