Elke Zimmermann

Elke Zimmermann

Elke Zimmermann appears on this site as co-author of the 2010 Communicative & Integrative Biology paper on the evolution of laughter in great apes and humans.

Who they are

The work of Elke Zimmermann reaches this site through the paper listed below. On this site the name is tied to Laughter as Group Bonding.

Key papers

Davila Ross, M., Owren, M. J., & Zimmermann, E. (2010). The evolution of laughter in great apes and humans. Communicative & Integrative Biology, 3(2), 191-194. What it reports: Analysed tickle-induced calls in orangutans, gorillas, chimpanzees, bonobos and humans. The acoustic family tree matched known genetic relationships, pointing to a shared origin for these calls.

Key ideas

Laughter as Group Bonding: Most laughter is a social signal that says the people present are in step, not a reaction to humour.

Sources

  1. Davila Ross, M., Owren, M. J., & Zimmermann, E. (2010). The evolution of laughter in great apes and humans. Communicative & Integrative Biology, 3(2), 191-194.