A new study shows the secret to parenting could be having a sense of humor.
The study conducted of out the Penn State College of Medicine found that 71.8% of the parents surveyed agreed humor can be an effective parenting tool.
But amid all the expected dad jokes, there were some serious benefits: The funny parents had children who were well-adjusted, showed good problem-solving skills and were less stressed. Even better, more than half of the children of parents who used humor reported having a good relationship with their parents.
More than 44% said their funny parents did a good job raising them.
By contrast, just 2.9% of respondents who said their parents didn’t use humor around the house while they were growing up reported a good relationship with their parents; just 3.6% reported their parents did a good job raising them.
One example of a good use of humor as a parent cited in the study was using it to diffuse a toddler’s hypothetical tantrum. If a parent follows it with the humorous “My turn,” then pretends to throw a tantrum of their own, it can catch “the upset toddler by surprise” and “many children will stop crying and watch the parent’s tantrum-performance,” the researchers say.
That said, humor “that includes sarcasm and mockery are likely to be ineffective if not unhealthy for child-rearing,” the researchers warned.
Methodology and results have not been verified or endorsed by ABC News or The Walt Disney Company.