Why Disgusting Humor Is Funny

Scientists have come up with a formula that explains why crude comedy, even when including death or moral taboos, can make people laugh. Disgusting jokes can be perceived as funny so long as they somehow come off as benign, the study finds. Researchers at the University of Colorado-Boulder have come up with three criteria they find could explain why things are funny. Peter McGraw and Caleb Warren figured the anecdote or scenario had violated some moral or social norms, be benign, and also reconcilable. They tested their hypothesis by presenting various situations to volunteers including ones like a firm hiring a rabbi as spokesman for their new line of pork products. People tended to find situations “seen as wrong” funny. The funny factor increased when people were not connected with the subject. McGraw said the rule also applies to humorous slapstick: “We laugh when Moe hits Larry because we know that Larry’s not really being hurt.”