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 sh

Laughing at 'unfunny'

Jul 29th, 2021 27m 23s

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 laught

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Show Trailer - What's the podcast about?

Jun 25th, 2021 2m 44s

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

Living Life with Laughter

Jun 21st, 2021 17m 48s

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 distre

Laughter & Resilience

Jun 9th, 2021 14m 31s

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 li

The Laughing Baby Study

Sep 30th, 2016 44m 32s

Today's podcast - released on none other than International Podcast Day...yes, it's a thing...is a follow up interview with Evan Jordan of Oklahoma State University. If you are a new listener to the Laughter Research Podcast, you might like to

From Near Death to Laughter

Sep 15th, 2016 1h

My guest in podcast episode #15 is Merv Neal. Merv has a lengthy background in business, but a life threatening challenge to his health instigated a transformation in his approach to life. His goals switched from making money to improving the h

14: Podcast plans for the coming months

Jul 17th, 2015 8m 31s

In this episode I set out my plans for the Laughter Research podcast for the rest of 2015 and I make a recommendation for an excellent psychology podcast - The Psych Files by Michael Britt.

Contagious Babies

Apr 23rd, 2015 33m 25s

Today I speak with Evan Jordan of Oklahoma State University in the U.S. about her research in to the contagiousness of positive emotions in infants, through the use of infant laughter as a stimulus. If you would like to hear about how psycholo

Neuroscience of Laughter

Apr 2nd, 2015 35m 54s

Professor Sophie Scott is the deputy director for the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience in UCL (University College London). While the main focus of her research is the neurobiology of speech perception, her work also includes the study of the

11: Ridicule & Laughter with Prof. Michael Billig

Mar 5th, 2015 39m

The main focus of my conversation with Prof. Billig was the topic of his book Laughter and Ridicule: Towards a Social Critique of Humour (Published in association with Theory, Culture & Society) in which he explores the important role which ri

10: Comedian & 'Yummy Daddy' - Steve Cummins

Feb 12th, 2015 51m 35s

Steve Cummins is an author, a broadcaster, a stand-up comedian, as well as being the resident host in the Laughter Lounge, Dublin's premier comedy venue. In this podcast episode (which was recorded in my kitchen - hence the echo) myself and St

Laughing on the Job

Jan 20th, 2015 26m 13s

Susan Cross is a director of and a partner in a company called TellTale. TellTale is a company which helps the management and staff of cultural and heritage sites to create days out, which visitors to the sites will remember and want to return

What's a 'Laughologist'?

Dec 17th, 2014 40m 1s

Albert Nerenberg, director of the documentary 'Laughology' is today's guest. Since the Laughology movie, which is the main topic of discussion in today’s episode, Albert has continued to embrace laughter and he is a regular international speak

7: Laughter Yoga: The Trouble with Research

Dec 9th, 2014 24m 46s

Laughter Yoga is a very interesting phenomenon from a scientific perspective, because it’s so challenging to study in a rigorous way. There are various reasons for this, which I get into in greater detail in this episode. I also delve into some

Clean Comedy

Dec 2nd, 2014 35m 5s

Daniel J Lewis is the host of 'The Ramen Noodle - Clean Comedy Podcast', in addition to being the host of the award winning show 'The Audacity to Podcast'. Daniel explains how he uses laughter in his life to overcome challenges and he offers ad

Laughter In The Classroom

Nov 21st, 2014 25m 8s

Today's guest is Niall Mulvey, principal of St. Brendan's National school in the beautiful seaside town of Loughshinny, Co. Dublin, Ireland. Niall has been working in Loughshinny for 25+ years and has always embraced laughter in the classroom.

Laughing Sailors

Oct 31st, 2014 32m 7s

Lynn discusses her book, Seriously Laugh: The life you save might be your own. She summarises her favourite tips on how to bring laughter into your life and she tells me about her work to bring laughter to the elderly through her 'Patch Works'

Life Is Crap

Oct 23rd, 2014 21m

Paul Weeler is co-founder and co-director of an hilarious clothing apparel and merchandise company called 'Life Is Crap'. Paul tells me about how a chance incident, whilst trapped in a British Pub, due to a 2cm snowfall, led to the brainwave of

Comedy Snobs

Oct 23rd, 2014 34m 24s

In addition to being Assistant Professor in Sociology at London School of Economics, Sam Friedman is a comedy reviewer and publisher of his own arts review magazine 'Fest'. Sam describes what he has learned from his experiences, both as a revie

The Birth of Laughter Yoga

Oct 23rd, 2014 31m 8s

In this episode I learn about Laughter Yoga, from the man who created it - Dr. Madan Kataria. We discuss what inspired him to create it, whether it is laughter, or social and psychological factors which help in people's healing and we talk abou

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