Why hasn't anyone noticed this before? There's a strong social bias against forced laughter, which is often seen as manipulative and superficial. In fact, one of the most common criticisms we receive in Laughter Yoga Clubs is that artificial or forced laughter is not genuine. Historically, laughing without a reason has been equated with insanity, as people believe that laughter must stem naturally from something genuinely funny.
Let me clear up this misconception: In Laughter Clubs, we approach laughter as an exercise—there's no distinction between real and fake. Both types of laughter have their own benefits. Exercise itself isn't a natural inclination; we make an effort to exercise because we know it's beneficial. If exercise were natural, people would just start running or jogging on their own! Similarly, breathing is natural, yet we still practice breathing exercises. Laughter, too, is natural and can be practiced as a form of exercise.
Fake it Until You Make It
Some frequently asked questions are: Is forced laughter beneficial? Is there scientific research to support this idea? Can forced laughter create real laughter without any humorous intervention?
Strangely, the answer is yes. You can literally fake your way to an authentic laughing fit—or perhaps a fit of embarrassment if it doesn't work out! Our experience in Laughter Clubs shows that while we begin with laughter as an exercise, it often transforms into genuine laughter. It's not 100% fake. In fact, we even have an exercise called "Fake it Until You Make It." This phenomenon relies on eye contact and group dynamics, helping people connect and mimic each other's actions.
Although laughter from a joke and laughter in Laughter Clubs aren't identical, they share more similarities than differences. The difference lies in the initial trigger: in one case, the stimulus comes from something external; in the other, it's self-initiated.
Robert Provine writes in his book Laughter - A Scientific Investigation that one of the reasons we laugh is simply because of laughter itself. He also notes that in daily life, we don't always laugh at funny things—sometimes we laugh just from being with others. For example, we often laugh when greeting friends with a simple "Hello! How are you?" even though the situation isn't inherently funny.
Convinced of laughter's many benefits, Laughter Club members practice Laughter Yoga regularly and reap those benefits. With this motivation, triggering laughter becomes easier, and it is not all fake.
When observing Laughter Club members, it might seem like they're forcing their laughter. But those who participate know that although they start with laughter as an exercise, it soon turns into real laughter.
Theories Explaining How Forced Laughter Turns into Real Laughter
Mirror Neuron Theory
Everyone knows laughter is infectious, but do you know why? It's because our brains have specialized cells called Mirror Neurons. We mimic others' emotions. When you see someone laughing, you feel like laughing. Similarly, when you see someone crying, you feel like crying. Have you ever smiled at a stranger and received a smile back, even though they don't know you and might not feel like smiling? This happens because of Mirror Neurons.
Scientists have long wondered about this, and more than two decades ago, Italian researchers Giacomo Rizzolatti and Vittorio Gallese discovered these neurons while studying monkeys. They noticed that certain cells activated both when a monkey performed an action and when it watched another monkey perform the same action. Since then, Mirror Neurons have been considered essential for human empathy, language, and other vital processes.
Contagious Nature of Laughter
People may initially laugh by watching others, but soon they begin to laugh genuinely. Consider the American Laughing Championships, where people competed for the title of the most contagious "laugher" in America. This was the first national event of its kind, and the winner was crowned "Best Laugher in America 2013."
The contest lasted about 80 minutes, with participants laughing on and off the entire time. They chortled, guffawed, and fell down laughing. How did they laugh for over an hour? Wasn't this just forced laughter? Various radio and TV hosts asked Julie Ostrow, the winner, this question. She explained, "I made myself laugh by laughing." Laughing contests are judged by their contagious effect on the audience, so without real laughter, she couldn't have won.
How did she do it? By following a set of behavioral rules, she triggered spontaneous laughter without jokes. The most common sound in laughter is "Ha ha ha." Interestingly, even remote Northern Namibian tribes, who have had little contact with the outside world, use this sound to laugh, suggesting it's a human universal. The "ha, ha, ha" is, in a sense, encoded in our DNA.
Facial Feedback Theory
The Facial Feedback Hypothesis is a well-known theory in psychological sciences, tracing back to William James. He suggested that people can provoke authentic emotions by acting out the behavior associated with that emotion. Simply put, you can feel happy just by smiling, even if you have no reason to smile.
This is exactly what we do in Laughter Clubs. By acting out laughter, we create the real feeling of laughing. Scientists have tested this by having people hold pencils or sticks between their teeth, inducing an artificial smile. Despite being artificial by most measures, the test subjects often experienced genuine happiness and sometimes even burst into laughter.
Research further shows that our facial expressions can significantly influence how we feel. This aligns with James and Lange's hypothesis: producing a response characteristic of a particular emotion should cause you to experience that emotion.
In Laughter Clubs, participants engage in playful, childlike exercises that require funny and humorous facial expressions. This evokes similar emotions in the brain, which in turn lead to genuine laughter. Once again, this proves that even if you try to laugh or force laughter, it eventually becomes real.