Someone give me funding to yawn at sociopaths

[jedusor]

Okay, so mirror neurons (neurons that fire the same way when you engage in a behavior and when you observe others engaging in the same behavior) might be involved in empathy. There's not a ton of research supporting that yet, but I think it makes a lot of sense.

I also think it makes sense for mirror neurons to be integral to the phenomenon of contagious yawning. (Apologies in advance as everyone reading this starts feeling that urge.) Kids develop theory of mind around age 4, and start yawning in response to videos of yawning around age 5. Tons of potential third variables there, I know. Just a thought.

Now I really want to go find some sociopaths and yawn at them to see if they yawn too. Or autistic people, I suppose, but there are even more potential third variables in that population.

Comments

[rubrick.livejournal.com]

Yawning at Sociopaths band name yadda yadda.

[cramerica.livejournal.com]

I think it's more of an album name... Jedusor: Yawning at Sociopaths

[jedusor.livejournal.com]

You don't think my solo name would be Hooligan? :P

[linaelyn.livejournal.com]

I am intrigued by your ideas and would like to subscribe to your newsletter.

Oh, wait. I did that, and here I am! GO ME! Also, go YOU!

[jedusor.livejournal.com]

*grin*

I had this thought in the middle of the night, actually. Mike and I were almost asleep, and I startled the hell out of him suddenly hollering "DUDE, I bet sociopaths wouldn't yawn around other people yawning! Because of mirror neurons! Shit, I gotta go write an Administration fanfic about this!"

Where most people would probably have (entirely justifiably) attempted murder at this point, Mike's reaction was to roll over, rub his eyes, and ask, "So what are mirror neurons again?" This is why I love him.

[1firefly.livejournal.com]

I love the way your brain works!!

[jillcook.livejournal.com]

Completely anecdotal, but my 7 year old nephew is autistic and I have never seen him yawn. My sibs and I had a big discussion about it last summer, but since we are not psychologists, we didn't really attach any significance to this. *off to google mirror neurons*

[jedusor.livejournal.com]

Followup post. (http://jedusor.livejournal.com/597316.html) Not completely anecdotal after all!

It's interesting that you haven't seen him yawn at all, though, as opposed to just in response to others. It's obviously not just an empathetic reaction, because someone has to be the first person to yawn. There must be physiological reasoning behind it. Have his parents/caretakers ever seen him yawn at all?

[jillcook.livejournal.com]

Now my sister thinks I'm even weirder than she did before today, because I called her at quarter to six when I knew she'd be on her way to work to ask her if Greg *ever* yawns. She said that she has seen him yawn twice since last summer. I asked her, really? You're sure? Twice? She replied that ever since we discussed his lack of sympathetic yawning last summer she has just been aware of the phenomenon, so the twice that he did yawn stick in her head now.

Greg takes some kind of medicine first thing in the morning which is about 6am for him, and then right before bed, which is about 8:30. We spend maybe a weekend a month together either here or in Iowa where they live. One time I was visiting and his medication had just been changed, and he didn't sleep at all the first night. He was up and going, going, going all night long. He has this enormous dining room table size train track set up in their basement, and I could hear his trains going round and round all night long. He puts the engine on the track and moves it with his hand while he runs around the table. It's kind of amazing to watch, because he can do that for an hour with no interruptions...

Thanks for posting the article link about autism and yawning. I forwarded my sister a link in case she hasn't seen it before.