Theory of mind (ToM)
You could be forgiven for thinking theory of mind' is a psychological theory. It isn't it refers to the
ability that each of us has to 'mind-read' or to have a personal theory or what other people know or
are feeling or thinking. Each of us has a theory, of mind when we have a belief (i.e., a theory) about
what is in someone else's mind
Different methods are used to study ToM at different points in development. The emergence of
simple ToM can be seen in toddlers by means of intentional reasoning research. A more
sophisticated level of ToM can be assessed in 3-4-year-olds using false belief tasks. In older children
and adults advanced ToM has been tested with the Eyes Task (see below), in which participants
judge complex emotions with minimal information about facial expression.
Intentional reasoning in toddlers
In one study Andrew Meltzof (1988) provided convincing evidence to show that
toddlers (aged about 18 months) nave an understanding of adult intentions when
carrying out simple actions. Children of 18 months observed adults place beads
into a jar. In the experimental condition the adults appeared to struggle with
this and dropped the beads. In the control condition the adults placed the beads
successfully in the jar. In both conditions the toddlers placed the beads in the jar;
they dropped no more beads in the experimental condition. This suggests they were
imitating what the adult intended to do. This kind of research shows that very young
children have a simple ToM.
False belief tasks
False belief tasks were developed in order to test whether children can understand
that people can believe something that is not true. The first was developed by Heinz
Wimmer and Josef Perner (1983). They told 3-4-year-olds a story in which Maxi left
his chocolate in a blue cupboard in the kitchen and then went to the playground.
Later, Maxi's mother used some of the chocolate in her cooking and placed the
remainder in the green cupboard. Children were asked where Maxi would look for
his chocolate when he comes back from the playground. Most 3-year-olds incorrectly
said that he would look in the green cupboard because Maxi doesn't know his
mother moved it. However, most 4-year-olds correctly identified the blue cupboard
This suggests that ToM undergoes a shift and becomes more advanced at around
four years.
You could be forgiven for thinking theory of mind' is a psychological theory. It isn't it refers to the
ability that each of us has to 'mind-read' or to have a personal theory or what other people know or
are feeling or thinking. Each of us has a theory, of mind when we have a belief (i.e., a theory) about
what is in someone else's mind
Different methods are used to study ToM at different points in development. The emergence of
simple ToM can be seen in toddlers by means of intentional reasoning research. A more
sophisticated level of ToM can be assessed in 3-4-year-olds using false belief tasks. In older children
and adults advanced ToM has been tested with the Eyes Task (see below), in which participants
judge complex emotions with minimal information about facial expression.
Intentional reasoning in toddlers
In one study Andrew Meltzof (1988) provided convincing evidence to show that
toddlers (aged about 18 months) nave an understanding of adult intentions when
carrying out simple actions. Children of 18 months observed adults place beads
into a jar. In the experimental condition the adults appeared to struggle with
this and dropped the beads. In the control condition the adults placed the beads
successfully in the jar. In both conditions the toddlers placed the beads in the jar;
they dropped no more beads in the experimental condition. This suggests they were
imitating what the adult intended to do. This kind of research shows that very young
children have a simple ToM.
False belief tasks
False belief tasks were developed in order to test whether children can understand
that people can believe something that is not true. The first was developed by Heinz
Wimmer and Josef Perner (1983). They told 3-4-year-olds a story in which Maxi left
his chocolate in a blue cupboard in the kitchen and then went to the playground.
Later, Maxi's mother used some of the chocolate in her cooking and placed the
remainder in the green cupboard. Children were asked where Maxi would look for
his chocolate when he comes back from the playground. Most 3-year-olds incorrectly
said that he would look in the green cupboard because Maxi doesn't know his
mother moved it. However, most 4-year-olds correctly identified the blue cupboard
This suggests that ToM undergoes a shift and becomes more advanced at around
four years.
