Specifying Links Between Executive Functioning and Theory of Mind during Middle Childhood: Cognitive Flexibility Predicts Social Understanding

Abstract

for comments on earlier versions of this paper. We also thank the children and parents who participated. Portions of this research were supported by the Graduate School and by a Summer Faculty Fellowship from Illinois State University.

Executive Functions And Theory Of Mind In Senior Preschool Age

“…In general, the results of the correlation and cluster analysis indicate that there is a relationship between the level of a child's understanding of false beliefs and such components of cognitive control as inhibition and switching, which is in good agreement with the previous studies (Bock et al, 2015;Cantin et al, 2016;Carlson et al, 2015;Muller et al, 2012;Perner et al, 2002;Yeniad et al, 2013). Most authors hold the view that this relationship stems from the participation of executive functions in performing false belief tasks: a child should be flexible enough to switch between its belief and another person's vision of the situation, and also to suppress its own knowledge about the situation.…”

“…Modern research confirms that theory of mind develops rapidly in early childhood (Frye et al, 1995;Hughes, 1998;Wellman, & Liu, 2004) and continues to improve throughout the preschool and primary school years (Apperly et al, 2011;Bock et al, 2015;Happé, 1994;Miller, 2009;Miller, 2012;White et al, 2009). Significant changes in theory of mind development occur at an older preschool age: at the age of 5-6 there is a transition to the level, when one's own mental model can not only be separated from the model of the mental Other, but there arises a possibility to mentally influence it, the model becomes situationally independent (Wimmer, & Perner, 1983).…”

“…Meanwhile recent foreign studies have shown that such components of executive functions as constraining control and flexibility are significant predictors of further theory of mind development (Bock et al, 2015;Cantin et al, 2016;Carlson et al, 2002;Muller et al, 2012;Yeniad et al, 2013).…”

“…One of the most actively developing areas of modern research in developmental psychology aims to study theory of mind and its connection with other psychological characteristics of child development (Apperly et al, 2011;Bock et al, 2015;Frye et al, 1995;Hughes, 1998;Miller, 2009;Miller, 2012;Wellman, & Peterson, 2013;White et al, 2009). This cognitive ability underlies children's social skills that along with executive function development provide for a child's successful adaptation to school education (Willoughby et al, 2012).…”

Relations between Temperament and Metacognition and Frames of Reference in Behaviors in Public Situations in Early and Middle Adolescence: An Analysis of Age Stages

“…It is thought that consideration of others is based on theory of mind, that is, understanding of their own and other individuals' mental states. EfC refers to the ability to inhibit a dominant response in order to perform a subdominant response (Rothbart, 2011 self-regulation) was significantly related to theory of mind in toddler and preschool children (Carlson and Moses, 2001;Carlson et al, 2004;Sabbagh et al, 2006;Hughes and Ensor, 2007;Korucu et al, 2017), and middle childhood (aged 7-12 years old) (Bock et al, 2015). In this study, we confirmed a similar trend in early and middle adolescence.…”