What's in the News?
What I would like you to do is to start applying what we are learning in class to real world matters. Some might ask, "What good is learning psychology if we can't apply it to real world matters?" So that is what we are going to do with this divergence assignment.
What I would like you to do is to either go to NPR (http://www.npr.org/ ), the BBC (http://www.bbc.co.uk/ ) or any news site listed at the bottom of this page (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ listed in their news sources) and read, watch, or listen to something that is interesting to you and relates to what we have been learning in the class.
Please respond the blog by telling us what the piece you chose was and why you picked it (what made it interesting for you)? What did you expect to see? What did you find most interesting about the piece?
Next discuss how it relates to the class using terms, terminology, and concepts that we have learned so far in class.
Include the URL in your post.
Make a list of key terms and concepts you used in your post.
Let me know if you have any questions,
--Dr. M
I found a humorous article on the NPR website that I chose to blog about American writer, Jonathan Franzen was in London to kick off his book tour for his newest novel, Freedom. Franzen was attending a party for his book tour at the Serpentine Club when his glasses were suddenly snatched off his face. The thief left a ransom note demanding $10,000 and immediately fled the scene. Partygoers chased after the thief until he jumped into a small lake where the police were involved soon after. Franzen said the thief was eventually coaxed out of some bushes about 30 minutes later and a police officer returned the author's glasses.Franzen doesn't plan on pressing charges and states that he's been laughing over the ordeal.
I picked this article because of the title. "London Police Catch Prankster Who Stole Writer Jonathan Franzen's Eyeglasses," was a title that really caught my eye and made me want to read more. I didn't really have any expectations as to what the article was going to be about. This was probably because the title seemed so random. After reading the article I found it very funny. I thought it was humorous that at a serious social gathering such as the book tour, even the most random and ridiculous actions can happen. I thought it was funny that Franzen didn't take the prank too seriously and he was able to laugh at the thief's actions.
This article relates to mostly to the social psychology concept that we have discussed in class. First, the thief's actions at the book tour caused humor among the partygoers which then created social interaction. The thief's actions also pushed boundaries of social norms. Since Franzen and other partygoers found humor in the snatching of his glasses, the humor reduces the seriousness of his offense.
Terms: social interaction, social norms
URL: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2010/10/05/130358885/london-police-catch-prankster-who-snatched-writer-jonathan-franzen-s-glasses
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=130353581
I'm not sure why I decided to read this article in the first place, because usually reading things that have to do with science tend to bore me to tears. I opened the article and my eye caught the end of a sentence in the article: "using magnets to levitate a frog." I was immediately interested! And I instantly thought of incongruity in humor. I know that experiments are done on frogs in science, but it's usually something to do with biology, and that's not really what this article was about, and I thought that was interesting.
The article was about two scientists that won the Nobel Prize for Physics for their work on graphene – the world’s thinnest, yet strongest material. But the thing that I found funny about this was that this scientist or physicist is famous for a laboratory trick of levitating a frog. And you don’t even have to imagine it because there’s a video for you to watch right there next to the article of a frog that looks like it’s floating in midair. I thought the video was funny because of incongruity. We normally don’t see things just floating around like that every day, or at least I don’t, so I thought that it was funny. But not only did these scientist win a Nobel Prize, but in 2000 they won an Ig Nobel prize, which is a prizes given out for silly science. This was another thing that I found funny because I had no idea they gave out silly science Nobel Prize awards. I think I found that funny, again, because of the incongruity. I just wasn’t expecting it.
In my mind, I’m guilty of stereotyping scientists as not being that funny. Or if they do make a joke it’s about something that someone who isn’t a scientist would understand. But the article said that Andre Geim (the head scientist on this project) mentioned at the 2000 Ig Nobel Prize Awards that levitating this frog led to a lot of people asking him for requests, like a leader of a religious group “who offered us a million pounds if we could levitate him in front of his congregation to improve his public relations, apparently.” I thought that was pretty funny. It’s not really a flat out joke I guess, it’s more like sarcasm, but I still thought it was funny.
