Researchers have suggested that there's a comedic sweet spot - when enough time has passed that people no longer feel immediately threatened but not so much time that the event is out of our thoughts.
Peter McGraw, Lawrence E. Williams, and Caleb Warren found a rise and eventual peak in humorous responses to Hurricane Sandy between 1 month and 2 months after the storm, with such humor decreasing between 2 and 3 months after the fact.
The research gives unique insight into what makes things funny and how humor can help with coping.
The study has been published online in Social Psychological and Personality Science.