Answered: Why do some people find pleasure when others are. These responses have always seemed in poor taste to me, and certainly, if we examine it objectively, deriving pleasure out of the misfortunes of others—esp. The role of relative rank, or interdependent preferences, in explaining individual well-being is a common one. Few people will easily admit to taking pleasure in someone's misfortune. Schadenfreude is that that jolt of pleasure we sometimes find in another's misfortune – a combination of joy and amusement that's omnipresent in everything from.