A New Predictor of Likeability: Laughter
2006; Volume: 8; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês
ISSN
1527-7143
Autores Tópico(s)Humor Studies and Applications
ResumoIn two experiments, videotaped and still-photographed laughter was examined with respect to likeability. A total of 350 (150 Study 1, 200 Study 2) Introductory Psychology students participated for partial course credit. In Study 1, participants rated videotaped recordings of individuals on the Reysen Likeability Scale. Individuals in the video laughed genuinely, faked their laughter, or did not laugh while reading paragraph. In Study 2, participants rated photographs of 8 different individuals using the Reysen Likeability Scale. The photographs depicted individuals genuinely laughing, faking their laughter, smiling, or exhibiting neutral expression. In both the video and photograph condition individuals were rated higher on likeability when they were laughing (genuine or fake), and participants were able to identify false laughter at rate better than chance alone. Explanations for the origins and purpose of laughter have varied widely. It has been suggested that laughter is an expression of joy, happiness, and play (Darwin, 1872), signal the danger is over (Hayworth, 1928), signal of false alarm (Ramachandran, 1998), dissociation to stress (Keltner & Bonanno, 1997), release of nervous energy (Freud, 1959), method to enhance social bonds (Coser, 1960), or method to elicit emotional affect in listeners (Bachorowski & Owren, 2001). Laughter plays social function, evident by the fact that we rarely laugh alone (Provine, 2000; Provine & Fischer, 1989). The present study reviews past research concerning laughter and provides empirical support for connection between laughter and likeability. Laughter is an innate behavior in humans. It first appears around 1-2 months of age (Sroufe & Wunsch, 1972). Robert Provine defines laughter as, ... regular series of short, vowel like syllables that are usually transcribed in English as ha-ha, ho-ho, or he-he (Provine, 2000, p. 1). Laughter can be vocalized (voiced), or unvocalized (unvoiced) (Grammer & Eibl-Eibesfeldt, 1990). Voiced laughter can be divided into songlike pattern or non-songlike pattern, though most likely voiced laugh will exhibit songlike pattern. Unvoiced laughter is evident in grunts or snorts (Bachorowski & Smoski, 2001). Aspects that aid in the salience of likeability include physical attractiveness, similarity to ourselves, compliments, and association (Cialdini, 1993). In series of studies, participants rated physically attractive sources as more talented, kind, honest and intelligent (for review see Eagly, Ashmore, Makhijani, & Longo, 1991). Similarity to ourselves (Byrne, 1971; Carli, Ganley, & Pierce-Otay, 1991; Hogg, Cooper-Shaw, & Holzworth, 1993), as well as, compliments or praise (Byrne & Rhamey, 1965; Berscheid & Walster, 1978; Drachman, deCarufel, & Insko, 1978) increase source's likeability. In addition, nonverbal behavior, such as mimicking another person's actions, increase liking (Lakin, Jefferis, Cheng, & Chartrand, 2003). Although direct link between laughter and liking has not been empirically examined, similar non-verbal affect symbol has been studied. Smiling has been proposed to be social display rather than sign of emotion (Ekman, 1994). Individuals smiling are viewed as pleasant (Mueser, Brau, Sussman, & Rosen, 1984), attractive (Forgas, 1987), honest (Rubak, 1981), competent, gregarious, genuine (Reis et al., 1990), and likable (LaFrance & Hecht, 1995). Dale Carnegie wrote, a smile says 'I like you. You make me happy. I am glad to see you'(Carnegie, 1981). A further distinction has been made between felt and feigned smiles (Frank, Ekman, Friesen, 1993). A felt smile is termed Duchenne smile. A number of gender differences have been found for both the use and affect generated by the use of laughter. Provine (1993) examined the association between laughter and speech in the context of conversation. …
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