Social Cognition & Theory Of Mind (W5, L1) Flashcards
What is Social cognition?
Thinking about other people, including thoughts, judgements, and beliefs about them.
Cognition refers to thinking/understanding, while social indicates interactions with others.
What is theory of mind?
Understanding that people’s actions are motivated by internal mental states, such as desires and thoughts.
Desires include wants and likes/dislikes; thoughts refer to knowledge, beliefs, and memories.
Why do we need theory of mind?
To help others, form stronger relationships, protect oneself, and improve communication.
These functions are essential for social interactions and understanding.
What are the key developmental stages of social cognition from 0-12 months?
- Imitation: Helps understand others’ actions
- Joint Attention: Awareness of the visual experience of others.
These skills are foundational for later social understanding.
What cognitive development occurs in children aged 1-2 years?
Pretend play: Distinguishing between reality and fantasy, e.g., using a banana as a phone.
This stage indicates early imaginative capabilities.
What is Emotion Understanding in children at 2 years old?
Identifying and understanding the causes of basic emotions.
This skill is crucial for empathic development.
What are Wellman’s two stages of theory of mind development?
- Desire psychology (2 years)
- Belief psychology (4 years)
These stages illustrate the progression of understanding mental states.
What are the five stages of theory of mind development according to Wellman & Liu?
- Desire understanding (18 months+)
- Diverse belief
- Knowledge access
- False belief understanding
- Hidden emotion
Each stage reflects a deeper understanding of others’ mental states.
What is the ‘Diverse desires task’?
A task showing a child a vegetable and a sweet, asking which they like better, then testing which food the child gives to a puppet that claims to prefer the vegetable.
This task assesses desire understanding in children.
What is the ‘lost cat task’?
A task where a child observes where a cat is believed to be by another person, demonstrating understanding that beliefs can differ about the same object.
This task assesses diverse belief understanding.
What is the ‘Sally/Anne task’?
A task where Sally puts her toy in box 1, Anne moves it to box 2, and the child predicts where Sally will look for her toy.
This task tests false belief understanding.
What is perspective-taking?
The ability to take the perspective of others, which includes visual and cognitive/emotional forms.
Cognitive/emotional perspective-taking is the most relevant in social cognition.
What influences the development of social cognition and theory of mind biologically?
- Neurological predispositions
- Biological maturation
- Brain regions specific to social cognition
- Evolutionary basis
These factors play a crucial role in the development of social understanding.
What environmental factors influence social cognition?
- Experience with language
- Mental state talk
- Family interactions
These factors significantly impact the development of theory of mind.
How does experience with language affect theory of mind?
Deaf children with hearing parents show delayed theory of mind, while those with deaf parents do not.
This highlights the importance of communication in social cognition development.
What is the role of family interactions in social cognition?
Parent-child attachment and parenting styles that consider the child’s thoughts and feelings enhance theory of mind development.
Sibling interactions, especially with older siblings, also play a significant role.
