Highly Sensitive Minds: From Laughter to Challenge

In the early modern times people went to Bedlam to take a good look at the mad and for a laugh or two. In the meantime, in the theatre, mad figures were brought on stage for the amusement of the audience. Today we don't visit psychiatric hospitals for entertainment but we still love laughing at 'fools', like Laurel and Hardy or Mr Bean. In collaboration with the Globe Theatre, we tested the subconscious reactions of a modern audience laughing at mad figures from the age of Shakespeare. The outcome was intriguing. Come prepared to be surprised at how powerful a laughing stock can be!

Some people seem to be more affected than others by what they experience: they are more sensitive. Research suggests that such differences in sensitivity are common, have a genetic basis, and that more sensitive people show a stronger response to negative as well as positive experiences. During this talk I will explain the theory behind such differences and present recent research findings on sensitivity, from children’s response to parenting quality to adults’ response to work challenges.