Watching (funny) cat videos in small groups fosters social acceptance in student dyads

Abstract From an evolutionary psychology perspective, laughter can be attributed a significant function in the formation and maintenance of social relationships. However, in educational research, this hypothesis has not yet been tested. In a randomized controlled trial, N = 660 students ( M age = 9.24, SD age = 0.81, female: 49.55 %) from a total of 34 third- and fourth-grade elementary school classes were randomly assigned to groups of four to six within their classes. In these groups, students were shown either a laughter-inducing funny cat video or a documentary video about cats for 3 min each. Before and after the manipulation, social acceptance was assessed by sociometric ratings with regard to all classmates. Data were analyzed with cross-classified multilevel models of the dyadic relationships among students within their classes. Watching a video together – regardless of type – significantly increased social acceptance, whereas the type of video had no effect. Furthermore, sociometric ratings increased corresponding to students’ perceptions of other students’ laughter intensity. In addition to the main results, it became evident that the higher the students rated their own laughter intensity, the higher their sociometric ratings of other students were before the manipulation. The results support the assumption that even short, mere-exposure contact promotes social acceptance of other students. Additionally, there are indications that students’ own laughter or the laughter of other students correlates with social acceptance.