FYI: What Is The Evolutionary Purpose Of Tickling?

By: Natalie Wochover in Pop Science magazine 01.12.11 1pg.

          You probably know that you can't tickle yourself. And although you might be able to tickle a total stranger, your brain also strongly discourages you from doing something so socially awkward. These facts offer insight into tickling’s evolutionary purpose, says Robert R. Provine, a neuroscientist at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and the author of the book Laughter: A Scientific Investigation. Tickling, he says, is partly a mechanism for social bonding between close companions and helps forge relationships between family members and friends.
Laughter in response to tickling kicks in during the first few months of life. "It's one of the first forms of communication between babies and their caregivers," Provine says. Parents learn to tickle a baby only as long as she laughs in response. When the baby starts fussing instead, they stop. The face-to-face activity also opens the door for other interactions.
Children enthusiastically tickle one another, which some scientists say not only inspires peer bonding but might help hone reflexes and self- defense skills. In 1984 psychiatrist Donald Black of the University of Iowa noted that many ticklish parts of the body, such as the neck and the ribs, are also the most vulnerable in combat. He inferred that children learn to protect those parts during tickle fights, a relatively safe activity.
Tickling while horsing around may have also given rise to laughter itself. “The ‘ha ha’ of human laughter almost certainly evolved from the ‘pant pant’ of rough-and-tumble human play,” says Provine, who bases that conclusion on observations of panting among tickle-battling apes such as chimpanzees and orangutans.
In adulthood, tickling trails off around the age of 40. At that point, the fun stops; for reasons unknown, tickling seems to be mainly for the young.

Summary:

        Tickling is an excuse for social bonding between friends and family. Littler kids respond to tickling in laughter and kicking/hitting. According to neuroscientists, tickling is one of the first forms of communication between kids and their parents.

Scientists also say that children tickle each other not only to inspire bonding but also to help with reflexes and self – defense skills. A psychiatrist at the University of Iowa noted that the most ticklish parts of the body, such as the neck and ribs, are also the most vulnerable in combat.

          Tickling while also horsing around can bring laughs all on its own. The laugh of human laughter evolved from the panting of horse play. While in adulthood though, the tickling seems to end around the age of 40. This means the fun stops, but still continues for the young.

1)  Is it possible that people above the age of 40 to still be ticklish?

2)  Does your ticklish reflex affect flexibility?

3)  How similar are human and ape reflexes?

Wochover, Natalie (2011) FYI: What is the evolutionary purpose of tickling?  Pop Science magazine.