• Question: Why is laughter infectious?

    Asked by 782yttc52 to Anna, Hayley, Iain, Rebecca on 15 Jun 2015.
    • Photo: anon

      anon answered on 15 Jun 2015:

      This is similar to the the question why yawning is contagious (/ytterbiumj15-zone/2015/06/15/why-do-we-yawn-and-is-yawning-contagious/). It’s part of our human empathy and the fact that we try to bond with other people. If we see someone laugh, it makes us ’empathise’ with them and it gives us a similar feeling of happiness. That’s why we start laughing as well.

    • Photo: Iain Bethune

      Iain Bethune answered on 15 Jun 2015:

      We are all social creatures! Getting on well with those around us makes us more likely to survive and pass on our genes to our future offspring. I’ve got kids already, so I don’t need to laugh at other people’s jokes any more 🙂

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