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ToM Cognitive Development Flashcards

1
Q

What is the definition of Theory of Mind (ToM)?

A

ToM is the ability to reflect on the contents of one’s own and others’ mind and the ability to infer others’ mental state (beliefs, desire, intentions, emotions) and to use these inferences to explain, predict and affect others’ behaviour.

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2
Q

What are the key components of Theory of Mind?

A
  • The mind exists
  • The mind contains mental states
  • Mental states are different and separate from reality
  • Mental states change over time
  • Mental states are subjective
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3
Q

How does Theory of Mind help in social situations?

A

ToM allows us to understand and make sense of the social reality around us.

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4
Q

What is the difference between Theory of Mind and empathy?

A

Empathy involves sharing feelings and understanding others’ emotions, while ToM relates more to understanding mental states and beliefs.

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5
Q

What are the three components of empathy?

A
  • Sharing feelings
  • Understanding the feeling
  • Compassion (desire to alleviate others’ negative feelings)
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6
Q

What distinguishes perspective taking from Theory of Mind?

A

Perspective taking is related to perception and involves seeing content from another’s viewpoint, while ToM involves attributing mental states to others.

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7
Q

What is mind reading in the context of Theory of Mind?

A

Mind reading refers to the process of using ToM to interpret others’ mental states.

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8
Q

What is the Theory Theory of ToM?

A

ToM is a domain-specific set of mental-state concepts used to explain and predict behavior, developed through hypotheses and data.

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9
Q

What is the Simulation Theory of ToM?

A

We understand others by simulating their mental states, projecting our own experiences onto them.

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10
Q

What are some implications of Theory of Mind for clinical psychology?

A

Many clinical conditions, such as borderline personality disorder, psychosis, and autism, share problems in mentalizing.

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11
Q

At what age do children start to show an understanding of others’ needs and desires?

A

Around 1½ to 2 years of age.

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12
Q

What is the Reality-Appearance task?

A

A task that shows children younger than 3 struggle to recognize that objects can be misleading in their appearance.

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13
Q

What is the Sally-Anne test designed to assess?

A

Children’s understanding of false beliefs about the location of an object.

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14
Q

What is the developmental hypothesis regarding children’s understanding of false beliefs?

A

Children’s ToM undergoes a major conceptual change in early life, with improvements in understanding false beliefs as they age.

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15
Q

What are the stages in Wellman’s scale of Theory of Mind development?

A
  • Diverse desire
  • Diverse beliefs
  • Knowledge access
  • Contents false beliefs
  • Explicit false beliefs
  • Beliefs emotion
  • Real apparent emotion
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16
Q

What is the significance of cross-cultural differences in Theory of Mind development?

A

Children from different cultures may show varying abilities in ToM tasks, indicating that ToM is sensitive to environmental factors.

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17
Q

True or False: Theory of Mind is purely a theoretical construct.

A

False. ToM is used in everyday life to interpret social situations.

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18
Q

Fill in the blank: Children younger than _____ years old find it difficult to recognize that objects can be misleading in their appearance.

A

3

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19
Q

What does the term ‘meta-represent’ refer to in the context of ToM?

A

The ability to understand that one’s mental state can differ from reality.

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20
Q

What role does prior conceptual knowledge play in children’s learning of Theory of Mind?

A

Prior conceptual knowledge influences the presence and amount of learning.

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21
Q

What does the ToM scale establish?

A

A progression of conceptual achievements that pace theory-of-mind understanding in normally developing children and a method for measuring that development

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22
Q

Is the ToM scale sensitive to differences in performance within specific age groups?

A

No, it is not sensitive to differences within specific age groups but identifies ‘early’ and ‘late’ mastery of specific concepts

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23
Q

What does the Wellman scale measure?

A

The development of theory of mind in children

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24
Q

True or False: Children younger than 4 cannot understand false beliefs.

A

False

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25
Q

What are the two types of tasks used to assess understanding of false beliefs in children?

A
  • Explicit tasks
  • Implicit tasks
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26
Q

What characterizes explicit tasks?

A

Responses are declarative, involve decision-making processes, and require cognitive resources

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27
Q

What characterizes implicit tasks?

A

Non-declarative responses, no decision-making process, and not verbal

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28
Q

What is the violation of expectation paradigm?

A

If things go against expectations, then eye-gaze duration increases

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29
Q

What was the object used in the experiment testing false belief understanding?

A

Watermelon slice

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30
Q

What are the four conditions in the false belief experiment?

A
  • TB_green
  • TB_yellow
  • FB_green
  • FB_yellow
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31
Q

At what age do infants begin to show a representation of theory of mind?

