…you see, like a cough. It just takes one yawn to start other yawns off.”
That’s Dr. Seuss, in The Sleep Book, one of the childhood favorites of my sleep-resistant son.
And it’s true; I’m sure you’ve noticed how hard it is to resist yawning when you watch others do so. In fact, even reading this and seeing the word in print, you may be feeling one coming on…
I’ve long found it fascinating that yawns are so contagious. That’s why I was excited when I saw the headline for this article: “Why Is Yawning Contagious?”
But the article itself turned out to be a big yawn. The psychologist authors of the study involved don’t know; they speculate that it’s a form of empathetic response, similar to laughter.
Well, I can speculate too, and I agree, but so what? Unfortunately, no one knows why yawning, of all things, should be shared, or by what mechanism this happens.
Previously a lifelong Democrat, born in New York and living in New England, surrounded by liberals on all sides, I've found myself slowly but surely 
July 22nd, 2009 at 3:24 pm
I thought “catching” a yawn was related to mirror neurons, the stuff that makes us mimic others.
July 22nd, 2009 at 3:24 pm
The cover of that book made me yawn.
July 22nd, 2009 at 3:26 pm
petitedov: Do you have a link to an article about that? Sounds interesting.
July 22nd, 2009 at 3:59 pm
I’d just like to say…… zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
July 22nd, 2009 at 4:02 pm
You need to sign for guest access so you can explore statements like
“viewing someone yawn evokes unique neural activity in the posterior cingulate and precuneus…..”
and…..Zzzzzzzzzzzzz
July 22nd, 2009 at 4:06 pm
I will try to find it! I believe there was a book that came out last year that dealt exactly with this phenomena.
July 22nd, 2009 at 4:17 pm
Here’s the book I was referring to. I haven’t read it, but I want to.
I found this article that talks about yawning and mirror neurons. It seems to suggest that when you yawn you bypass the mirror neurons – so I guess I’m totally off base…
BTW silly side note about yawning, when my boyfriend and I first started dating we would have this really silly game where he would make yawn and I would try to resist. It was really, really hard!
July 22nd, 2009 at 4:23 pm
Must. Not. Yawn.
Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…
July 22nd, 2009 at 4:50 pm
How funny. I just pulled out my lp recording of this book last night, read by the wonderful Marvin Miller in the early ’60′s. Don’t know about yawns, but that record for me is very soothing at bedtime. Definitely helped in adding my name to the who’s asleep score.
July 22nd, 2009 at 5:11 pm
I always thought it was to synchronize the group for the purpose of sleeping. I can see how it would be a competitive advantage for a group to solve the issue.
July 22nd, 2009 at 6:25 pm
my sisters pointer is double jointed, so she would annoy me with it on long car trips when we were really young and such a thing could annoy you. i can yawn at will (or not) and i would give her a yawning fit in return.
and its not just seeing a yawn, reading or talking about it does it too.
its not to refresh air, and truly no one has a clear reason why we do it.
[there are also neat facts and things about tickling another quirky thing we have]
July 22nd, 2009 at 9:47 pm
Try mutual boredom….
July 23rd, 2009 at 12:29 am
Oh, this does work. My budding young scientist self used to exaggerate a yawn while an altar boy, with 200 or so subjects, back in 1968. I’d always catch 3 or 4 empaths.
July 23rd, 2009 at 8:28 am
I can sometimes make my dog yawn by yawning at her. Hilarious.