Have you ever yawned because somebody else yawned?

You aren't especially tired,yet suddenly your mouth opens wide and a big yawn comes out.

This phenomenon is known as contagious yawning.And while scientists still don't fully
understand why it happens,there are many hypotheses currently being researched.

Let's take a look at a few of the most prevalent ones,beginning with two physiological
hypotheses before moving to a psychological one.

Our first physiological hypothesis states that contagious yawning is triggered by a specific
stimulus,an initial yawn.This is called fixed action pattern.Think of fixed action pattern like a
reflex.Your yawn makes me yawn.Similar to a domino effect, one person's yawn triggers a yawn
in a person nearby that has observed the act.Once this reflex is triggered, it must run its
course.Have you ever tried to stop a yawn once it has begun?Basically impossible!

Another physiological hypothesis is known as non-conscious mimicry,or the chameleon

effect.This occurs when you imitate without knowing it, someone's behavior a subtle and
unintentional copycat maneuver.People tend to mimic each other's postures.If you are seated
across from someone that has their legs crossed,you might cross your own legs.that we yawn
when we see someone else yawn because we are unconsciously copying his or her
behavior.Scientists believe that this chameleon effect is possible because of a special set of
neurons known as mirror neurons.Mirror neurons are a type of brain cell that responds equally
when we perform an action These neurons are important for learning and self-awareness.For
example, watching someone do something physical,like knitting or putting on lipstick,can help
you do those same actions more accurately.

Neuroimaging studies using fMRI,functional magnetic resonance imaging,show us that when we

seem someone yawn or even hear their yawn,a specific area of the brain housing these mirror
neurons tends to light up,which, in turn, causes us to respondwith the same action : a yawn!
Our psychological hypothesis also involves the work of these mirror neurons.We will call it the
empathy yawn.Empathy is the ability to understand what someone else is feeling and partake in
their emotion,a crucial ability for social animals like us. Recently, neuroscientists have found
that a subset of mirror neurons allows us to empathize with others' feelings at a deeper
level.Scientists discovered this empathetic response to yawning while testing the first hypothesis
we mentioned,fixed action pattern.This study was set up to show that dogs would enact a yawn
reflex at the mere sound of a human yawn. While their study showed this to be true, they found
something else interesting.Dogs yawned more frequently at familiar yawns,such as from their
owners,than at unfamiliar yawns from strangers.Following this research, other studies on humans
and primates have also shown that contagious yawning occurs more frequently among friends
than strangers.In fact, contagious yawning starts occurring when we are about four or five years
old,at the point when children develop the ability to identify others' emotions properly.Still,
while newer scientific studies aim to prove that contagious yawning is based on this capacity for
empathy more research is needed to shed light on what exactly is going on.It's possible that the
answer lies in another hypothesis altogether.

The next time you get caught in a yawn,take a second to think about what just happened.Were
you thinking about a yawn?Did someone near you yawn?Was that person a stranger or someone
close?And are you yawning right now?