I always feel like I am constantly yawning. Any time I see someone else yawn or even hear someone else yawn I always find myself yawning too. But why does this happen? Why are yawns “contagious?”

When I researched this question I came across three possible hypotheses. The first one is a physiological hypothesis, and is known as the “fixed action pattern.” This hypothesis claims that a yawn is more of a reflex. When one person yawns it triggers someone else’s reflex to yawn which leads to the domino effect. The second possible physiological hypothesis is known as the “non-conscious mimicry” or “the chameleon effect.” This hypothesis is described as imitating someone’s behavior without knowing it. “Subtle and unintentional copy-cat maneuver.” We unconsciously copy someone’s behavior when we yawn after we someone else yawn. Mirror neurons are supposedly the reasoning behind this. Mirror neurons are defined as a neuron that fires both when an animal performs an action and when the animal observes the same action performed by another (conspecific) animal. A good example of mirror neurons at work is when we learn something visually. We find it easier to learn if we see someone else doing the same task. These neurons are triggered when a person sees or hears someone else yawning which causes us to yawn. The third hypothesis was a psychological hypothesis. This one having to do with empathy: the ability to understand what someone else is feeling and partake in their emotion. Also a “subset of mirror neurons allows us to empathize with others at a deeper level.” This hypothesis also includes that the “contagious yawning” begins when a child is around the age of 4 or 5 due to child being able to interrupt the emotions of others.

This study is a perfect example of how data can fit many hypotheses. We do not have enough information on the topic to determine which of these hypotheses can be rejected. There is also a large possibility that there is an entirely different hypothesis. A question like this is difficult to find an answer to. Experiments have been conducted to test exactly how contagious yawing really is. With this particular question, we cannot produce a randomized experiment, only an observational study. In all, there is no answer to the question. Scientists must research this topic further. Even if they find an answer as to what causes yawns to be contagious, they will not say that it is “proven.” Due to the fact that the data might be consistent with another hypothesis. Also if an answer is found, there will always be other scientists out there looking for the “correct” answer because that is how knowledge is gathered, from scientists always looking for errors in other scientists’ work.

So why exactly do we yawn when someone else does? We are still searching for an answer to this question. Although there are many hypotheses out there trying to explain this phenomenon we cannot reject any of them until we have gathered more data on the topic.

References:

http://science.howstuffworks.com/life/contagious-yawn.htm

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

http://news.discovery.com/human/videos/why-do-we-yawn-video.htm