A

As young as 15 months

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32
Q

What is mentalism in the context of theory of mind?

A

The idea that ToM is very early and that implicit understanding exists from a young age

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33
Q

What is minimalism in the context of theory of mind?

A

Infants have an implicit understanding of behavior that evolves into an explicit understanding of mental states

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34
Q

What is the significance of repeated behaviors in infants’ understanding of mental states?

A

They help children distinguish mistakes from intentional behavior

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35
Q

Can theory of mind be learned later than preschool years?

A

Yes, it is possible

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36
Q

What is the role of executive functions (EF) in theory of mind development?

A

EF are key in the construction of ToM and continue to depend upon EF in adulthood

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37
Q

What are the two systems of cognitive processes in theory of mind?

A
  • System 1: less effortful and more automatic
  • System 2: flexible and effortful
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38
Q

What qualitative changes occur in mindreading concepts during middle childhood?

A

Performance improves, with older children making fewer errors than younger ones

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39
Q

What is the director task in the context of ToM?

A

A task that measures perspective-taking abilities by requiring participants to follow a director’s instructions

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40
Q

What is the relationship between executive function and theory of mind?

A

There is a strong concurrent relationship and correlations between memory function and EF

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41
Q

What are the two possibilities for the development of automaticity in ToM processes?

A
  • Original features develop in infancy
  • Effortful processes become automatized with practice
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42
Q

What factors influence ToM development in middle childhood and adolescence?

A
  • Increased cognitive abilities
  • Opportunities for practice
  • Changes in social environment
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43
Q

How do social relationships affect theory of mind development?

A

They can predict social behavior and enhance understanding of others’ thoughts and feelings

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44
Q

What is a method to study socio-cultural effects on theory of mind?

A

Using tasks like the strange story tasks to compare responses across different cultural contexts

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45
Q

What is the focus of the study on socio-cultural effects on Theory of Mind (ToM)?

A

The study compares Australian children and adults using strange story tasks to assess ToM in context.

Participants respond to questions about characters’ strange behaviors, with familiarity to names and objects improving performance.

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46
Q

What do participants demonstrate regarding familiarity with names and objects in ToM tasks?

A

Participants are faster and more accurate when familiar with the name and object.

This highlights the influence of cultural context on ToM.

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47
Q

What role does culturally-acquired knowledge play in mindreading?

A

Culturally-acquired knowledge helps in ‘flashing out’ directly-available information for appropriate mindreading inferences.

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48
Q

What is the proposed shift in perspective regarding ToM research?

A

Shift from children’s acquisition of mindreading concepts to the social and cognitive processes enabling these concepts.

This emphasizes flexibility and efficiency in applying ToM.

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49
Q

What is neural sensitivity?

A

Neural sensitivity refers to how much a population of neurons responds to a specific stimulus or task.

50
Q

Define neural selectivity.

A

Neural selectivity indicates how much a population of neurons is selectively activated by a specific stimulus or task.

51
Q

What does functional connectivity measure?

A

Functional connectivity measures how multiple brain regions work together over time, assessing coherence in brain response.

52
Q

List the five regions involved in the mentalizing network.

A
  • Tempoparietal junction
  • Superior temporal sulcus
  • Precuneus/posterior cingulate
  • Dorsal medial prefrontal cortex
  • Ventral medial prefrontal cortex
53
Q

What developmental changes are observed in the mentalizing network?

A

Developmental changes are gradual and ongoing, related to increased ToM abilities.

54
Q

What is the significance of the second-order false belief task?

A

It assesses a character’s belief about another character’s belief, demonstrating advanced ToM understanding.

55
Q

What does Life History Theory of Mind explain?

A

It explains how past events influence current thoughts and emotions, affecting future decisions.

56
Q

What are the key components of anticipating the future in ToM?

A

Decisions based on past emotional experiences and integrating multiple past events.

57
Q

What abilities develop in middle childhood regarding ToM?

A
  • Understanding nonliteral speech
  • Making inferences from nonverbal cues
  • Recognizing faux pas
  • Ascribing mental states to non-human objects
58
Q

True or False: The ability to recognize social gaffes develops significantly between ages 7-11.

A

True.

59
Q

What is the relationship between verbal ability and ToM performance?

A

Age contributes uniquely to individual differences in ToM performance, independent of verbal ability.

60
Q

What factors can predict individual differences in children’s ToM?

A
  • Individual behavior variables
  • Cognitive variables like executive function
  • Language (verbal ability)
61
Q

Fill in the blank: The ability to use context to make appropriate mindreading inferences is a _______ component of mindreading.

