Children Find Others' Misfortune Funnier than Adults
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| Title: | Children Find Others' Misfortune Funnier than Adults |
|---|---|
| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Ebru Ger (ORCID |
| Source: | Social Development. 2025 34(3). |
| Availability: | Wiley. Available from: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030. Tel: 800-835-6770; e-mail: cs-journals@wiley.com; Web site: https://www.wiley.com/en-us |
| Peer Reviewed: | Y |
| Page Count: | 9 |
| Publication Date: | 2025 |
| Document Type: | Journal Articles Reports - Research |
| Education Level: | Higher Education Postsecondary Education |
| Descriptors: | Humor, Psychological Patterns, Nonverbal Communication, Psychology, Undergraduate Students, Preschool Children, Comparative Analysis, Pictorial Stimuli, Victims, Decision Making, Foreign Countries |
| Geographic Terms: | Europe |
| DOI: | 10.1111/sode.12805 |
| ISSN: | 0961-205X 1467-9507 |
| Abstract: | This study investigated the perceived funniness of misfortune in children and adults, examining the role of the misfortune victims' facial expressions. Participants included 100 psychology undergraduates and 97 4- to 5-year-olds from a middle-European country. Participants were presented with pictures in which misfortune victims exhibited either angry or painful expressions (affective), funny expressions (comic), or no visible facial expression (no-face). Children and adults rated comic pictures as the funniest, followed by no-face pictures, and affective pictures as the least funny. This suggests that children and adults perceive humor in misfortune similarly, in alignment with facial expressions. However, children rated all categories of pictures as funnier than adults, indicating generally heightened amusement. While children seem to consider the victims' facial expressions when judging humor (i.e., understanding of victim distress vs. bewilderment), their responses may be more strongly influenced by the unexpected nature of the misfortune compared to adults. As children develop, their ability to integrate facial expressions with the unexpected nature of misfortune may become more pronounced, leading to a more nuanced understanding of humor. |
| Abstractor: | As Provided |
| Notes: | https://osf.io/6yaqp/files/osfstorage?view_only=279ebdc373474b44853bc3a895431699 |
| Entry Date: | 2025 |
| Accession Number: | EJ1478672 |
| Database: | ERIC |
| Abstract: | This study investigated the perceived funniness of misfortune in children and adults, examining the role of the misfortune victims' facial expressions. Participants included 100 psychology undergraduates and 97 4- to 5-year-olds from a middle-European country. Participants were presented with pictures in which misfortune victims exhibited either angry or painful expressions (affective), funny expressions (comic), or no visible facial expression (no-face). Children and adults rated comic pictures as the funniest, followed by no-face pictures, and affective pictures as the least funny. This suggests that children and adults perceive humor in misfortune similarly, in alignment with facial expressions. However, children rated all categories of pictures as funnier than adults, indicating generally heightened amusement. While children seem to consider the victims' facial expressions when judging humor (i.e., understanding of victim distress vs. bewilderment), their responses may be more strongly influenced by the unexpected nature of the misfortune compared to adults. As children develop, their ability to integrate facial expressions with the unexpected nature of misfortune may become more pronounced, leading to a more nuanced understanding of humor. |
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| ISSN: | 0961-205X 1467-9507 |
| DOI: | 10.1111/sode.12805 |
