Don’t laugh ... but ‘dad jokes’ can be hilarious

“DAD jokes” are regarded by many as the worst kind of humour, being more likely to result in a cold stare and stony silence than a laugh.

However, a study has found that such groan-inducing attempts at comedy can work – so long as at least one other person is laughing.

“What does a dinosaur use to pay the bills? Tyrannosaurus cheque,” was one of 40 such jokes scientists at University College London tried on volunteers.

They found that if the joke was told with accompanying laughter, the trial participants tended to find it funny.

Participants were asked to rate how funny the jokes were when read aloud by a professional comedian.

Two versions were created adding short canned – or posed – laughter and short spontaneous – or real – laughter.

Lead study author Prof Sophie Scott, from University College London, said: “I’m fascinated that not only does laughter make the joke seem funnier, but the more spontaneous the laughter, the funnier it makes the joke.”

In the study, 40 groanworthy dad jokes were given a baseline humour rating of between one (not funny) and seven (hilarious).

“What is the best day to cook? Fry-day” and “What’s orange and sounds like a parrot? A carrot” were also among the mix. Both versions of the jokes were tested on 48 neurotypical individuals and 24 autistic individuals in the study published in the journal Current Biology.

Laughter may be processed differently in autism, as, typically, developing children’s enjoyment of cartoons is enhanced by laughter tracks, watching with another or simulating a smile. In contrast, autistic children’s enjoyment is not significantly adjusted by such manipulations

Prof Scott, a stand-up comedian herself, said: “This study shows adding laughter to a joke increases humour value, no matter how funny or unfunny the joke is.

“It also suggests that we respond much better to spontaneous genuine laughter, rather than posed or canned laughter, showing the inherent human joy and value of a natural response. This was adopted in TV shows like Friends, recorded in front of a live audience.”