Terms: Incongruity, sarcasm
I chose to do two news articles that related to each other and basically for more information. The articles I found to be somewhat humorous were on Tiger Woods and his mistresses’. According to one mistress who calls herself a “porn queen” she has threatened to kill another one of Wood’s mistresses’. The porn queen states that “I will never be set up like this again. Trust me I swear to you I will kill over this.” Devon James (porn queen) is trying to sell a sex video of her and Woods which is approximately 63 minutes long with 37 of those minutes of her and Tiger going at it. Apparently her own mother claims she is a pathological liar and denies that her daughter even had a relationship with Woods. Furthermore, James is trying to sell this so called sex tape to Vivid Entertainment since January but no footage has come about. In addition James claims that she is a mother of a secret Tiger Woods love child, which Tiger denies.
The irony of this whole affair Tiger had is between two alleged porn stores who so happened to have the same last name (no relation). Feud all started when Joslyn tweeted something about Devon James stealing from her purse while they were both onset shooting a porn movie about their experiences with Tiger Woods.
I chose these news articles because I think it is funny yet ridiculous about how stupid people are to have affairs, cause so much bullshit happens and so much drama which effects more than one person’s lives. Plus the porn stars just want more attention and are willing to say anything to get it and maybe another job offer out of the deal. I basically saw all that I expected since this is always in the news nowadays. What I found the most interesting is the fact that Devon James own mother is either protecting her or trying or on the other hand bashing on her own daughter who she is probably ashamed of. Also, how serious James is taking this whole ordeal, what does she really want out of it?
So far in class, I think this news article relates to self-esteem because obviously Devon James has high self-esteem of herself for having all this publicity and furthering her career. Also, the concept of irony, because both porn stars work together, have the same last name that wasn’t intentional and both had an affair with Tiger Woods. Furthermore, the concept of save-face can e applied to this article because Devon James does not care about saving face because she wants face-threatening communications and she is putting others in an embarrassing and awkward situation but reporting all these true or false things for the world to see.
Key Terms: Irony, Self-esteem and Save-face
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/05/devon-james-joslyn-james_n_751357.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/09/29/tiger-woods-sex-tape-alle_n_744063.html
The article I have chosen to blog about is titled “No Cabbage. No Kimchi. Crisis.” Obviously, this title caught my eye because of the use of the words and the seriousness of the format. I couldn’t help but laugh when I read it, mainly because I don’t feel as though cabbage is a very serious subject. Cabbage is an essential ingredient in the side dish Kimchi, which is basically a soup. Riots and fights are supposed to break out over the shortage of cabbage because the Southern Korean’s don’t feel “satiated” enough if they don’t have their kimchi. After I read the article though, it was plain to see that the author was mocking the Koreans for acting out in such a manner. He even ends the article claiming that the video game Starcraft 2 is just as important as the Napa cabbage; which I believe is a use of teasing because of the cultural differences between the United States and Korea.
Also, the author seemed to be overstating the title to make it seem more serious, therefore funnier. He could have reworded the article to say, “Shortage of Cabbage in Korea Causes A Crisis,” but instead he decided to use that form of word play to make it humorous.
Before reading the article, I expected it to be serious; mainly because I have seen other articles about the ongoing “crisis” in Korea. Therefore, I was surprised to see that it wasn’t serious at all and was actually meant to be humorous. It could be a serious matter like the potato famine that happened in Ireland, but I think we have come such a long way since that era that starvation wont happen in Korea. There is also a satire occurring in this title and article because the author is poking fun at Korea for acting out in such a way.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2010/10/06/130373720/cabbage-shortage-leads-to-kimchi-crisis-in-south-korea
Terms Used: Teasing, Overstating, Satire
I was watching the news on television while looking around on the huffingtonpost.com when the story about Lou Dobbs allegedly hiring illegal immigrants. I didn’t expect anything before reading this article other than the same information that I had just heard on television minutes before finding the article online. I thought this was quite ironic and kind of funny so I went back to the main page of the site and sure enough, it was on the front page. Dobbs has been a long time critic of people who hire undocumented workers and illegal’s altogether. The article comes from an undercover investigation on Dobbs. Isabel Macdonald discovered that Dobbs has hired five undocumented workers to maintain his property and care for horses that he purchased for his daughter. Macdonald spoke to one worker who worked for two years before he received his work visa. Another worked stated that Dobbs knew exactly what was going on.
