Sarcastic people are intelligent. We said what we said. And we have the research to back it up...
Using sarcasm and wry one-liners is a form of mental acrobatics. It involves decoding contradictions between literal and actual meanings, and that's not something just anyone can do. According to psychologists and neuroscientists, sarcasm requires the brain to jump through a bunch of hoops before it can arrive at a correct interpretation. This takes more brainpower than interpreting literal statements.
"And although it's often dismissed as juvenile snark, sarcasm is actually evidence of maturity – as it takes years for a child's developing brain to fully grasp and master it," reports the BBC.
According to Penny Pexman, a psycholinguist at the University of Calgary, interpreting and understanding sarcasm is a two-step process that takes years to master. You need to understand the actual belief of the speaker, as well as the ways they intend their words to be interpreted.
This involves holding two opposing ideas in mind at the same time... something most children under the age of 7 (and some adults) struggle with.
Using and understanding sarcasm is a mental workout, but one that pays off. Researchers at Harvard and Columbia Universities, as well as France's INSEAD Business School have found that expressing, receiving, or recalling sarcastic comments can spark creativity.
Plus, sarcasm, can actually be good for your mental health. "It can be a way of letting off steam," explains Kathrin Rothermich from East Carolina University. Rothermich conducted a study, which found that those suffering from depression and anxiety used more sarcasm during the Covid-19 pandemic. This, she says, means that sarcasm can be used as a coping mechanism.
