The result could be due to the inattention to facial cues, not reduced empathy, among people with autism
By Laura Geggel and SFARI.org
Missing Facial Cues: Although it was long believed to be due to a lack of empathy, a new Japanese study suggests that children with autism miss facial cues, such as closed eyes, that make yawning contagious. Image: SFARI.org
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Reprinted with permission from SFARI.org, an editorially independent division of the Simons Foundation. (Find original story here.)
Boredom, tiredness, hunger and stress can all set off a yawn. People can even 'catch' a bout of yawning when they see or hear another person in the throes of the involuntary gesture, a phenomenon known as social yawning.
Researchers speculate that this shared behavior is a form of empathy that strengthens the bonds of a group: One drowsy persons yawn that triggers others to do the same could lead to a unanimous call for bedtime, for example. Humans aren't the only species to yawn sympathetically: Dogs yawn in response to human yawns, and chimpanzees and baboons yawn in concert with one another.
Children with autism apparently dont respond to social yawning, however, prompting some researchers to blame their well-chronicled struggle with empathy.