cross-gender conversations, females laughed 126% more than their male counterparts, meaning that women tend to do the most laughing while males tend to do the most laugh-getting. Men seem to be the main instigators of humor across cultures, which begins in early childhood. Think back to your high school class clown -- most likely he was a male. The gender pattern of everyday laughter also suggests why there are more male than female comedians. (Rodney Dangerfield likely gets more respect than he claims.)