Humour and laughter are universal across human cultures, and seemingly have been for thousands of years. While it’s not so clear that animals have a sense of humour, many species at least demonstrate a sense of play (Also, rats laugh when they’re tickled). So has the universality of humour amongst humans come about through natural selection? If so what evolutionary advantage does humour provide? Is the variety and complexity of humour so conveniently explained by simple evolutionary advantage? In this session, Ben Hawkes and Les Walton will touch on the psychology, biology and philosophy of humour and laughter, and might even throw in a couple of jokes. (*Ben, a psychologist, and Les, a radio producer, know a little thing about humour, having written and performed with The Missing, Inc. comedy group, including an almost entirely fictitious account of the life of Charles Darwin, The Beagle Has Landed, performed at Shrewsbury’s very own Darwin Festival and various science and comedy festivals around the country.)

1. Ha Ha, Bonk:
Humour and Reproductive Success
Ben Hawkes & Les Walton
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2. Humour. What’s that
all about then?
A question for you:
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3. Theories of humour
Over 100 theories, including…
• Aristotle, Plato, Hobbes: Superiority
• Freud: Relief
• Defence mechanism
• False alarm
• Incongruity-resolution
• Benign violation
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4. Benign violation model
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Humour
Benign Violation
Benign
violation
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5. Benign violation model
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Yourself
Explosive
diarrhoea
Not
funny
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6. Benign violation model
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Someone
else
Explosive
diarrhoea
Funny
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7. Tragedy is when I cut my finger.
Comedy is when you fall
into an open sewer and die.
Mel Brooks

8. Did humour evolve?
And why?

9. Components of Humour
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Stimulus
Mirth
Emotional &
psychological
Laughter
Physical &
physiological
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10. Play and laughter in animals
• Chimps
• Bonobos
• Orangutans
• Gorillas
• Dogs
• Rats
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11. Back to the theories…
• Demonstrating superiority and elevating social status
– Raising our own status
– Lowering the status of others
– Enhancing camaraderie and affiliation
• Brain practice
• Repression of sexual or aggressive feelings
• False alarm model: laughter as a signal
• Development from grooming
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12. From fleas to tee-hees
Stages in the evolution of humour?

13. 1. Parasites bad. Grooming good.
2. Grooming relatives and mates is good too.
3. But I only groom the ones that matter to me.
4. The important thing about grooming is not
the grooming.
5. Don’t need grooming when you ain’t got fur.
But let’s keep all the other stuff.
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14. Laughter is the best* medicine.
*It isn’t. Antibiotics are much better.

15. Stages of laughter
15
Silent
1 Smirk
2 Smile
3 Grin
Voluble
4 Snicker
5 Giggle
6 Chuckle
7 Chortle
8 Laugh
Involuntary
9 Cackle
10 Guffaw
11 Howl
12 Shriek
Helpless
13 Roar
14 Convulse
15 Die
laughing
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16. Positive psychological
effects of laughter
Reduces
• Anxiety
• Tension
• Stress
• Depression
• Loneliness
Improves
• Self-esteem
• Hope and energy
• Sense of control
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17. Positive physiological
effects of laughter
Reduces
• Allergic response
• Stress response
• Mood disturbance
• Muscle tension
Improves
• Pulmonary function
• Weight loss
• Disease resistance
• Muscle tone
• Immune
functioning
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18. Die, laughing.

19. Physiological risks of laughter
• Seizures
• Cataleptic and narcoleptic attacks
• Cerebrovascular accidents
• Myocardial infarction
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20. Personal preference
for humour styles

21. What’s your sense of humour?
• Affiliative
• Self-enhancing
• Aggressive
• Self-defeating
Find out at
http://personality-testing.info/tests/HSQ.php
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22. Ha ha, bonk:
Is funny sexy?

23. Ha ha, bonk: Is funny sexy?
• Women are more attracted to humorous men.
• Men are uninfluenced by women’s ‘humour production’.
• Unattractive people are perceived as using humour more.
• Men’s humour quality is positively correlated with ratings
of their attractiveness.
• Men’s humour quantity is negatively correlated with
ratings of attractiveness.
• For both sexes, humorous individuals were seen as less
intelligent and trustworthy but as more socially adept.
Bressler (2006)
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24. Something to talk about
(and stuff we didn’t have time for)

25. Stuff we didn’t have time for…
Gelatophobia
• The fear of being laughed at.
Witzelsucht
• A condition characterised by excessive and
inappropriate joking.
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26. Something to talk about…
• So why do babies laugh?
• Is there a universal gag?
• Can computers be funny?
• How soon is ‘too soon’?
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27. Thank you!
Let us know if you want
a copy of the slides.
Or go to www.yacmo.com/humour.pdf
Ben & Les