Why Do We Yawn When Someone Else Yawns?

Photo Credit: Express.co.uk

Late to work in the morning, you manage to catch a train just so you could be there before your boss arrives. Sweating, you get in and have yourself a seat.  With the eyes staring at your during the ride, you choose to ignore them by looking away. A guy is seated next to you, he doesn't seem to be looking at you like the others are, but you still ignore him.
Halfway to the end of the ride, this same guy chooses now at all times to yawn. You gave less attention, but about two seconds later, you yawned too. Typically not being able to resist the urge to.

Why Do We Yawn?
You must have noticed that when you're about to yawn, the first thing you do is inhale air. Then you feel your eardrums being stretched, and then finally you resolutely exhale.
Yawning, which is also called Oscitation, occurs more in adults  immediately before and after sleep. 
Naturally, it is stimulated by fatigue, boredom, sleepiness, stress, and hunger.  Most times when we yawn, the tensor tympani muscle in the middle ear contracts, which causes a rumbling sound within the head. And apart from the fact that most animals yawn, sometimes stretching our arms and legs can trigger yawning.
Is Yawning Contagious?
The illustration I first gave about you being on a bus, can be called Contagious yawning. Many of us experience it each day of our lives but haven't come to conclude why. 

Photo Credit: Hindustantimes The truth is, sometimes yawning can also be triggered when we look at others yawn, and this is said to be an example of positive feedback. Another research done on Contagious Yawning states that this is as a result of a psychological impact from an animal on the same species. 
In other words, animals which are subject to predation or danger, sometimes calm their nerves by yawning, keeping them alert and aware of it. A study suggests that Contagious Yawning may have developed as a method adopted by animals to keep their nearby species alert. It serves as a signal, through instincts, to keep nearby species alert.
I'm sure we now know why we yawn when someone else does so, or even why we yawn when we are scared or nervous. But sometimes, we yawn even at the mere thought of it, just like some of us who kept yawning while reading this article.
Stay tuned.