Reddit | nqualifiedsurgeon, Reddit

Study Finds That Youngest Child Is More Likely To Be The Funniest

Updated September 8, 2021

The bigger a family gets, the more likely it gets for each member of it to feel like they need to compete for attention.

Eventually, that competition often results in some clear winners in certain categories. Being stronger or faster than older siblings is usually an uphill battle, so younger kids might seek out other ways to brand themselves.

And if a poll by market research firm YouGov is of any indication, it's common for the youngest child to do this by grabbing the "funny" baton and running with it.

YouGov polled 1,782 adults throughout Great Britain and asked them some questions about their personalities.

Reddit | BoBoStl

Namely, the poll asked whether they considered themselves more responsible, organized, family-oriented, easy-going, relaxed, self-confident, and funny than their siblings.

As it turns out, the race to the most relaxed sibling was pretty close.

Reddit | Thereugonate

The youngest ones considered themselves the most relaxed, but only by about 3% compared to the older ones.

But when it came to being responsible, organized, family-oriented, and self-confident, the older siblings thought they had that in the bag way more often than younger siblings did.

But while younger siblings largely didn't think they were as responsible or organized as their older brothers and sisters, they definitely thought they were funnier.

Reddit | nqualifiedsurgeon

More specifically, about 46% of them did, compared to 36% of older siblings who figured they were the family cut-ups.

But each one can think whatever they want. Is there any way to tell whether they're right?

Well, yes and no. On one hand, there's a lot of clinical evidence to support these claims.

However, as clinical psychologist Linda Blair told The Guardian, that doesn't mean there's any hard evidence.

As she put it, "It is just that there is no proof behind such wide generalizations for humanity. It's not possible."

Still, the tendencies in the poll do still pop up in other research, so there's something to be said for noticing a trend.

Plus, it's not like we can objectively determine something like a sense of humor. That said, jokey younger siblings might be interested to know something else.

YouTube | TheEllenShow

A lot of famous comedians have turned out to be the youngest in their families. That list includes such stars as Eddie Murphy, Jon Stewart, Ellen DeGeneres, Jim Carrey, Whoopi Goldberg, Steve Martin, and even Charlie Chaplin.

h/t: YouGov

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