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Hi, this is Dan from Dad Psych.

Freaked out about becoming a dad?

Every Wednesday, we’ll untangle the science and psychology behind your new world in 5 minutes or less.

Straightforward, research-backed and free from cringe parental tips.

In today’s edition:

1. Science says 'Dad Jokes' mentally strengthen your kids- No, really, they actually do.

Dad jokes might seem like simple puns, but, believe it or not, they pack life lessons only dads can deliver. As an expecting or new dad, you’re stepping into a role where humour can become a powerful tool for future child development.

Researchers for the British Psychological Society (BPS) have found that dad jokes help children in two ways: Teaching resilience and embracing awkwardness.

But why?

First, we need to look at the different types of dad jokes. Usually, you’ll get:

1. The pun-based ones (“I only know 25 letters of the alphabet. I don’t know y”).

2. The question-and-answer kind (“What do you call cheese that isn’t yours? Nacho cheese”).

3. The ones that embarrass you in public (“Hey, want to hear a construction joke? Oh never mind, I’m still working on it.”).

(There are also the rude ones, too, but perhaps not best for a 5-year-old, for example.)

Now, of course, each type of dad joke has a special cringe factor, but each one actually teaches kids something different.

First, there’s resilience.

Dad jokes are cringe at their purest, so the more kids endure them, the more they realise a little embarrassment won’t kill them. This is especially helpful as they head into the most socially complex years of life, like adolescence, where self-consciousness hits a peak. If they can survive a “Hi, hungry, I’m Dad” line every morning, they can handle walking into a glass door in public.

Don’t believe me? Check out the video below of my friend doing just that…

(Rumour has it, his dad is a Dad Joke champion which helped him take it like a boss)

Then there’s the anti-humor aspect.

Most jokes have a satisfying punchline that makes sense, but dad jokes flip that expectation on its head, often being so unfunny that they loop back around to being funny. Kids learn that not everything has to be uproarious to be enjoyed. There’s value in simplicity and even in “bad” humour—a sense of fun that’s easygoing and self-deprecating.

There’s also the power of repetition.

Remember the Cartman farting on Kyle scene in South Park? Well, the same kind of applies here; hearing the same dad jokes over and over again might get tiresome, but eventually, they start to feel familiar, even comforting. They become inside jokes, family traditions in their own way.

Just don’t fart on anyone. That’s not cool.

Are we saying your dad knew about these benefits and it was all part of his master plan? Nah, it was just to make you cringe/laugh/cry. But now we know more, there’s no excuse to let the tradition die.

So, whether you love them or hate them, stick them in your arsenal for future fathering ideas.

Also, if you decide to follow the Dad Joke way of life, you get to be as funny as Will Ferrell.

(Disclaimer: no one is as funny as Will Ferrell).

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That’s about it for now, have a great week.

- Dan from Dad Psych

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