Why psychopaths are less susceptible to contagious yawning

image: Hanneke Wetzer/Shutterstock

Yawning is contagious, not just among humans but also animals. Contagious yawning is thought to be linked to mirror neurons—cells in the brain that fire both when we do something and when we see someone else do it. These neurons help us mimic behaviors, and in the case of yawning, they might trigger the reflex when we s…