Laughter Research Glen Duggan Ph.D. (Psych)

This episode is a review of a research paper by Angus James McLachlan of the Federation University, Australia. The basis of the research explored in today's episode was to examine how laughter is used by people as a marker in conversation to show that the meaning of the words aren’t meant to be serious in the context that they’re spoken (when accompanied by laughter) and also how the person doing the laughing is essentially trying to be friendly with the people they are chatting and laughing with.

Why is it that we laugh at stuff that's not 'funny', like walking straight into a pole? What kind of person does it make us if we laugh at someone else walking into a pole, but it's not funny when we do it? 
In this episode I explore how laughter is but one of a variety of tools that we use in our everyday lives to help us to cope with the unexpected - like watching our friends get chased by a grizzly bear. 
This episode also deals with the definitions of 'negotiate' and discord' in terms of how we negotiate the discordant aspects of life with laughter. In the next episode I'll be exploring the development of laughter as a life skill in infancy. 
 

Who is the Laughter Research podcast for? 
Maybe you're a performer and you want to understand more about why people laugh, or maybe you're a school teacher and you're wondering how laughter might benefit your students.
You may be working in a dangerous or stressful environment and you're wondering if laughter can help you to buffer some of that stress. Perhaps, in a more general sense, you're wondering if there is any evidence to show if laughter has potential to improve your well-being. 
If you want to know more about why we laugh and how laughter influences our daily lives, then visit laughterresearch.com to subscribe to the podcast. 

What is the purpose of laughter? Is it simply a physiological response to humour? If so, why do people find themselves laughing at extremely 'unfunny' moments, such as when they find themselves involved in a car crash, or when watching a distressing video? 
In this episode, I introduce the idea that laughter is more than an expression of humour appreciation and it is more likely to be a means to help us negotiate our way through this unpredictable world, by helping us to deal with some of life's challenges. 
 

Since the last episode (It's been a while), I've done the research on the ways in which people use laughter to help them get through the trials and tribulations of life and I earned a PhD for my troubles. 
I've also lived through a number of life changing challenges, including breaking my spine, and laughter has served me well. 
Now it's time to put these lessons into the magical format of audio and get back on the podcasting saddle. This episode marks the relaunch of the podcast and outlines the themes of resilience and recovery that are going to guide the future episodes.