This article relates to what we are studying because it contains irony. One would think that someone who is so outspoken about illegal workers and immigrants wouldn’t hire illegal’s themselves so that something of this nature couldn’t happen. Obviously that isn’t true therefore I found it funny and ironic. Regardless of whether this story is actually true or not the idea that someone who is known for being so outspoken and critical against undocumented workers may have hired illegal immigrants is funny. Obviously Dobbs says these claims are false and therefore he is trying to save-face and restore is reputation. He states that Macdonald is just part of a smear piece and fairly typical hit piece.
Terms: save-face, and irony
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/07/lou-dobbs-hired-illegal-immigrants_n_753799.html
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=130411065
My article was titled “Dead People Received 18$ in Stimulus Checks.” It talks about how last years stimulus checks went to 72,000 dead people and 17,000 inmates. The inmates had a legitimate excuse because most of them were recently incarcerated and most were receiving social security before that.
The humor in this story is very ironic. It is most certainly incongruous. I have many republican family members who were very much against this stimulus package to begin with and the thought of the look on their faces if they knew that this money was sent to inmates is the picture of irony for me. What is incongruous about this story is the idea that it was sent out and intended to be spent in order to stimulate the economy, and inmates are not so much in the position to be spending much money at local coffee shops.
Terms: incongruity and irony
The article I chose is from NPR and talks about dead people/inmates receiving stimulus checks. I don’t really find it knee slapping funny or funny at all really (probably because I’m in a telic state and have a lot to get done), but it fits under what the book describes as ironic. According to the text, irony is a “figure of speech that communicates the opposite of what is said.” In this case, it is ironic that dead people received checks that are meant to stimulate the economy, and obviously, these people are incapable of doing so. When I further read the article, it became clear that the 72,000 dead people had just recently died, therefore, the Social Security agency wasn’t notified before the checks were sent out. Some recently incarcerated citizens also received these checks. It sounds like the majority of the money sent out has been returned…phew!
I would have obviously picked something that I actually found funny to discuss, but this week, I had trouble finding something. I am one of those people who relies on catchy titles to click on a story and the articles on the websites do not generally have titles that grab my attention. At home where I actually get a newspaper, I look at it every day, but really, I scan the titles to see if anything sounds crazy, funny, or interesting. I am one who relies a lot of on first impressions, so if the titles doesn’t grab me, I don’t bother reading the article.
Because everybody is getting busier and busier it seems these days, I feel that media outlets need to be more creative to draw people’s attention. If people aren’t drawn in, they aren’t likely to spend the time that they could spend on many other daily tasks reading through the articles.
I do feel that in some cases titles really sell the story, but this week, I just couldn’t find anything that drew me in! There probably are funny articles out there, but I’m missing them because of the bland titles!
(I just noticed someone already posted about this article)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=130411065
Terms used: telic state, irony
This article had caught my eye the other morning because I saw that a couple of my friends were posting such status on their facebook. I knew that there had to be something more to the story but really didn’t care to look more until I saw the link to this article. After I read the article, I went back on to facebook and look around. I found it interesting that many more boys were curious/disturb about what their friends, sisters, and mothers were posting to their status. To me this is superior theory. There is obviously an in and an out group in this situation. The in-group being women and the out-group being men. I think that the joke involves a traditional stereotype within our society. Something along the lines of women are secretively more intelligent than then men, and use this intelligence to deceive dumb men. Based on the responses of men, this stereotype was affirmed. Women giggled together about the status, as men stumbled to make meaning out of what was put as the status. Also it also has some incongruity theory elements to it. You don’t expect your friends and family to be indiscreetly posting such things, so it is funny that they are. In case the incongruity is resolved when you read the article, I think it adds to the humor of it. It’s similar to bisociation (the term no one could think of in class today) when two separate ideas are put together. The explicit status and the real meaning behind the statuses, promoting breast cancer awareness, are pulled together; this is at least a little entertaining. Finally, this is an example where with the use of humor a message about something serious, breast cancer awareness, reached a whole lot more people than it arguably would have another way.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/05/i-like-it-on-facebook-sta_n_751756.html
The Huffington Post website provided me with a humorous video called, “Americans Get the Most Exercise When Drunk”. Obviously this video begins with an incredibly interesting title, so this is why I considered it for my blog post. According to the information provided by the Onion News Network (w/in Huffington Post site), a recent study has shown that in times of intoxication Americans do the most aerobic activities. The explanation for this theory is that during periods of drinking we engage in over-enthusiastic dancing, participating in competitive keg stands, or "chasing crying girlfriends down the street”. From this article’s perspective it is really quite interesting and funny that Americans are getting the bulk of their physical activity after consuming abundant amounts of alcohol. A statement by a Dr. Garvin in the video was really funny too, which said, “Drinking to excess is now one of the healthiest activities Americans regularly do. But you don't have to be drunk to benefit from the physical exercise that comes from being drunk. There are a few drunken activities one can do while sober. For instance: Try to spend at least one night a week climbing your local water tower or throwing glass mugs against the wall”.
