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Wang Z, Shao Y. Picture book reading improves children's learning understanding. BRITISH JOURNAL OF DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY 2024. [PMID: 38415288 DOI: 10.1111/bjdp.12479] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2022] [Accepted: 02/16/2024] [Indexed: 02/29/2024]
Abstract
Mental state reasoning is an integral part of children's teaching and learning understanding. This study investigated whether a picture book reading approach focusing on mental state discourse and contrasting perspectives in a preschool classroom setting would improve children's teaching and learning understanding and school readiness. In total, 104 children from four classrooms aged between 46 and 64 months (53 girls, M = 54.03 months, SD = 3.68) participated in the study. Half of the classrooms were randomly assigned to an experimental group where teachers read picture books rich in mental state discourse and engaged in intensive discussions with children for eight weeks. Children's false belief understanding and teaching and learning understanding were measured before and after the eight-week period. The result revealed that picture book reading improved children's learning understanding with a medium effect size, controlling for demographic variables, children's verbal ability, inhibition, and initial false belief understanding. The experimental group children further demonstrated more advanced school readiness 18 months after the intervention ended in a follow-up study using a teacher questionnaire.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhenlin Wang
- The Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
- Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
| | - Yihan Shao
- Shanghai SIPO Polytechnic, Shanghai, China
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2
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Humphreys KL, Garon-Bissonnette J, Hill KE, Bailes LG, Barnett W, Hare MM. Caregiving relationships are a cornerstone of developmental psychopathology. Dev Psychopathol 2024:1-14. [PMID: 38389283 DOI: 10.1017/s0954579424000300] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/24/2024]
Abstract
The interdisciplinary field of developmental psychopathology has made great strides by including context into theoretical and empirical approaches to studying risk and resilience. Perhaps no context is more important to the developing child than their relationships with their caregivers (typically a child's parents), as caregivers are a key source of stimulation and nurturance to young children. Coupled with the high degree of brain plasticity in the earliest years of life, these caregiving relationships have an immense influence on shaping behavioral outcomes relevant to developmental psychopathology. In this article, we discuss three areas within caregiving relationships: (1) caregiver-child interactions in everyday, naturalistic settings; (2) caregivers' social cognitions about their child; and (3) caregivers' broader social and cultural context. For each area, we provide an overview of its significance to the field, identify existing knowledge gaps, and offer potential approaches for bridging these gaps to foster growth in the field. Lastly, given that one value of a scientific discipline is its ability to produce research useful in guiding real-world decisions related to policy and practice, we encourage developmental psychopathology to consider that a focus on caregiving, a modifiable target, supports this mission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathryn L Humphreys
- Department of Psychology and Human Development, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | | | - Kaylin E Hill
- Department of Psychology and Human Development, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Lauren G Bailes
- Department of Psychology and Human Development, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Whitney Barnett
- Department of Psychology and Human Development, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Megan M Hare
- Department of Psychology and Human Development, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
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3
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Bendel-Stenzel LC, An D, Kochanska G. Elucidating mechanisms linking mothers' and fathers' mind-mindedness in infancy with children's self-regulation at early preschool age. J Exp Child Psychol 2024; 238:105782. [PMID: 37783014 PMCID: PMC10843086 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2023.105782] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2023] [Revised: 08/30/2023] [Accepted: 09/06/2023] [Indexed: 10/04/2023]
Abstract
Extensive research has examined factors that contribute to individual differences in children's self-regulation (SR), a key social-emotional competence crucial to adjustment and mental health. Those differences become salient and measurable at late toddler age. In the CAPS (N = 200 community families), we examined mothers' and fathers' appropriate mind-mindedness (MM)-the ability to view the child as a psychological agent and correctly interpret his or her mental states-as a predictor of children's SR. MM was observed in parent-child interactions at 8 months, and SR was observed as the capacity for deliberate delay in standard tasks at 3 years. Reflecting a family system perspective, processes both within and across mother-child and father-child relationships were examined in one model. Parent-child mutual responsiveness, observed during interactions at 16 months, was modeled as a mediator of the paths from MM to SR. Fathers' MM had a significant, direct positive effect on SR; in addition, it enhanced mutual responsiveness in both father-child and mother-child dyads and promoted child SR through enhanced mother-child mutual responsiveness. The findings elucidate relatively poorly understood mechanisms linking parental MM in infancy with SR at early preschool age, highlight similarities and differences in the processes unfolding in mother-child and father-child relationships, and emphasize interparental dynamics in socialization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lilly C Bendel-Stenzel
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA.
