# **INTRODUCTION**

Laughing is one of those human features that really fascinates me.  At a first glance, one could argue that it serves no obvious biological purpose, yet every single human (and even some animals) does it.  In every culture that has ever been studied, from the most primitive to the most developed one, laughter seems to be an important part of life.  We laugh at jokes, out of embarrassment, awkwardness and nervousness, to mock others; sometimes we can’t stop doing it while on other times we fake it.  Laughing itself seems like an uncomfortable feeling for the human body - dozens of muscles contract involuntarily while our breathing pattern changes in a way that can only be compared to a person gasping for air.  Laughter carries all the characteristics of a reflex and that can only mean that it has been hardwired into the human brain during our thousands of years of evolution.  This can also be proven by the amazing fact that human babies, who are born with damaged auditory and optic nerves and therefore have never before seen or heard a person laugh, they can still smile and laugh themselves.  So why do human beings laugh and why is laughter such an important part of our lives? 

![enter image description here](https://storage.googleapis.com/steemimgimgs/2016/10/20/wwwfossbytescomb358b.jpg)
***[(Source)](www.fossbytes.com)***

# **WHAT IS LAUGHTER AND HOW IT DEVELOPS**
Laughter is an ‘instinct’ that usually first appears in our lives between week 15 to 20 of our life.  It can only be characterized as a vocal expression or even a ‘noise’ that we use in response to various internal and external stimuli.  What is interesting about laughter is that in most cases (70-80%) it is NOT a reaction to a funny situation or humour.  It can be an expression of amusement, happiness, excitement, friendliness but also confusion, nervousness, embarrassment and mockery.  It is affected by gender, age and culture but it is ubiquitous in all societies and this reinforces the belief that it is a genetically acquired characteristic.  It is without a doubt a form of communication that is universally understood by everyone on our planet.  Its sometimes involuntary character makes laughter an honest display of our inner emotional self and this allows for trust to be build between individuals by sharing what’s otherwise hidden well into our minds.  Some philosophers even believe that laughter is just an unconscious way for humans to relieve their inner and excessive feelings of sexual and aggressive tension therefore helping us to decrease our anxiety and increase our pleasure.  Research shows that we are 30 times more likely to laugh when we are with other people and when we laugh alone it is usually in situations that indirectly involve others such as listening to the radio or watching our favourite comedy TV series.  No matter what, laughter is definitely a social skill and its use has played a huge role in our evolutionary journey as species.      

![enter image description here](https://storage.googleapis.com/steemimgimgs/2016/10/20/erectus946c2.jpg)
**[*(Source)*](www.favogram.com/)**

Our cousins the chimpanzees, also use vocal expressions that can be characterized as laughter.  Just like us, they do this while playing and fake fighting.  Tickling is in a way a ‘mock attack’ as it always involves being tickled at body parts which would be most vulnerable during an actual battle.  The laughter that is produced during the tickling is a reassuring way for the people involved to tell each other that there is no aggression between them and that everything falls under the scope of peaceful playing.  According to the article ‘’The First Joke: Exploring the Evolutionary Origins of Humour’’, the first smiles and laughs of babies are an indication of them starting to understand the world around them.  Probably the first game we all played was ‘Peek-a-boo’.  Initially, babies cannot understand how it is possible for someone to be present and then the next moment to just disappear (hide).  This is why they react to this game with confusion and uncertainty.  But once their brain develops further and they start understanding the concept of hiding, they express their mastery over the situation by laughter.  One of the most accepted theories about laughter, the one of Incongruity is based on this observation in babies.

![enter image description here](https://storage.googleapis.com/steemimgimgs/2016/10/20/article-0-16744C80000005DC-236_634x3601f95d.jpg)
***[(Source)](www.dailymail.co.uk)***

# **LAUGHTER AND FRIENDSHIP**
Humans are highly competitive animals even though sometimes we don’t realize it or in some cases, do our best to hide it.  Life in many cases is a constant struggle of dominance and display of superiority.  We compete for success, money, social status, mating and power.  This constant competition is one of the reasons we are so successful as species and it is ubiquitous throughout all cultures.  You can find it in bars, where males compete for females, at the workplace, in sports, even between siblings and close relatives.  This constant competition is very frequently a source of conflict, therefore as animals, we need to show to our friends and relatives that our intentions with them are friendly and that we will not try to show any dominance over them.  This is where laughter comes in.  Many anthropologists believe that laughing is one of the most important skills we use when it comes to forming social bonds with other people.  Just like grooming and playing in animals, laughter helps relieve tensions and help us avoid potentially unpleasant conflicts.

