People that score high on psychopathic traits are less likely to yawn contagiously.
Level 4 - case-series / case-control
Cross-sectional observational study using self-report surveys (graded by non-clinical design analogy).
PubMed 34893649 · doi:10.1038/s41598-021-03159-1
What was done
An online cross-sectional study evaluated 458 university students and community members across 50 nationalities. Participants watched a video stimulus, self-reported whether they experienced contagious yawning, and completed four psychopathy assessments: the primary and secondary scales of the Levenson Self-Report Psychopathy Scale (LSRPS), the Dirty Dozen psychopathy subscale, and the Psychopathic Personality Traits Scale (PPTS).
What was found
Participants who yawned contagiously scored lower on combined and primary measures of psychopathy. Across all tested models, self-reported tiredness was the strongest predictor of contagious yawning. The abstract does not provide exact numerical effect sizes, regression coefficients, or p-values.
Why it matters
In a larger and more diverse sample than previous investigations, this study replicates the negative association between psychopathic traits and contagious yawning. This aligns with theories linking contagious yawning to social empathy, biobehavioral synchrony, and behavioral contagion.
Limits
The abstract reports no numerical values, effect sizes, or confidence intervals. Yawning responses and psychopathic traits were measured entirely via online self-reports rather than direct objective observation or physiological monitoring. The cross-sectional design cannot establish causality, and tiredness was a stronger predictor of yawning than personality traits.
Cited by
- partial Individuals with psychopathy do not experience contagious yawning, contagious smiling, or contagious laughter.