Social cognition during and after kindergarten: The relations between first-order and advanced theories of mind

Osterhaus, Christopher und Koerber, Susanne (2020): Social cognition during and after kindergarten: The relations between first-order and advanced theories of mind. In: European Journal of Developmental Psychology, Vol. 18, No. 4: pp. 573-592

Abstract

First-order and advanced theory of mind (ToM and AToM), and their structures and relations were investigated in 229 children aged 5-8 years. ToM was assessed using 6 tasks from the first-order ToM scale, while AToM was measured using an 18-item battery (higher-order false-belief understanding;strange stories;faux pas test;eyes test;interpretation of ambiguous figures). A confirmatory factor analysis replicated a structural AToM model with three distinct abilities: social reasoning, reasoning about ambiguity, and recognizing transgressions of social norms. After controlling for children's inhibition and language skills, no significant associations were found between the diverse AToM factors. ToM was related to all aspects of AToM, but the correlations were only weak to moderate, suggesting that AToM is a construct in its own right. Substantial progress in AToM was made during early elementary school, showing that theory-of-mind development is not confined to the preschool years.

• Item Type: Journal article
• Faculties: Psychology and Education Science > Department Psychology
• Subjects: 100 Philosophy and Psychology > 150 Psychology
• ISSN: 1740-5629
• Language: English