A Peek into the Mechanisms Underlying Human Contagious Yawning

Abstract

Abstract: Contagious yawning was supposed to play a role in social functioning. However, relevant hypotheses have seldom received empirical support. In the current study, we aimed to examine the contagious yawning in two age groups and its psychological correlates. Results showed that contagious yawning existed in the college students but disappeared in the aged population. Moreover, we found that inhibition control covaried with contagious yawning. Besides, low-level physiological factors such as sleep quality and subjective sleepiness were more inclined to covary with spontaneous yawning rather than contagious yawning. The findings provide insight for further studies to explore mechanisms of human contagious yawing from both ontogenetic perspective and phylogenetic perspective.

Key words: contagious yawning, social functioning, inhibition control, evolution

摘要： 传染性哈欠可能承载着一定的社会功能，但实证证据还非常有限。研究收集了大学生和老年人两个年龄群体的传染性哈欠和自发性哈欠数据，测量了抑制控制和观点采择，同时采用问卷测查参与者睡眠状况等。结果发现：大学生表现出哈欠传染，但这种现象在老年人群体中不明显；传染性哈欠和个体的抑制控制能力存在共变关系；相比传染性哈欠，自发性哈欠更多与一些基本的生理因素（如睡眠状况、警觉程度）相关。结果为从种系发生和个体发生两个层面探究传染性哈欠的机制提供了基础数据。

关键词: 传染性哈欠, 社会功能, 抑制控制, 演化

CLC Number:

B844

SU Jinlong, XIAO Yao, SU Yanjie. A Peek into the Mechanisms Underlying Human Contagious Yawning[J]. Studies of Psychology and Behavior, 2020, 18(3): 346-353.

苏金龙, 肖瑶, 苏彦捷. 哈欠传染的发展与演化：一项探索性研究[J]. 心理与行为研究, 2020, 18(3): 346-353.

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