{"title":"How children’s social tendencies can shape their theory of mind development: Access and attention to social information","authors":"Jonathan D. Lane , Lindsay C. Bowman","doi":"10.1016/j.dr.2021.100977","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>A wealth of research and theorizing has been dedicated to the idea that children’s theory of mind (ToM) development is contingent upon qualities of their social contexts (e.g., parents’ mental-state language use, the presence of siblings). We highlight the importance of considering the child as an active observer and participant in these social contexts, and thus an agent in their own ToM development. Drawing on research and theory that emphasizes the child’s active role in ToM development, we identify child-level social factors that may be critical in explaining individual differences in this development. Specifically, we focus on variability in children’s ‘social tendencies’—how they attend to social contexts, and how they interact within and shape those contexts. These tendencies may influence the social information that children garner from social contexts—information that they use to construct a ToM. We review and integrate a growing body of research that has established empirical links between individual differences in children’s ToM and their social tendencies—specifically, factors such as their social attentiveness, shyness, anxious-withdrawal, and aggressiveness. Taken together, these findings inform continued debates on whether and how social contexts and children’s participation in those contexts influence children’s ToM, particularly with regard to how children construct their ToM. We conclude with suggestions for continued research on these topics.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":48214,"journal":{"name":"Developmental Review","volume":"61 ","pages":"Article 100977"},"PeriodicalIF":5.7000,"publicationDate":"2021-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1016/j.dr.2021.100977","citationCount":"10","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Developmental Review","FirstCategoryId":"102","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0273229721000320","RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"PSYCHOLOGY, DEVELOPMENTAL","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 10
Abstract
A wealth of research and theorizing has been dedicated to the idea that children’s theory of mind (ToM) development is contingent upon qualities of their social contexts (e.g., parents’ mental-state language use, the presence of siblings). We highlight the importance of considering the child as an active observer and participant in these social contexts, and thus an agent in their own ToM development. Drawing on research and theory that emphasizes the child’s active role in ToM development, we identify child-level social factors that may be critical in explaining individual differences in this development. Specifically, we focus on variability in children’s ‘social tendencies’—how they attend to social contexts, and how they interact within and shape those contexts. These tendencies may influence the social information that children garner from social contexts—information that they use to construct a ToM. We review and integrate a growing body of research that has established empirical links between individual differences in children’s ToM and their social tendencies—specifically, factors such as their social attentiveness, shyness, anxious-withdrawal, and aggressiveness. Taken together, these findings inform continued debates on whether and how social contexts and children’s participation in those contexts influence children’s ToM, particularly with regard to how children construct their ToM. We conclude with suggestions for continued research on these topics.
期刊介绍:
Presenting research that bears on important conceptual issues in developmental psychology, Developmental Review: Perspectives in Behavior and Cognition provides child and developmental, child clinical, and educational psychologists with authoritative articles that reflect current thinking and cover significant scientific developments. The journal emphasizes human developmental processes and gives particular attention to issues relevant to child developmental psychology. The research concerns issues with important implications for the fields of pediatrics, psychiatry, and education, and increases the understanding of socialization processes.