A

[essential]

62
Q

What does the Eye Test assess in children?

A

The ability to infer mental states from eyes, voice, and movements.

63
Q

What is the significance of the developmental pattern observed in second-order false belief understanding?

A

It appears to reach an asymptote around age 7, with minimal progression thereafter.

64
Q

How does the integration of multiple past events affect children’s ToM?

A

Children better integrate and weigh past events to infer future mental states as they age.

65
Q

What is a common misconception about children’s ToM development?

A

That ToM is simply a set of milestones rather than an ongoing development throughout childhood and adulthood.

66
Q

What type of studies should be conducted to see the effect of language on Theory of Mind (ToM)?

A

Training studies

Training studies modify one variable to observe the effects on another variable.

67
Q

In the context of the study, what is the independent variable?

A

Language

Language is manipulated and trained to observe its effect on ToM.

68
Q

What is the dependent variable in the discussed training studies?

A

Theory of Mind (ToM)

ToM is assessed to determine the effects of language training.

69
Q

Why is it important to have control groups in training studies?

A

To compare effects and ensure reliability of results

Control groups help to account for variables that may influence the outcome.

70
Q

What must be ensured about the groups before training in a study?

A

Groups must be matched for all variables

Both experimental and control groups need to be equal before the training.

71
Q

At what age do children typically start to understand false beliefs?

A

4 years old

The study discussed involved 3-year-olds, who do not yet understand false beliefs.

72
Q

What are the four training conditions mentioned in the study?

A
  • NO LANGUAGE TRAINING
  • FULL TRAINING
  • DISCOURSE ONLY TRAINING
  • SENTENTIAL COMPLEMENT TRAINING

Each training condition varies in the language used.

73
Q

What did the study find regarding the NO LANGUAGE condition?

A

They scored lower on the false beliefs task

This indicates that language is important for developing ToM.

74
Q

Do bilingual children show an advantage in Theory of Mind?

A

Yes

Studies show bilingual children perform better on ToM tasks than monolingual children.

75
Q

What is Specific Language Impairment (SLI)?

A

A condition where children have significant language difficulties but high IQ

Investigating ToM in children with SLI can provide insights into the relationship between language and ToM.

76
Q

What is the relationship between language ability and ToM in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder?

A

Language ability plays a significant role

Studies indicate vocabulary scores predict false belief success in both typically developing children and those with ASD.

77
Q

What are executive functions?

A

Cognitive processes needed for goal-oriented behavior

They include inhibitory control, working memory, and cognitive flexibility.

78
Q

What are the two accounts explaining the relationship between executive functions and Theory of Mind?

A
  • EXPRESSION ACCOUNT
  • EMERGE ACCOUNT

The Expression Account suggests EF is necessary to express knowledge, while the Emerge Account suggests EF is needed for the development of ToM.

79
Q

What factor is particularly relevant to ToM development in middle childhood?

A

Working Memory (WM)

Studies show a significant relationship between WM and ToM in middle childhood.

80
Q

What are contextual factors influencing ToM development?

A
  • Social environment
  • Family interactions
  • Parenting styles

These factors can significantly impact a child’s ToM development.

81
Q

How does having siblings affect ToM development?

A

Children with siblings show better ToM development

The advantage is more pronounced for younger children and depends on the quality of sibling relationships.

82
Q

What parenting style is associated with better ToM development?

A

How feel strategy (HF)

Mothers who discuss feelings with their children tend to foster better ToM.

83
Q

What is mind-mindedness?

A

The tendency to view a child’s mind as separate from the parent’s mind

It is linked to both attachment and ToM development.

84
Q

What does the research suggest about the relationship between attachment and ToM?

A

There is a moderate association

This relationship may be influenced by mind-mindedness.

85
Q

What is the relationship between attachment and theory of mind (ToM)?

A

Attachment is related to ToM because of mind-mindedness. When mind-mindedness is controlled, there is no association between attachment and ToM.

86
Q

What are the two types of measures for mind-mindedness?

A
  • Online measure: observing interactions and mental comments during mother-child interactions
  • Offline measure: asking parents to describe their child
87
Q

True or False: Deaf children from hearing parents typically have a delay in theory of mind development.

A

True

88
Q

Why is sharing language with parents crucial for deaf children?

A

It allows them to communicate effectively and engage in conversations that are important for ToM development.

89
Q

What is the effect of family conversations on children’s understanding of false beliefs?

A

Conversations in the family are crucial for understanding false beliefs.

