It's one thing to want to show off the locale of your tropical vacation or your killer new haircut. But the mere existence of yawning selfies may be the proof that the 2013 Oxford word of the year has officially entered all realms of life.
It's not always pretty (and we have a hunch it may not always be authentic), but it certainly is contagious: When shown videos of yawning, 42 to 55 percent of adults can't help but yawn along, New Scientist reported.
The contagious nature of yawning likely has something to do with empathy, which would help to explain why we "catch" that yawn even if we're not sleepy.
A healthy selfie may also foster compassion. "I think it influences our sense of social connection in the same way as it does when you go to a party and people say 'Oh I love your dress,'" Dr. Pamela Rutledge, psychologist and director of the Media Psychology Research Center, told The Huffington Post in December. "Biological, social validation is a real need and there is even an area of the brain that is dedicated to social activity."
So go ahead, we dare you: See if you can make it to the end of these eight yawning selfies without yawning yourself. Then let them inspire your next nap.
Might be a good idea to learn how to nap at work.
Do those look like #beachywaves to anyone else? Wouldn't be a bad place for a nap...
That can't be safe.
Does his mom know he's on Instagram when he's supposed to be sleeping?
Maybe he's listening to this?
The jacket doubles as a sleeping bag in a pinch.
#hadtopost, huh? More like... #shouldhavenapped.
Sneezing, we'll have you know, can also be contagious.
They're just like us...