![enter image description here](https://storage.googleapis.com/steemimgimgs/2016/10/20/people-laughing-researchers-establish-mathematical-theory-of-humor-680x3806b676.jpg)
***[(Source)](consciouslifenews.com)***

Research shows that as humans, we are much more likely to laugh when we are with family members or friends.  Laughing causes a universally felt pleasure and as a result the social unity within the group increases immediately.  This decreases any risk of aggression within the group and in the long term it even increases our chances of long and pleasant life since the ability to form social groups is one of the most important survival tools we have developed as species throughout our evolution.  To add to that, laughing together as a group, not only strengthens the individual bonds with each other but it also indirectly forms a restrictive, ‘members-only’ social circle by excluding those outside the group who are not laughing.  It is in a way a display of dominance and power and the unity of the group is perceived by others as a social ‘strength’.  This is why very frequently the laughter of other groups grabs our attention quickly and in some cases we subconsciously want to know the ‘joke’ as well so we can become a part of that group.  Finally, the lack of laughter towards someone’s attempt at humour is an indication that the person not laughing does not wish to establish a friendly relationship with the person attempting to make the joke.    

![enter image description here](https://storage.googleapis.com/steemimgimgs/2016/10/20/607769556bcab.jpg)
***[(Source)](www.memegenerator.net)***

# **LAUGHTER, DOMINANCE AND AUTHORITY**

As weird as it may sound, the ability to laugh, but most importantly to make others laugh is an important social skill that can be used to indicate someone’s dominance over the rest.  Laughter is a pleasurable, reinforceable behaviour: the more we laugh, the more we like it and therefore we want to laugh even more.  The skill to cause such an effect on others immediately makes someone more popular and desirable.  The empathy of strangers and friends towards funny people is increased and this makes it easier for them to extend their social circle and therefore their chances of success in various parts of life.  The ability to express humour is an indication of wit, skill, confidence and wisdom.  Through humour, one can display his intellectual superiority and that immediately improves his social status substantially.  It makes person to person interactions go more smoothly and facilitates the establishment of new social relationships.  To add to that, displaying the above qualities through humour can make a person (especially a male) appear more attractive towards a potential female mate.  Research says that women laugh 125% more than men and they list humour as one of the most desirable qualities a man can have.  A funny male shows his superiority over his competitors and therefore has a much greater reproductive success.

![enter image description here](https://storage.googleapis.com/steemimgimgs/2016/10/20/getty_rf_photo_of_women_laughing_in_bar1.jpgw720h380zc1q10088d0a.jpg)
***[(Source)](www.qwoc.org)***

Humour is not just an indirect way to improve one’s social status but it can also be used as a direct way to show dominance.  Just like chimpanzees, humans use laughter to ridicule and bring others down.  Mockery is a bully’s most commonly used weapon but almost everyone does it at some point, mostly behind the ‘victim’s’ back.  A similar and socially more acceptable behaviour is observed by ‘common’ people and being directed towards people with power.  Figures of authority such as kings, politicians, police officers, teachers and wealthy people, are often the main subject of jokes and the receivers of mockery and ridicule through humour.  Even though benign in most cases, it is an indirect expression of human desire to defy authority and display our own dominance.

![enter image description here](https://storage.googleapis.com/steemimgimgs/2016/10/20/laughing-laugh-mock-mocking-finger-point-pointinge52eb.jpg)
***[(Source)](www.betanews.com/)***

# **CONCLUSION**
There is no doubt that laughter is an important method of expression and communication, almost as important as the use of language itself.  Darwin characterized laughter and humour as of ‘high evolutionary importance’ and he was absolutely right.  Humans are social animals and we constantly seek ways to express the need to socialize.  Even though the frequency at which we laugh and the causing stimuli are different and despite the fact that each one of us seems to have a different, ‘special’ laugh and sense of humour, laughter is a universal language that we all speak and understand.  It is an expression that can both divide and bring people together, but at the end of the day, as Robert Provine said: ‘We all speak laughter in the same way’. 

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Sources:
1.	https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laughter
2.	Robert Wright – The Moral Animal, Why we are the way we are
3.	Gervais, Matthew, and Wilson David Sloan. "THE EVOLUTION AND FUNCTIONS OF LAUGHTER AND HUMOR: A SYNTHETIC APPROACH." The Quarterly Review of Biology 
4.	http://www.webmd.com/men/features/why-do-we-laugh
5.	Robert Provine - Laughter: A Scientific Investigation
6.	Steven Pinker – How the mind works
7.	http://www.marcblumberg.ca/userfiles/1080541/file/The%20First%20Joke%20-%20Exploring%20the%20Evolutionary%20Origins%20of%20Humor.pdf

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