The laughter of tiny babies is not just a phenomenally popular theme for youtube videos, it is also a fantastic window into the workings of the human brain. You can’t laugh unless you get the joke and neither can your baby. At Birkbeck Babylab we study how babies learn about the world. We believe that studying early laughter in detail will throw new light on the workings of babies’ brains, as well as offering new insights into the uniquely human characteristic that is humour.
Laughter survey
We are researching just what makes babies laugh by conducting the largest ever global survey of early laughter. If you are parent with a child under two and a half, you can take the survey here. It takes about 15-20 minutes to complete.
Field reports
We are also interested in the particular incidents that make babies laugh. Who was present? What was so funny? Parents, grandparents, brothers, sisters and friends are all encouraged to file a short ‘field report‘ on their infant observations.
Laughing baby videos
Cats may own the internet, but laughing babies have won youTube. Nearly half a billion people have watched little Charlie laughing as he bites his brother’s finger. There are thousands of other babies having just as much fun with mummy, daddy, family pets and torn-up paper. We’re keeping an eye out for new videos and are adding them to our video blog. If you find a good video, let us know. Better yet film one and send us the link.
Follow the blog
We will be keeping a record of our progress and posting our findings onto the blog. If you are interested in what we find out or want to read about what is making other babies laugh, please follow the blog or subscribe to our RSS feed.
Tell your friends.
The more babies we find out about the better. Please click one of the sharing buttons below, or simply tell your friends the old fashioned way.
Thank you,
Dr. Caspar Addyman
