Suffice it to say that the pandemic was quite rough on a lot of people because of the fact that this is the sort of thing that could potentially end up preventing them from leaving their homes for quite a long period of time. The kind of disruption that the pandemic caused to virtually every aspect of the lives that so many of us take for granted is hard to deny, but we have also managed to get through much of it intact and online culture has played an essential role in helping us get through it.
With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that memes have been a big part of this experience, and a study by a group of researchers has revealed how important they were from a stress relief perspective. One really important aspect of memes is their bite sized nature. You can see a meme and absorb all that it is trying to say in less than three seconds, and that was quite useful in a situation where you didn’t have a lot of time due to increased responsibilities at home while also juggling work from home responsibilities.
The study involved 800 participants who were asked to rank memes based on how funny they found them, and these memes were split into three categories. The first was funny memes about Covid-19, the second involved funny memes about general topics and the third approximated the format of memes but did not involve an appreciable level of humor. It turns out that when the candidates were asked to rate their emotional state before and after looking at memes, there was a consistent trend that showed that those that saw funny memes felt better after having seen them.
The topic of the meme is a really important thing to consider, though, with all things having been considered and taken into account. For example, the Covid memes ended up having the biggest impact due to the reason that they allowed people to feel better about the experience that they were going through. Memes are an art form that can help us feel less alone because of how relatable they seem, and they are an essential part of internet culture that continue to have a positive impact on the world especially when you consider how universal they can end up being.
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With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that memes have been a big part of this experience, and a study by a group of researchers has revealed how important they were from a stress relief perspective. One really important aspect of memes is their bite sized nature. You can see a meme and absorb all that it is trying to say in less than three seconds, and that was quite useful in a situation where you didn’t have a lot of time due to increased responsibilities at home while also juggling work from home responsibilities.
The study involved 800 participants who were asked to rank memes based on how funny they found them, and these memes were split into three categories. The first was funny memes about Covid-19, the second involved funny memes about general topics and the third approximated the format of memes but did not involve an appreciable level of humor. It turns out that when the candidates were asked to rate their emotional state before and after looking at memes, there was a consistent trend that showed that those that saw funny memes felt better after having seen them.
The topic of the meme is a really important thing to consider, though, with all things having been considered and taken into account. For example, the Covid memes ended up having the biggest impact due to the reason that they allowed people to feel better about the experience that they were going through. Memes are an art form that can help us feel less alone because of how relatable they seem, and they are an essential part of internet culture that continue to have a positive impact on the world especially when you consider how universal they can end up being.
Read next: Amazon's Alexa Skims Off More Personal User Information Than Any Other Smart Assistant