Why is Laughing a natural reaction to bad things?

[Jaylock]

Have you ever noticed that when something bad happens, generally people's first reaction is to laugh?

For example, say you are at school, and you see someone trip, most people would laugh because it was an unexpected event, but then they might help the person up. Or another example is if food was thrown at someone's face in the cafeteria, people would naturally laugh. But for the person who received the food to the face, thats presumably a bad thing.

But why is laughter usually the first natural reaction that people have to bad things happening?

Is it because human nature is to make light of peoples bad fortune? Not really sure so thought I'd ask.

[MonsieuRoberts]

The same reason that crying is a natural reaction to profoundly pleasing things. Your body's gotta try and keep an emotional balance to cope with whatever it is you're seeing, lest you suffer death by REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

[Heladys]

I laugh at every Jaylock thread I see. I wonder if these things are connected?

[Radaney]

Because laughing makes you happy. Being happy during a stressful situation obviously makes the situation less stressful. That's the basics of it.

Laughing is relief after a stressful situation, you see someone fall over and they end up being fine. Haha, laugh with relief.

You see someone fall over and they end up not being fine. You typically won't laugh and go further into stressful serious mode.

[chrisnumbers]

It's actually a seizure. It's the brain's response to something surprising and unexpected.

[Amarao]

If I remember correctly, it has to do with our fight or flight response.

If something unexpected happens, you don't have time to rationalise it and thus your brain defaults to it's most basic instinct: fight or flight.
Your rationale catches up, your brain realises you're not in danger and the next reaction in the "state machine" is laughing.

I'm sure someone else will be able to explain more accurately.

[Deleted]

because it is in human evolution to be evil and feel humour at others misfortune.

it is people who do not laugh that you need to worry about.

[Lochton]

Have you ever noticed that when something bad happens, generally people's first reaction is to laugh?

For example, say you are at school, and you see someone trip, most people would laugh because it was an unexpected event, but then they might help the person up. Or another example is if food was thrown at someone's face in the cafeteria, people would naturally laugh. But for the person who received the food to the face, thats presumably a bad thing.

But why is laughter usually the first natural reaction that people have to bad things happening?

Is it because human nature is to make light of peoples bad fortune? Not really sure so thought I'd ask.

Or... how about laughing without a bad consciousness about it? If people fall, I laugh, while helping them up.

[Linkedblade]

Schadenfreude is the simplest answer. But tragedy is one of those things that you may it may not be able to empathise with. Either way there is a line between horrible and horrific and terrible and terrific. And that ambiguity makes the brain act goofy.

[Skulltaker]

Have you ever noticed that when something bad happens, generally people's first reaction is to laugh?

For example, say you are at school, and you see someone trip, most people would laugh because it was an unexpected event, but then they might help the person up. Or another example is if food was thrown at someone's face in the cafeteria, people would naturally laugh. But for the person who received the food to the face, thats presumably a bad thing.

But why is laughter usually the first natural reaction that people have to bad things happening?

Is it because human nature is to make light of peoples bad fortune? Not really sure so thought I'd ask.

Our brain works at a surprisingly fast speed. The moment your concious mind has cought up that someone tripped and you are laughing about it, your subconcious mind has alrady analyzed the situation and realized that they are not hurt. If there is blood spilled or a visible injury, you won't laugh (unless there is something wrong with you.)

Laughing is, among many other things, a defence mechanism, used to disarm what sometimes is summed up as an 'awkward' or 'uncomfortable' situation. Laughing also plays over a sense of helplessness. Laughing at a bad situation is an acknowledgement that you're overwhelmed by a situation and don't know how to act. You can actually train these impulses away, btw.

[zlygork]

I always smile when I am feeling nervous/uncomfortable and it seems to really confuse people.
To answer your question very simply and briefly, a smile/laughter is a sign of non-hostility, so if you think of this in terms of monkeys, you would smile at a scary monkey to show that you are not looking for a fight.

[ge0]

Good topic. About 20 years ago I was out biking with my mom (she was in her 50s at the time). She hit a rock or something and fell off her bike in front of me onto the ground. I remember the moment because my first instinct was to laugh, but a moment later I thought that maybe she could have been badly hurt considering the way she fell, and I was horrified at myself for having wanted to laugh. She was okay fortunately. But since then I haven't really found it funny when people get hurt. I guess it changed me, and I still feel weird about it in retrospect.