Development of laughter and humour throughout the lifespan

Humor and laughter are fundamental elements of human communication throughout the lifespan. The understanding of humor, humor production (e. g. joking) and functionality of humor (e. g. as a coping strategy) evolve in the course of a lifetime and are essentially determined by cognitive, verbal and social abilities. This review outlines the landmarks in the development of humor and laughter from early childhood to older age. In all stages of life, humor fulfils important functions; in the elderly, however, the function of humor as a coping mechanism gains in importance. Yet, humor processing, such as understanding of humor, humor production and emotional reactions to humor in the elderly, is an underresearched area.