Teasing and humor

Our interest in humor started with studies of great apes. We found that apes teased each other playfully in ways that resembled the games and simple jokes of young children. Apes poke, prod, surprise, and annoy each other in ways that seem designed to push others’ buttons, to irritate them a little but not too much.

We call these behaviors “playful teasing.” This type of teasing is different from bullying because both the teaser and the target of the teasing seem to enjoy it and participate willingly. It is often annoying, but never aggressive.

We assume many other animals tease each other in playful way, but we can’t study them all ourselves. We need YOU to tell us how the animals you know tease each other and you in playful ways.

If you’d like to help us study teasing, please submit a report HERE.