The power of dad jokes: British Psychological Society study proves positive effects of dad jokes on children

A duck walks into a pharmacy and says, “Give me some lip balm!” And put it on my bill.

This one, okay? “My neighbor gave me a new roof for free, he said it was on the house.”

If you laughed at this (which we doubt), you could be a dad.

And if you’re a dad who laughed it off, you and your dad jokes can be doing society a real service.

A new study published by the British Psychological Society has looked into dad jokes and found that despite being cringeworthy, dad jokes have the ability to make us better humans.

Humor researcher Marc Hye-Knudson wrote that dad jokes are often seen as stupid, but it’s actually the opposite.

Part of what makes them funny is just that they’re not funny. The fact that they are so unfunny is what really makes us laugh.

This has two benefits that researchers have found in children.

The first was that it showed them a father figure’s willingness to repeatedly embarrass themselves. The second was that he subconsciously teaches children to be okay with awkwardness and how to respond to it.

According to the researcher, children continually exposed to lighthearted humor develop a natural immunity to judgment and embarrassment, and grow into adults who feel capable of being themselves.

Well, we used to think a broken drum was the best gift to give, because it can’t be beaten.

Turns out dad jokes can make the best gifts ever!