Have you ever been when you had to laugh even though you didn’t really find anything funny?
Maybe someone told a joke and everyone else laughed, but you just couldn’t bring yourself to do it. You may have felt like you were the only one who wasn’t in on the joke. Well, guess what? You’re not alone.
Many people fake laugh because they feel like they have to. But why do we do this? And what psychological factors are behind a fake laugh?
It can communicate a willingness to cooperate and openness to bonding.
We do it to fit in with others. If everyone else around us is laughing, we may feel like we have to laugh too so that we don’t stand out. This is especially true if the person telling the joke is someone in a position of power, like our boss or a teacher. We may also laugh because we don’t want to hurt the other person’s feelings or make them feel bad.
Diffusing an awkward situation
Maybe we feel awkward in a social situation and think laughing will make things less uncomfortable.
Being polite
Another possibility is that we’re trying to show our appreciation for something, even if we don’t actually find it funny. For example, we might laugh along with…
