People with gelotophobia, or a fear of being laughed at, might have more active and dormant parts of the brain that prevent them from feeling the same emotions as people without the condition, National Tsing Hua University Institute of Learning Sciences assistant professor Chan Yu-chen (詹雨臻) said.
The results of a recent study suggest that gelotophobia might be the result of a relative deficit in the reward system, as analyses showed that gelotophobes exhibited diminished ventral mesocorticolimbic pathway activation in response to hostile jokes, Chan said.
Gelotophobes’ brains generally exhibited greater activity in dorsal corticostriatal projections, suggesting a higher degree of cognitive emotional control, she said, adding that, as a result, there was less activation in response to both hostile and non-hostile jokes.
In contrast, non-gelotophobes exhibited greater activation in response to nonhostile jokes, suggesting a more robust emotional response.
The results show that gelotophobes are unable to process jokes and their brains are unable to generate the subsequent emotional responses of feeling entertained or happiness, she said.
According to other studies, people with gelotophobia comprised 2 to 15 percent of the world’s population, Chan said, adding that England and Asia have a higher ratio of people with gelotophobia than other areas.
“I have lacked a sense of humor and was unable to comprehend jokes since childhood,” Chan said, adding that she began studying the phenomenon five years ago in an attempt to understand her condition and find out how the brain processes humor.
Gelotophobia is mostly an acquired fear, stemming from difficult relationships with parents at a young age and bullying during teenage years or at work, Chan said, adding that these can disconnect emotional control from the brain’s cognitive and emotional management.
However, as it is an acquired phobia, training can help gelotophobes rewire the brain’s cognitive and emotional management to “get” jokes, she said.
The research was conducted using functional magnetic resonance imaging techniques to analyze brain functions and sought to study mental development from the perspective of cognitive neuroscience, Chan said.
The results of the research were published by Scientific Reports early this month.
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