Why Your TV’s Canned Laughter is More Powerful Than You Think: The Strange Science of Interpassivity

Have you ever noticed how canned laughter on sitcoms seems to make you laugh more? Or how a spinning Tibetan prayer wheel is said to pray on your behalf? These are not just quirky phenomena but examples of interpassivity — a psychological mechanism where we delegate our emotional or cognitive experience to others or objects, relieving ourselves of direct engagement.

Interpassivity is the opposite of interactivity. Instead of actively participating, we allow objects or others to 'enjoy' or 'feel' for us. For instance, the canned laughter you hear on TV is a pre-recorded response that cues you to laugh, reducing your need to generate spontaneous laughter. Similarly, prayer wheels spin mechanically, symbolically performing prayers while the practitioner’s mind may be elsewhere.

This delegation extends beyond emotions to beliefs and knowledge. In psychoanalysis, the 'subject supposed to know' is a figure — often the analyst — onto whom the patient projects the belief that they understand their unconscious secrets. This projection is essential for therapeutic transference but also reflects how we displace authority and knowledge in everyday life.

False activity is another facet of interpassivity. People often engage in frantic busyness not to effect real change but to avoid confronting deeper issues. Obsessional neurotics, for example, may talk incessantly to avoid silence that might reveal inner tensions. Similarly, political activism can sometimes be performative, masking an inability to transform conditions.

These insights challenge our understanding of authenticity and agency. They show how much of our inner life is mediated through symbolic others and objects, inviting us to question where our true experience lies and how we might reclaim it.

Next, we will delve into the labyrinth of desire itself, exploring how our wants are shaped by the Other and the fantasies we construct to protect ourselves.