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woman yawns

You are seated in a bus with a nursing mother next to you. Suddenly, her baby yawns and quite uncontrollably, you yawn even before the baby has finished.

There’s a possibility you yawned as you read the previous paragraph.

Perhaps, you have wondered why you seem to yawn almost immediately when you see someone yawning? While there is a reasonable explanation for yawns being so infectious, think for a moment if such things as itching or farting were also contagious. That would be odd; wouldn’t it?

Experts have different theories regarding the factors responsible for yawns and the reason for its power to infect people almost simultaneously, and while it is commonly believed that humans yawn when they are tired or in need of more oxygen, this may not necessarily be true.

A likely reason why yawning is contagious is explained in terms of behavioural factors. Dr. Steven Platek, in a report on the study of contagious yawns, explained that “Contagious yawning may be associated with empathic aspects of mental state attribution and are negatively affected by increases in schizotypal personality traits much like other self-processing related tasks.”

Was that an easy explanation?

What Dr. Platek’s theory implies, in simple terms, is that humans are unconsciously imitating someone they see yawning. In other words, an aspect of the human brain typically imitates an action involuntarily without the person’s intention to do so.

Though yawning could be an indication that your body has been deprived of adequate rest or it may be a symptom of exhaustion, it is a perfectly natural phenomenon. Humans are not the only beings capable of this natural action; animals such as chimpanzees, dogs, and rabbits have also been known to yawn.

Next time you yawn, be conscious of the fact that your brain is carrying out an unordered assignment.


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This article was first published on 2nd October 2013

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