The smile of a child illuminates even the grayest day. Therefore, it is especially unfortunate that young children do not know how to respond to jokes. Or do they still know how?
In the past, studies have saddened parents with the conclusion that a child can appreciate even a very funny joke no earlier than at the age of 5-6 years. But published in the Canadian Journal of Experimental Psychology, the results of an experiment by psychologists Gabriella Airenti (Gabriella Airenti) and Romina Angeleri (Romina Angeleri) * refuted earlier findings. It turned out that kids are able to perceive jokes and irony during communication in a familiar environment and at an earlier age.
To conduct a fun experiment, scientists gathered 100 children aged 3 to 6,5 years. The kids were shown puppet shows, in which there were both ordinary jokes and irony.
The conclusions obtained disproved the previous ones:
- Even the smallest participants are able to understand not only jokes, but in some cases irony;
- The ability to understand irony is laid in the mind in early childhood.
Thus, parents can take note of the results of the new study. When children laugh, adults are happy – but that’s not the only thing. Even in adulthood, not everyone can boast of a developed sense of humor, but it brightens up communication and can help out even in a difficult situation. Therefore, it is better to instill it from childhood – the benefit is now proven that kids are sensitive to jokes.
* American Psychological Association