Laughing at a joke about death or illness may be a sign of intelligence, according to a study published in the journal
Cognitive Processing. Far from the image of the cold cynic or the insensitive sadist, the lover of black humor would on the contrary be more intelligent, calmer and less aggressive than the others. To arrive at this observation, researchers from the University of Vienna subjected a panel of 156 adults to a series of tests relating to the understanding of morbid jokes. Their results shed new light on the link between cognitive abilities and perception of humor.
Dark humor fans get the highest IQ scores
The experiment was based on twelve drawings from The Black Book, a German comic strip by Uli Stein, famous for its grating features. Each participant had to indicate whether they understood and appreciated the proposed jokes, before taking the intelligence, mood and aggressiveness tests. The panel was made up of 76 women and 80 men, with an average age of 33 years.
The results made it possible to divide the participants into three distinct groups. Group I, made up of the most educated people, is the one who both understood the drawings the best and appreciated them the most. This group also had the highest IQ scores: 109.7 for the oral test and 118.1 for the written test. Furthermore, these individuals also displayed the lowest levels of aggression and bad mood.
Conversely, Group II included those who partially understood the jokes, but strongly disliked them. Their IQ was close to average (101 and 97.8), but their aggression and negative mood were significantly more pronounced. Finally, group III presented an average understanding of the drawings and moderate enjoyment. Their IQ scores were 96.8 and 102.8, with lower levels of aggression than those in Group II.
The taste for black humor, a question of cognition more than of character
Contrary to certain preconceived ideas, researchers affirm that the pleasure taken in laughing at taboo themes does not reflect a dark temperament, but rather a sharper mental functioning. “Our study aligns with previous research that correlates sense of humor with IQ, but refutes the commonly held belief that people who enjoy dark humor tend to be grumpy and prone to sadism.“, they specify.
The treatment of black humor would in reality involve a complex process of information processing, mobilizing both verbal and non-verbal skills. It would therefore be an indicator of mental flexibility, of the ability to manage paradoxes and to grasp the absurd in its most disturbing aspects.
Researchers also point out that certain negative emotions, such as aggression or emotional instability, can hinder the ability to appreciate this type of humor. In other words, the more stable and composed a person is, the more likely they are to savor the biting irony of certain jokes, even when they address painful subjects.
A sharp sense of humor, but not devoid of humanity
If black humor divides, it is not the exclusive playground of cruel minds. On the contrary, understanding it would require juggling several layers of meaning, assuming emotional distance while remaining capable of empathy. This intellectual gymnastics would be the mark of lively minds, capable of reading between the lines without being overwhelmed by unease.
What this study demonstrates is that laughter, even when it is disturbing, can reveal a lot about how our brain works. And that a burst of laughter at a macabre joke could, ultimately, be the sign of a mind more subtle than we imagine.