Parents Who Do A Good Job Raising Their Kids Often Have This One Specific Trait, Study Finds
Parents who exhibit this quality often have closer bonds with their kids.
Rido | Shutterstock All of the training and parenting books in the world still couldn't truly prepare you for the ups and downs of raising a child. After all, every kid and every family is entirely unique. Yet one recent study found that parents just need to embody one simple trait to ensure they have a successful parenting journey.
A study found that parents who do a good job raising their kids have one specific trait — humor.
In a study published in 2024, researchers and psychologists from the Public Library of Science and the Penn State College of Medicine found that humor played a huge role in successful parenting. They surveyed around 300 people about their experiences of being raised with or without humor and their views on their childhood.
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Fifty-five percent reported that humor was a significant part of their childhood from their parents and 72% found humor to be an effective parenting tool. Out of those surveyed, the vast majority who reported having a strong bond with their parents as kids and now as adults also had humor as a part of their upbringing.
"While parent-child relationships are more loving than business relationships, stressful situations happen a lot when parenting," said Lucy Emery, one of the authors of the study. "Humor can help diffuse that tension and hierarchy and help both parties feel better about a stressful situation."
Many pediatric specialists and parenting experts have noted that humor also helps a child's development.
"Humor can teach people cognitive flexibility, relieve stress, and promote creative problem solving and resilience," said Benjamin Levi, professor of pediatrics and humanities at Penn State College of Medicine and senior author of the study.
"My father used humor and it was very effective. I use humor in my clinical practice and with my own children," he shared.
According to Children’s Minnesota Hospital, instilling a good sense of humor in a child helps them see situations from different perspectives and grasp unconventional ways of thinking. Humor also allows kids to laugh at themselves when they make mistakes as opposed to being angry or disappointed that they messed up.
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"Kids with a well-developed sense of humor are happier and more optimistic, have higher self-esteem, and can handle differences (their own and others') well," the hospital wrote. "Kids who can appreciate and share humor are better liked by their peers and more able to handle the adversities of childhood — from moving to a new town to teasing to torment by playground bullies."
Of course, humor is not always the solution to a problem.
Certain factors determine whether or not a parent should make light of a situation. The child's age, the problem they're having, the intention of the joke, and the attitude of the person receiving it are all vital things to keep in mind. Parents should also never use humor to make their child feel small or insignificant.
There's a time and place for everything, including making lighthearted jokes and elevating the mood. Every situation is different, but allowing humor to be important in your household can create a bond between you and your child that allows them to feel safe when they're around you.
Nia Tipton is a staff writer with a bachelor’s degree in creative writing and journalism who covers news and lifestyle topics that focus on psychology, relationships, and the human experience.