The psychology of humor concepts that best explain the video and the information’s humorousness are the Incongruence Theory, schemas, and possibly irony. The theory of incongruence accounts for this being funny, because people’s general knowledge in this day in age of lengthened lifespans and advancing health sciences that drinking alcohol excessively in anyway has a health benefit; let alone being directly related to increased exercise. Yes, it is common knowledge that exercise and eating right are two basic ways to improving ones health, but never would I have associated drinking alcohol to the point of looseness would have its benefits. Certain things that fall into my mind’s schema for increasing exercise are eating right and getting enough sleep. When getting drunk is suggested to improving our amount of exercise incongruence occurs, which then creates humor, because being inebriated just doesn’t fit in to my schema of being healthy. I am bit unsure of myself, but I think this topic could also be approached as ironic and humorous due to the contrasting information on being drunk. Our parents and the school system educate us about the negative aspects of being drunk while this article/video from Huffington Post does quite the opposite in a sense. To me, on a shallow level, the message, “When you’re drunk, you get more exercise”, is a positive one, especially to a college student and the culture (going to parties/bars) that often accompanies being a young college student. The irony of this is that the behavior of getting a bit tipsy several times a week might have a bad connotation (always getting drunk), but really quite the opposite could be argued. Getting tipsy a few times a week might just provide everyone with more exercise throughout the week, which can only be healthy, right?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/06/onn-exercise-drunk-_n_752229.html
Terminology Used: Incongruence Theory, Schemas, & Irony.
Correction/Typo: 2nd Pargraph, 2nd Sentence.
...because people’s general knowledge in this day in age of lengthened lifespans and advancing health sciences that drinking alcohol excessively in anyway has no health benefit;...
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128002472
I chose this particular news story because it relates to a number of different issues about how humor relates to news and politics. On April Fool's day an online company called "Think Geek" made up a comedy t-shirt about eating unicorn meat. They used the slogan "the new white meat." The pork industry decided that this was too close to their slogan of 'the other white meat' and issued a cease and desist order against the company. The ensuing headline read "Pork Industry Apparently Can't Take a Joke".
The first way that our study of humor relates to current events is that sometimes headlines are funny (by accident or design) and this may catch our attention. There are so many sources of news and news stories, that something must draw our attention to the stories we end up reading. Our own sense of humor impacts which headlines we find 'accidentally' funny. However, there is a big question as to whether or not headline writers would attempt to make headlines funny on purpose in order to attract attention. There is no doubt that sometimes they do. We've learned that humor is often used to communicate a playful state of mind which can be beneficial such as when a serious topic risks becoming to threatening, but it can also be aversive such as when a person comes off as being goofy or aloof (in this way humor is best used to maintain equilibrium, our z theory). In this instance it seems that since the story itself involves humor, Think Geek offers numerous comedy themed products, it was natural to also make a comical headline.
However, this also shows how important an understanding of humor is when working within the real world. The title as well as the initial reading of the news piece do make us laugh, but this is also a serious matter. At what point does an advertising campaign or a slogan copy another? This can be a highly subjective or ambiguous process. Perhaps even more so when the idea in question is being used humorously? Just because we laugh at the headline or the idea doesn't mean that they aren't capitalizing on the pork industries slogan. Just because they are capitalizing, does this mean they shouldn't be able to? We can imagine Think Geek PR officers saying "Come on, it was only a joke?" This shows how people may be able to get away with more than they otherwise would since 'they weren't really copying, they were only making a joke.'
