American and Dutch psychologists studied the emotion known as schadenfreude and explored its upsides and downsides for a person’s mood. The research in this area has appeared in scientific journals such as European Review of Social Psychology (ERSP) and New Ideas in Psychology (NIP), highlighting how this unusual feeling can surface in everyday life and what it might mean for emotional health. By examining real-world cases and controlled experiments, scholars have built a nuanced picture of when this delight in others’ misfortunes can occur and what it signals about social dynamics and personal well‑being.
Although feeling happy about someone else’s trouble is typically viewed as socially awkward or even unacceptable, scientists emphasize that there are contexts in which this sentiment might be understandable or even adaptive. In some situations, schadenfreude can reflect a normal reaction to perceived injustice or the resolution of a social imbalance. It emerges when people weigh outcomes against expectations and feel that fairness has shifted in a way that aligns with their sense of justice and order.
Experts link schadenfreude to tendencies around aggression, competition, and fairness. The emotion can arise from comparing oneself with others, drawing boundaries between one’s own group and those who oppose or threaten it, and appreciating consequences that reinforce a belief in social justice. In this light, the feeling can surface when people observe violations of norms and take small satisfaction from consequences that punish wrongdoing or restore balance within a group. It is part of a broader social calculus that helps individuals gauge where they stand relative to others and what counts as rightful outcomes in a community context.
Viewed through another lens, schadenfreude can serve as a psychological shield against feelings of inferiority. It may remind people that imperfections are universal and that even those who seem powerful can stumble. This awareness can momentarily ease self-doubt by signaling that one’s flaws are not unique to them alone, which in turn can soften social anxiety and reduce inward rumination after a setback. Yet this same emotion can complicate self-perception if it becomes a default response, drawing attention away from one’s own growth and reinforcing an unhealthy preoccupation with others’ mistakes.
Nevertheless, researchers warn against cultivating pleasure at the expense of others’ misfortunes. Regularly indulging in schadenfreude can erode empathy, dull the ability to recognize and understand the feelings of people who are hurting, and disrupt a person’s moral compass. When this emotion dominates, it can blur ethical boundaries and even encourage exploiting others during vulnerable moments. The social cost can be a diminished sense of shared humanity and a reduced capacity to respond compassionately in later interactions.
To curb the negative pull of schadenfreude, experts recommend a reflective approach. When the feeling arises, one should pause and ask what exactly triggered it—whether it was a sense of justice finally being served or a desire to bolster one’s own self-esteem at someone else’s expense. Such questions invite a calmer, more mature response and promote emotional intelligence. In practice, this means validating legitimate concerns about fairness while choosing to redirect energy toward constructive actions, like offering support to those affected or reframing the situation to learn from it without moralizing others’ pain.
Existing research also hints at the gendered and social dimensions of schadenfreude, noting how cultural norms around jealousy and rivalry can shape its frequency and expression. Observations from psychological studies indicate that the emotion does not occur in a vacuum; it interacts with personal history, group identity, and the nature of the perceived transgression. As a result, people may experience schadenfreude more strongly in some contexts than others, and their responses can shift with mood, relationship closeness, and the perceived severity of the outcome. This underscores the importance of cultivating awareness about one’s own reactions and choosing responses that align with long-term well-being and ethical standards.