Gonot-Schoupinsky Freda, Gonot-Schoupinsky Xavier, Weeks Mark
School of Psychology, Faculty of Health & Wellbeing, University of Bolton, Deane Road, Bolton, BL3 5 AB, UK.
, Monaco, Monaco.
Discov Ment Health. 2025 Apr 28;5(1):63. doi: 10.1007/s44192-025-00183-9.
Laughter has been predominantly viewed as a social behavior, and laughing alone is often regarded doubtfully, even pathologized. While solitary laughter can be symptomatic of mental health issues, one motivation of this review was to explore whether it can also offer mental health benefits. Research demonstrates that over 10% of laughter occurs in solitude and there is increasing awareness that it is not only enjoyed but can serve important roles in supporting health and wellbeing. To establish a useful foundation for further exploration of its potential in enhancing health and wellbeing, this review scopes the subject across disciplines. An unprecedented search revealed 120 records (n = 83 academic articles n = 37 literary and book references) that mention solitary laughter in meaningful ways. The Solitary Laughter Model (SLM) developed for this research supported an initial classification according to the conditions in which the laughter took place be it complete solitary, public solitary, assisted solitary, or social solitary laughter. Our research reveals that laughing alone tends to be perceived as particularly problematic when done in public. Nevertheless, we also uncovered favorable mental health perspectives on solitary laughter and recent exciting clinical applications in assisted solitary laughter. The implications of these findings are discussed. The SLM is proposed as a pragmatic model to encourage precision in this nascent field of investigation and health practice. This review concludes that solitary laughter is an important human behavior deserving more scientific investigation to further unlock its mental health and wellbeing benefits.
笑声主要被视为一种社会行为，独自发笑往往受到质疑，甚至被视为病态。虽然独自发笑可能是心理健康问题的症状，但本综述的一个目的是探讨它是否也能对心理健康有益。研究表明，超过10%的笑声发生在独处时，人们越来越意识到，独自发笑不仅令人愉悦，而且在促进健康和幸福方面可以发挥重要作用。为了为进一步探索其在促进健康和幸福方面的潜力奠定有用的基础，本综述对跨学科的该主题进行了梳理。一项前所未有的搜索发现了120条记录（n = 83篇学术文章，n = 37篇文学和书籍参考文献），这些记录以有意义的方式提及了独自发笑。为本研究开发的独自发笑模型（SLM）支持根据发笑发生的条件进行初步分类，无论是完全独自、公共场合独自、辅助独自还是社交场合独自发笑。我们的研究表明，在公共场合独自发笑往往被认为特别成问题。然而，我们也发现了关于独自发笑的有利心理健康观点以及最近在辅助独自发笑方面令人兴奋的临床应用。讨论了这些发现的意义。SLM被提议作为一个实用模型，以鼓励在这个新兴的研究和健康实践领域做到精准。本综述得出结论，独自发笑是一种重要的人类行为，值得更多的科学研究，以进一步挖掘其对心理健康和幸福的益处。
