Why is yawning contagious?

At this stage in our lives, I think it is safe to say that we all know that yawning is contagious. However, like most of the students my age, I had never bothered to research why. Quite honestly, I never even questioned it. I was told that yawning was contagious and I simply left it at that. Who actually cares why, right? Well, I decided that at this moment, tonight, for this specific blog, I care.

I did some research and found that some scientists believe that yawning is a sign of empathy and even social involvement. I further learned that children don’t begin to “catch” yawns until they begin socializing, which is usually at around age 4. Immediately, this made sense to me seeing as children under 4 years of age often enjoy playing by themselves rather than with others. Studies even show that children with autism are half as likely to “catch” yawns and in severe cases, some children with autism never do.

Molly Helt, a graduate student in clinical psychology at the University of Connecticut conducted a study on this topic with her very own son who suffers from autism. They were on the airplane and she could tell he was feeling discomfort. In an effort to get him to clear his ears, she yawned at him multiple times. She hoped that he would catch the yawn and do it back however, he never did. To read more about her study click here. 

Other scientists believe that contagious yawning is due to a phenomenon called Non-conscious Mimicry. This has been nicknamed the chameleon effect because of one’s tendency to mimic what is around them. Therefore, if someone sees another person yawn, they suddenly have an urge to yawn themselves. Often, this is unintentional and subconscious. Scientists believe this is caused by a group of neurons called mirror neurons. When we see someone yawn, the area of the brain where these mirror neurons are located gets fired up and causes us to repeat that action. It is almost like our subconscious wants to do all that it can to fit in.

Here is another theory as to why yawning can be contagious:

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While I may not have thought about why we yawn before, and I may not think about it ever again, I enjoyed researching and blogging about it. It is clear to me that contagious yawning is something I should have looked into years ago. Whether we catch yawns because our mirror neurons tell us to, because it is a form of social empathy, or even because we need more oxygen, it is clear to me that there are multiple factors involved. In my opinion, I think that catching yawns is caused a little bit by all three. However, there are parts that do not make sense to me. For example, a child with autism might not be able to catch yawns because of a variable z rather than his/her inability to socialize. I have worked with many children with autism and as sad as it is, many of them are able to socialize and have feelings and empathy toward those they spend time with. Also, I think it is quite stupid that our bodies yawn to get more oxygen and subsequently create less oxygen in the air causing us to yawn again and again and again following a positive feedback loop. However, I wouldn’t be surprised or offended if you yawned while reading because even reading about yawning can trigger an effect.

http://ed.ted.com/lessons/why-is-yawning-contagious-claudia-aguirre

http://news.discovery.com/human/health/yawning-social-behavior.htm

 

4 thoughts on “Why is yawning contagious?

  1. Leona Kogan Post author

    While I respect your opinion that you do not believe humans begin to catch yawns until the age of four, I think you are neglecting a key word. Children under the age of four still yawn and I am 100% aware of that. However, I just believe they yawn due to other reasons such as a need for more oxygen. Children do not really begin to socialize until they reach their prime toddler years so they wouldn’t be able to catch yawns from other toddlers because they do not feel that sense of empathy. I completely respect your opinion though and can agree to disagree!

  2. Megan Margaret Moyer

    This is a really interesting topic and something that I’ve always wanted to look into but I never have. It looks like you’ve done a lot of research, too. The only thing you mentioned that I don’t particularly agree with is when you said that humans don’t “catch” yawns until they’re around the age of 4. I don’t agree with this because babies yawn often when they are tired, just as an adult might. I think that yawning is really an indicator of being tired in some cases, rather than something contagious. I do find the point you’re making to be very interesting though. Other than the part about age, I think this is a great introduction into a really interesting topic!

  3. Alyssa Marie Gregory

    I have always wanted to know and just like everyone else I know , I was to lazy to actually research it! Thanks for doing the leg work lol Nice way to inform with a lot of facts and not opinion. I felt as though you knew what you were talking about through out the whole blog ! Also, the picture was interesting I even read it twice. Overall this was a good blog and a great read. Heres a link to more information on contagious yawning:
    http://science.howstuffworks.com/life/contagious-yawn.htm

  4. Christopher Vecchio

    I’ve always wanted to know about this subject too and quite enjoy this article. I also think that people telling us yawning is contagious makes us do it even more. It’s just like people talking about spiders crawling on you, you get itchy. When people tell us yawning is contagious right after someone yawns, I believe we are more prone to yawn as well.

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