No understanding of laughter (or humor) is complete without the ability to account for the tremendous variation we see in its expression. The same potential stimulus might prompt a laugh response in an individual at one moment in time but not another. It might receive a reaction from an adult but not a child, a farmer but not a doctor, or a joyful person but not an angry one. What we do and do not find amusing can depend on, among many things, when we were raised, by whom we were raised, and where we were raised. What can we say about the factors at play? This chapter discusses the first of two major sources of variation in our laugh response—whether and to what degree we perceive some trait as constituting a vulnerability or notable asset rather than something uninterestingly normal or a serious deficiency. These include small-scale factors such as age, life experience, personality, mood, and health, as well as large-scale cultural influences such as moral, ethical, and religious directives, and national and political identity.