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Humor that leads to groans and eye rolls may still help build stronger relationships between parents and children

.. Rather, he says, fathers want to connect in ways that can’t be misconstrued as sexual in nature or deemed aggressive. “Dad jokes tend to be calming, not angry, and are simple enough that anyone, even a little kid, can get them,” he says.

In an era when many U.S. parents are confused about how much to push their children, defaulting to a silly groaner like a dad joke can bring two generations a little closer while lightening the mood.

“You don’t want to tell dirty stories, and you want to be a good dad. And one way to be approachable and fun is to tell goofy puns or one-liners,” Dr. Pierce says. Even if the joke elicits an eye roll, “that’s all part of the game, the family inside joke,” he says.

Beyond making the audience cringe and, hopefully, bring a father a little closer to his son or daughter in a healthy manner, puns have given researchers insight into how the left side of the brain engages with the right side.

Researchers showed that the brain’s left hemisphere processes the language of the pun first, while the right side takes a few beats to catch the ambiguous dual meaning in a 2016 study published in the journal Laterality. The moments between provide for a super-awkward silence that can make a father giddy as he waits for his child to squirm and moan. If everyone laughs, then a connection has been made—and the father is reinforced to repeat these dad jokes again and again.