Telling cringeworthy dad jokes can actually benefit children by teaching them emotional regulation and resilience against embarrassment, according to humour researcher Marc Hye-Knudsen of Aarhus University.
By teasingly striking at their children's egos without teetering over into bullying, fathers help train young people to withstand minor social attacks and negative emotions without acting out or getting worked up.
Hye-Knudsen, who studies humour at the Danish research institution, explained that embarrassing gags function as an informal pedagogical tool for developing self-control.
"In light of this, it is worth considering dad jokes as a pedagogical tool that may serve a beneficial function for the very children who roll their eyes at them," Hye-Knudsen said.
"By continually telling their children jokes that are so bad that they're embarrassing, fathers may push their children's limits for how much embarrassment they can handle. They show their children that embarrassment isn't fatal," he added.
Ahead of Father's Day, an annual celebration honouring fatherhood, a poll of 2,000 Britons revealed the nation's favourite dad jokes. The classic one-liner "I'm on a seafood diet... I see food and I eat it" topped the list, taking 18 per cent of the vote.
Building resilience through humour
Experts note that most dad jokes rely on completely inoffensive puns. At best, the gags elicit a polite chuckle, while at worst they provoke groans and eye-rolls from family members.
Hye-Knudsen urged fathers not to let their children's visible irritation stop them from making terrible jokes. "To all the dads out there who love telling dad jokes to your kids, don't let their groans, their eye-rolls, or their palpable irritation stop you," he said.
"You're partaking in a long and proud tradition, and your embarrassingly awful jokes may even do them some good," he added, encouraging parents to keep repeating stale puns year after year.
According to Hye-Knudsen, repeated jokes undergo an unusual transformation over time. "Through painful repetition, you get to experience the same old joke go through waves of being unfunny and then so unfunny that it becomes funny," he explained.
He noted that parents may eventually hear their own children repeating the same gags later in life. "One day, you may overhear your children spontaneously telling the same joke, perhaps when they themselves have become parents," Hye-Knudsen said. "This, if nothing else, is concrete evidence that our input as parents does have an impact."
Britain's favourite dad jokes
The survey into joke preferences was commissioned by Bloom & Wild, a UK-based online floristry and gifting company. The poll found that more than half of Britons consider their father to be one of the funniest people they know.
Following the top-ranked seafood joke, two puns shared joint second place: "I only know 25 letters of the alphabet... I don't know y," and "Two guys walked into a bar. The third guy ducked."
Other popular entries highlighted by the study included "What do you call a cow with no legs? Ground beef," and "Why don't skeletons fight each other? They don't have the guts."
Jess Henderson, a gifting expert at Bloom & Wild, noted the role of humour in celebrating fatherhood. "Father's Day is the perfect chance to celebrate everything that makes dads unique, from their humour to their unwavering support," Henderson said. "For many of us, Father's Day is that one key moment in the year when say a proper thank you to our dads for everything they do."
The top 20 dad jokes in full
The survey identified 20 classic gags favoured by British respondents:
- I'm on a seafood diet... I see food and I eat it
- I only know 25 letters of the alphabet... I don't know y
- Two guys walked into a bar. The third guy ducked
- Yesterday, I was washing the car with my son. He said, "Dad, can't you just use a sponge?"
- I told my wife she was drawing her eyebrows too high... she looked surprised
- I broke my finger last week. On the other hand, I'm okay
- I used to be a baker, but I couldn't make enough dough
- I used to play piano by ear... now I use my hands
- Why did the scarecrow win an award? Because he was outstanding in his field
- I got a new pen that can write underwater. It can write other words, too
- I'm reading a book on anti-gravity... it's impossible to put down
- What do you call a cow with no legs? Ground beef
- Want to hear a joke about construction? I'm still working on it
- I made a pencil with two erasers. It was pointless
- Why don't skeletons fight each other? They don't have the guts
- Did you hear about the restaurant on the moon? Great food, no atmosphere
- What do you call a belt made of watches? A waist of time
- What happens when it rains cats and dogs? You have to be careful not to step in a poodle
- Have you ever tried to catch the fog? I tried yesterday but I mist
- What do you call fake spaghetti? An impasta