90
Q

What is mental state talk (MST)?

A

Talking about feelings, emotions, cognition, and mental states.

91
Q

Fill in the blank: The more a child is exposed to mental state talk, the better they will be in _______.

A

[theory of mind (ToM)]

92
Q

What did the meta-analysis on family factors and mental state talk reveal?

A

There is a significant relationship between family factors and mental state talk, independent of verbal ability.

93
Q

What is the unique effect of maternal mental state talk on children’s ToM?

A

Maternal mental state talk significantly influences children’s theory of mind development.

94
Q

What did longitudinal studies reveal about the relationship between parental theory of mind and children’s false beliefs?

A

Parental theory of mind does not significantly influence children’s false beliefs.

95
Q

What are the cognitive consequences of individual differences in ToM?

A

ToM is correlated with social competence and academic achievement.

96
Q

How does ToM predict academic achievement in children?

A

Understanding false beliefs before school correlates with better school achievements later.

97
Q

What are the three proposed mechanisms explaining the association between ToM and academic achievement?

A
  • Social route
  • Meta-cognitive route
  • Linguistic route
98
Q

What is the purpose of advanced theory of mind tasks?

A

To measure the application of ToM in complex social scenarios and detect individual differences.

99
Q

What are some examples of advanced ToM tasks?

A
  • Strange stories
  • Director task
  • Ambiguous number task
100
Q

True or False: Advanced ToM tasks are less sensitive to individual differences compared to classical tasks.

A

False

101
Q

What is the significance of measuring advanced ToM?

A

It helps in discerning normative from clinical populations and measuring ToM in everyday life.

102
Q

What are the two main categories of ToM tasks?

A
  • Classical ToM tasks
  • Advanced visuo-spatial perspective-taking tasks
103
Q

What are strange stories in the context of theory of mind tasks?

A

Short stories where participants infer the mental state of a character based on dialogue

Categories include misunderstanding, persuasion, white lies, and double bluff.

104
Q

How are answers scored in the strange stories task?

A

Scored on a scale of 0 to 2:
* 2 - explicit reference to mental state
* 1 - implicit reference to mental state
* 0 - irrelevant or false reference

105
Q

What is the silent films task?

A

A task using brief, dialogue-free video clips to assess interpretation of characters’ mental states

Scoring follows a similar pattern to the strange stories task.

106
Q

What does strong convergent validity indicate in theory of mind tasks?

A

A common latent factor that connects various cognitive assessments of theory of mind abilities.

107
Q

What is the triangle task?

A

A task where participants interpret the interactions of animated triangles to assess theory of mind

Interaction types include random, goal-directed, and ToM animations.

108
Q

What types of animations are used in the triangle task?

A

Three types of animations:
* Random animation
* Goal-directed animations
* ToM animation

109
Q

What is the scoring method for the triangle task?

A

Interpretation score based on a 5-point scale assessing mental state understanding.

110
Q

What is advanced visuo-spatial perspective-taking?

A

The ability to understand what another person sees from their visual perspective.

111
Q

What are the two levels of perspective taking?

A

Level 1: What you can see
Level 2: How you can see

112
Q

What is the dot perspective task designed to measure?

A

Level 1 perspective taking accuracy and reaction time in consistent versus inconsistent trials.

113
Q

What does the director task measure?

A

Level 1 perspective taking in an interactive manner.

114
Q

What is the ambiguous number task?

A

A task measuring level 2 perspective by asking participants to judge numbers from different viewpoints.

115
Q

What are the components of the ambiguous number task?

A

Includes:
* Fixation cross
* Perspective word (you/him)
* Number displayed (six/nine)
* Yes/no judgment on perspective accuracy

116
Q

What is the significance of consistent and inconsistent trials in perspective tasks?

A

Consistent trials yield greater accuracy and faster reaction times compared to inconsistent trials.

117
Q

What is egocentric interference in perspective taking tasks?

A

The bias of participants to use their own perspective in interpreting another person’s viewpoint.

118
Q

What are the outcomes of comparing level 1 and level 2 perspective tasks?

A

Level 1 is easier than level 2, with increased reaction time and errors in level 2.

119
Q

How many trials are in the ambiguous number task?

A

32 trials total: 16 self-trials and 16 other trials.

120
Q

What is the structure of the ambiguous number task?

A

Composed of:
* Title and instruction section
* Practice trial
* Main trials
* Ending session

121
Q

What types of stimuli are used in the ambiguous number task?

A

4 pictures for inconsistent trials and 4 for consistent trials.

Cognitive Development (1 decks)

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