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Contagious yawning in autistic and typical development

Molly S Helt1, Inge-Marie Eigsti, Peter J Snyder

  • 1Department of Psychology, University of Connecticut, 406 Babbidge Road, Storrs, CT 06269, USA. molly.helt@uconn.edu

Child Development
|September 16, 2010
PubMed

Insights

Contagious yawning emerges significantly by age 4 in children. Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) show reduced susceptibility, with Pervasive Developmental Disorder, Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS) being less affected than full Autistic Disorder.

Area of Science:

  • Developmental Psychology
  • Neuroscience
  • Social Cognition

Background:

  • Contagious yawning is a social phenomenon linked to empathy and mimicry.
  • Understanding its developmental trajectory and variations in neurodevelopmental disorders is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the developmental emergence of contagious yawning in typically developing children.
  • To examine contagious yawning susceptibility in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and Pervasive Developmental Disorder, Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS).

Main Methods:

  • Assessed contagious yawning frequency in 120 children aged 1-6 years.
  • Evaluated contagious yawning in 28 children with ASD (aged 6-15 years) and compared them to age- and mental age-matched controls.
  • Compared susceptibility between children with ASD, PDD-NOS, and full Autistic Disorder.

Main Results:

  • Contagious yawning frequency significantly increased around 4 years of age.
  • Children with ASD exhibited diminished susceptibility to contagious yawning compared to controls.
  • Children with PDD-NOS were more susceptible than those with full Autistic Disorder.

Conclusions:

  • Contagious yawning develops significantly in early childhood.
  • Reduced susceptibility in ASD suggests a potential link between contagious yawning, mimicry, and social-emotional processing.
  • Findings offer insights into the nuances of social contagion in different autism spectrum presentations.

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