To make matters worse Think Geek issued a statement apologizing for 'misleading anyone as to the differences between pigs and unicorns.' Here they are comically making a claim that very obviously no one would confuse their product as being a legitimate alternative to pork. It would be quite interesting to read the cease and desist order to find out exactly what idea the pork industry has about this whole issue.
If they don't get the joke then this article is hilarious. Another company that represents absolutely no competition to the pork industry makes a completely incongruous comparison between their product and that of a mythical creature and they miss the incongruity? Awesome. Here the original idea is funny, but also it is funny that they don't see the obvious incongruity (which is also incongruous because: how could such a large company be so oblivious?)
If however, they are simply over-protective of the words they use and are exerting their political power by demonstrating that they have the power to control any and all ideas (humorous or not) that relate to pork or the pork industry the story is funny, but less so. Here the original incongruity is enough to still be funny, but they accept the joke, they just feel it is still hurting their own business and don't appreciate it.
Finally, if they are simply pointing out that even though they are a comical site, they are really capitalizing on the slogan of another company by relying TOO heavily on the original slogan (and presumably not enough on thinking creatively, they would need some statistics or data to make this argument probably), then I think this is a legitimate complaint about intellectual property, and it raises awareness about what can happen when we give too much power to humor's 'just kidding' playfulness.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2010/10/06/130382547/noise-from-consumers-prompts-sunchips-to-go-back-to-traditional-packaging
I read an article about how Frito-Lay has decided to change the packaging of Sun Chips back to their original packaging because their more recent, biodegradable package has been criticized as being too loud. I picked this article because those bags are REALLY loud and thought it was interesting that they found this such a problem that they would need to change it. Frito-Lay has decided to keep the original flavor of their chip available in both the traditional and the earth-friendly bags, but the rest of the flavors will go back to being available only in the traditional, quieter bags. There are plans to make a quieter, yet still earth friendly bag, but it hasn't been designed yet.
I think that this is humorous because a very large company (Frito-Lay) was influenced by ridicule from YouTube videos and Facebook groups, such as one called "I wanted SunChips, but my roommate was sleeping". I'm sure that these videos and groups were made as a joke, and that most people weren't offended or upset that the bags were louder than what they were used to, but it still shows the influence that these outlets have. A couple of college kids who make a video about something like the noise that a bag of SunChips make probably don't think that this will influence a company to change. This goes along with the Incongruity theory because usually it would be people who are working high up within the company.
I think that it is ironic how there is so much talk about going green and doing what you can about the environment, and people are doing things like buying hybrid cars and using alternative methods of fuel, but if something is done, like having loud bags of chips, people don't like it. I think that this is hypocritical of a lot of people, but especially for Frito-Lay. They mention that there was a lot of excitement over these bags, but now that they're ridiculed for them, they are pulling them off the market, and they are being replaced with the original. I think that they should have come up with a new quiet biodegradable bag to replace the loud one, or better yet, laughed at themselves over the whole situation.
Also, going along with what we discussed in class the other day, this is funny because when we read the news we expect serious stories, and this is a story about chips. It's actually not even about chips but the bag that one particular type of chip comes in. We go from a telic state, maybe reading about crime or politics, to a paratelic state reading about a snack food.
Terms: Incongruity theory, irony, telic, paratelic
For this assignment, I choose a video under the style section of the Huffington Post which features Lauren Conrad and her reaction to "fashion blunders". The video starts out like a public service message with Conrad stating that there is a major problem that needs to be addressed in today's society. Conrad explains how this major "problem" is becoming worse every hour of every day and lables the problem as "fashion F**ck ups, or FFU's for short," and then explains how a bad fashion choice reflects poorly upon a person in general. Conrad highlights examples of poor fashion choices and reasons for why they should be avoided. In the end, Conrad explains that more of these issues are addressed in her new book, entitled "Style".
I picked this particular video because I find myself critiquing certain clothing choices of others and occasionally wondering what message individuals are trying to get across based on their style selections. I must admit, I do find certain fashion trends and choices made by individuals to wear them as humorous.
