Empathy & Compassion

Study: Contagious yawning and psychopathy

by |Published

Psychopathy is characterized by a general antisocial lifestyle with behaviors including being selfish, manipulative, impulsive, fearless, callous, possibly domineering, and particularly lacking in empathy. Contagious yawning in our species has been strongly linked to empathy.

We exposed 135 students, male and female, who completed the Psychopathic Personality Inventory-Revised (PPI-R), to a yawning paradigm intended to induce a reactionary yawn. Further, we exposed males to an emotion-related startle paradigm meant to assess peripheral amygdalar reactivity.

We found that scores on the PPI-R subscale Coldheartedness significantly predicted a reduced chance of yawning. Further, we found that emotion-related startle amplitudes were predictive of frequency of contagious yawning.

These data suggest that psychopathic traits may be related to the empathic nature of contagious yawning in our species.


Brian K. Rundle, , 
Vanessa R. Vaughn, 
Matthew S. Stanford
Baylor University, Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, 


You may also like

Empathy for when you try really, really hard and don’t get anywhere
Published

Empathy for when you try really, really hard and don’t get anywhere

Come and experience how a regular dose of Empathy can make you a more creative thinker and significantly improve your relationships with self and others. In London and online. www.ceribuckmaster.co.ukSee it on Scoop.it, via Empathy and Compassion

ONLY CONNECT: Remember that empathy can save a life–maybe even your own
Published

ONLY CONNECT: Remember that empathy can save a life–maybe even your own

A man in my apartment building committed suicide last month. He jumped to his death from the 12th floor. Although I did not know him personally, I am haunted by the thoughts of the deep sorrow that he must have suffered to end his life with such brutal…

Raising a Compassionate Child In the Age of Entitlement
Published

Raising a Compassionate Child In the Age of Entitlement

How do you make sure that your child stays humble, responsible, and empathetic? The secrets to raising a compassionate, responsible child are surprisingly simple, according to researchers. Top 5 Ways To Raise A Compassionate Kid:1. Assign you…

Moving Narcissus:Can Narcissists Be Empathic?
Published

Moving Narcissus:Can Narcissists Be Empathic?

Empathy plays a critical role in fostering and maintaining social relations. Narcissists lack empathy, and this may account for their interpersonal failures. But why do narcissists lack empathy? Are they incapable, or is change possible? Three studies …