Theory of mind in children: Preliminary research the role of memory and language abilities as developmental indicators

Abstract

Preschool age is a period of fundamental changes in child's ability to explicitly reason about the other people's mental states. The aim of the research was to determine the relationship between the development of theory of mind, working memory and language abilities in children with typical development, aged four to eight years. For the assessment of listed abilities several instruments were used: "Sanja and Ana" False belief task, Backward span task, Verbal memory test, Decision speed test, Toddler grammar and FONT test. The results of the research indicated statistically significant correlations between theory of mind, verbal memory, as well as some aspects of language abilities. However, as a statistically significant indicator of achievement on theory of mind tasks, only verbal memory stands out (p < .05) which together with verbal working memory predicts 26% of the variance of achievement in first-order theory of mind acquisition (F = 9.40, df = 2; p = .00) and 15% of the achievement variance in the total score on theory of mind tasks (F = 4.55, df = 2, p = .01). Research results suggest a close but intriguing relationship between theory of mind, executive functions, and language abilities.