I didn't expect to see Conrad portraying this message in the manner it was projected (although this is what makes it humorous). The fact that she makes the topic seem like a crisis, the sad music in the background, and her serious tone of voice are a part of the incongruity here. I expected a lighthearted tone with poking fun at others possibly out on the city streets, or Conrad interviewing people with "bad fashion" choices and this was not conclusive with what the video displayed. I did find the video interesting though because pictures are shown to exhibit such "choices" as Conrad explains exactly why they should be avoided. I have seen people make these "fashion blunders" she talks about before and they have made me laugh because I agree. (Aka, jean cutoffs, or "jorts" on men, and the use of a "fanny pack").
I would say the video relates closely with the concept of aggression and superiority in that Conrad is stating some choices are "better" and superior to others. Using a form of aggression, the "bad" choices are thus mocked, and considered to be humorous. I would say incongruity is present in the lay-out of the video; it is set in a serious undertone, however the concept of fashion in general is not a serious problem itself. No individual will "die" of a bad fashion choice. They may be ridiculed and made fun of through aggression of humor though.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/11/lauren-conrad-speaks-out-_n_758600.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jackson-katz/linda-mcmahon-smacks-down_b_760465.html?ir=Entertainment
This article is actually about a woman named Linda McMahon who is the co-owner of WWE wrestling. Now she is in fact running for a senator position in the state of Connecticut. She has a problem on her hands because she has some moral issues that have come into play during her evaluations and her debates. WWE has been known for lashing out violence against women and it has down an outstanding job in portraying the fact that its ok to beat women. Even her own daughter has been beating on that show by her real life husband. She doesn’t want the people running to bring this up in a character debate because it doesn’t show her real values. Her defense to all of this is that is PURE ENTERTAINMENT. They tell you not to try this stuff at home but if kids are anything like when I was growing up, we tried every move we saw on WWE on each other. Also we use to walk and act like the characters as well. I think this is interesting because of the fact that somebody in show biz who stood for that stuff would actually run for a serious and prominent position in our government like that.
When I read the tittle of the article I thought she was actually seen slapping up some women and men along with that but in fact its surprised me that she was running for a serious office in our United States Government.
When I was looking for something to link back to what we’ve been learning, I came up with Irony. The book describes Irony as a figure of speech that communicates something totally different or opposite of what is said. I want to go even further and say that it’s an action as well. I find it super ironic that someone would be serious about this and spend a lot of their own money in the process. I would even through a little sarcasm in there, I mean she didn’t have anybody in her ear being her (superego) or voice of reason saying Linda this is not what you want to do because of what you stand for! If I was her I would fire all my staff because they didn’t help me see the mistake I was making!!!! To put the icing on the the cake, her main target is women voters!!!! WWWHHHEEEWWWW!!! If that ain’t stupid I give up trying to figure out this humor thang!!! Haha The social psychological approach talked about how humor using some forms of stereotypes and sexist jokes to communicate humorous messages. In this case that is of her company misusing women as a form of some particular type of humor. I think that it in fact backfired on her because her thinking this is some sort of entertainment makes her character look bad especially when your own Daughter is getting beat and your husband is doing even worse things. It’s not so funny when you’re the butt of the joke when you want to be serious about something. Now the media is targeting you saying you’re a two faced person and a hypocrite. People don’t want those type of people in Washington making decisions about our government because you may think something is funny or you may say you’re going to do something and turn around and do the complete opposite!!!! Maybe people should think before they do things!!!
Irony, superego, sarcasm, butt, humor attitudes and prejudice.
I chose an article titled, “Laughter is still the best medicine!” I chose this article because a large part of Chapter 6 deals with laughter and the benefits laughter has for one’s health. Before reading this article, I assumed I was going to read about the medical benefits of laughter. I did not expect the article to explain anything that I had not already read in Chapter 6. I was surprised when I read that the article was discussing the health benefits of the St. Albans Laughter Club. According to the article, following the success of the club’s monthly laughter sessions, the club is expanding itself by launching a phone line that passes laughter calls. One member of the group will call another member and without saying “hello,” the caller will just start laughing. Dr. Madan Kataria, who was doing research in the health benefits of laughter, started Laughter Clubs in India in 1995. Lotte Mikkelsen set up her Laughter Club in St. Albans in 2004 after seeing the success of similar clubs in Denmark, where they have about 250 clubs all over the country. The club only gets together once a month, so phone calls allow the members to laugh on a regular basis. The club is said to allow individuals to become more playful in their lives, promote social relationships, and help them de-stress.
