Senior citizens rise above the lowest form of wit

13 January 2016 - 09:39 By Staff reporter

Older people, you are in luck - and, yes, that statement is meant sarcastically. According to a report on the Daily Telegraph website, researchers in Scotland found that those over the age 65 were more likely to misinterpret sarcastic comments, often taking them at face value instead.The study, published in Developmental Psychology, asked adults of varying ages to identify sarcasm in a number of conversations. The Daily Telegraph report quoted Professor Louise Phillips, chair in psychology at the University of Aberdeen, as saying: "If someone says: 'I see you're on time as usual', this could literally mean what it says. Or the underlying message might be: 'You're late. As usual.'"In some situations it might be a good thing to misinterpret sarcasm, given that it can sometimes be considered nasty." ..

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