The Laughing Club claims that laughing promotes a feeling of playfulness because it lets people not feel bad about acting silly. Our text states, the emotion of mirth expressed by laughter also appears to be closely related to play. This type of play is similar to the laughter of early childhood and may be seen as an expression of the exuberant delight associated with physical play activities. Similarly, a person’s social context may be improved through laughter when a person’s threshold for experiencing mirth is raised. This notion supports the claim that the Laughing Club promotes social relationships. Our text suggests that mirth and laughter involves a range of physiological changes that take place in the brain, automatic nervous system, and endocrine system, along with subjective feelings of pleasure, amusement, and cheerfulness. Lotte claims that when we laugh we release endorphins which suppress our cortical levels, and that is why we feel relaxed. Based on the information provided, the evidence supports the ideas that laughing will allow an individual to be more playful in life, promote social relationships, and help them to de-stress.
Terms: laughter, health, playfulness/play, emotion, mirth, threshold, physiological
http://www.bbc.co.uk/threecounties/content/articles/2008/09/25/telephone_laughter_club_feature.shtml
Chapter 12 explains that actually laughing out loud may not be necessary to achieve the health benefits that result in these psysiological changes in response to vigourous laughter. They are more properly viewed as effects of emotion that is communicated by laughter; therefore, humor-induced feelings of mirth may be all that is needed to get the health benefits that are associated with laughter. Nonhumorous exercises for inducing laughter, such as those seen in laughter clubs, might not be very effective unless they also elicit the positive emotion of mirth along with the laughter. In other words, these laughing clubs may not be as beneficial as I once thought. Without the feeling of mirth, these laughing exercises may not help one's physical health.
Laughter is a behavior that reaches not only into our social lives where it seems to play the biggest part, but also into our own biological processes. When we laugh structures in our throat and chest assume a characteristic pattern of actions. Our bout of laughter begins with an involuntary exhale bringing our lung volume to functional residual capacity. Air is released from our tracheal chamber in short burst by a structure called the glottis. After a bout of laughter we inhale to refill our lungs and repeat the process until laughter has subsided. Our facial muscles also involuntarily assume a stereotyped position. The zygomatic major muscle, or the cheek muscles, and the obicularis oculi, or the muscles around the eyes, form a facial expression known as the Duchenne display. This display is considered the characteristic facial expression of mirthful laughter. Activation of other muscles in the face my indicate that laughter is spawned not only by mirth but may be associated with negative emotions as well.
Mirth also has a great impact on the nervous system. It seems to characteristically raise activity in the sympathetic nervous system and increases levels of hormones associated with stress and activation like cortisol and epinephrine. This is interesting because a study from science daily found that the act of laughter actually cause stress hormone levels to drop. It found that epinephrine and dopac (the primary catobolite of dopamine) levels were significantly lower in groups experiencing laughter for extended periods. Perhaps laughter is a physical behavior that we developed to offset the increase in stress level when we feel intense emotions of mirth. All emotions cause our nervous system to react with hormones, perhaps the physical manifestation of these emotions is somehow meant to be a counterbalance, these actions help to return us to a more even state while as the emotions build our sympathetic nervous activation increases.
Great ape laughter may hold true to this as well. In the link below an article describes how researchers were able to detect that when they tickled their research orangutan it laughed and expressed many of the same characteristic physical signs of laughing as humans do. The researchers believe that the behavior may date back to 10 million years ago. I believe this is more evidence that the physical act of laughing is a system to return our sympathetic nervous system to normal levels of activity after an extreme emotional stimulus. Tickling caused an incongrous experience of sensory information and an emotional response, stress hormones began to rise and limbic system triggers led to an increase in activity in the sympathetic nervous system. To resolve this increasing energy of anxiety the apes body begins to perform this handy little trick that has been passed down genetically. The ape breathes in short rapid breathes and facial expressions cause the muscular tension throughout the whole body to change. Stress hormones begin to decline again and heart rate skin conductance and overall activation begin to decline.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090417084115.htm
http://www.livescience.com/3624-pre-human-giggles-laughter-10-million-years.html