| | - Danming An
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA
| | - Grazyna Kochanska
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA
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4
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Hobby L, Bird AL, Townsend ML, Barnes J. Mind-mindedness and preschool children's behavioral difficulties: The moderating role of maternal parenting distress. Dev Psychopathol 2023; 35:1584-1596. [PMID: 35491701 DOI: 10.1017/s0954579422000311] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Mind-mindedness (MM) is a caregiver's tendency to appreciate their infant's internal mental states. This longitudinal study investigated whether maternal MM (10 months) was linked with children's later behavioral problems (51 months) and the moderating role of maternal parenting distress (PD; 36 months) in a sample of 91 mother-infant dyads. Appropriate MM comments were coded from video-recorded, semi-structured play interactions between mothers and their infants; PD was obtained from maternal completion of the PD subscale of the Parenting Stress Index - Short Form (PSI-SF); and child internalizing and externalizing behavior problems were gathered from maternal report on the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Moderated regression analyses revealed higher early appropriate MM was associated with significantly fewer internalizing emotional problems at 51 months among mothers with lower PD at 36 months, and higher early appropriate MM was associated with lower conduct problems at 51 months in mothers with higher PD at 36 months. Findings demonstrated the importance of considering nuanced contexts such as at-risk mothers and differential presentations of child difficulties in the analysis of the relationship between MM and child behavioral difficulties and the development of MM interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucy Hobby
- School of Psychology, Faculty of the Arts, Social Sciences, and Humanities, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Amy L Bird
- School of Psychology, Faculty of the Arts, Social Sciences, and Humanities, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia
- School of Psychology, Faculty of Science, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Michelle L Townsend
- School of Psychology, Faculty of the Arts, Social Sciences, and Humanities, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Jacqueline Barnes
- School of Psychology, Faculty of the Arts, Social Sciences, and Humanities, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Birkbeck University of London, London, Greater London, UK
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5
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Ding N, Miller R, Clayton NS. Inhibition and cognitive flexibility are related to prediction of one's own future preferences in young British and Chinese children. Cognition 2023; 236:105433. [PMID: 37001438 DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2023.105433] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2021] [Revised: 02/27/2023] [Accepted: 03/01/2023] [Indexed: 03/31/2023]
Abstract
The ability to shift from current to future perspective is pivotal to future-oriented cognition. With two distinct cultural groups, UK (N = 92) and China (N = 90), we investigated 3 to 5-year-olds' understanding of preference changes occurring within themselves and their peers (another child). We administered a battery of representative tasks of executive function and theory of mind to examine their underlying relationships with children's ability to predict future preferences. British 3-year-olds outperformed Chinese children in predicting future preferences, while no country differences were observed between the 4- and 5-year-olds. Across the UK and China, children were more accurate when predicting for their peers than for themselves. They were also more accurate when their current preferences were identified first, i.e. before answering questions about the future. Chinese children outperformed their British counterparts on inhibition and cognitive flexibility tasks whereas there were no Eastern and Western differences in their theory of mind abilities. After controlling for age and children's knowledge of generic adult preferences, children's performance in the inhibition and cognitive flexibility tasks were significantly correlated with the prediction of their own future preferences, but they were not significantly correlated when predicting for a peer. These results are discussed in relation to the conflicts between multiple perspectives and the cognitive correlates of future-oriented cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ning Ding
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK; Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
| | - Rachael Miller
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK; School of Life Sciences, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, UK
| | - Nicola S Clayton
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
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6
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Wang Y, Shang S, Xie W, Hong S, Liu Z, Su Y. The relation between aggression and theory of mind in children: A meta-analysis. Dev Sci 2023; 26:e13310. [PMID: 36039023 DOI: 10.1111/desc.13310] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2021] [Revised: 07/28/2022] [Accepted: 07/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Previous findings on the association between theory of mind (ToM) and aggression in children are mixed. The social skills deficit view regarded ToM as a single-edged sword and proposed that a lack of ToM can lead to aggression, while the double-edged sword view proposed that children with advanced ToM can still show much aggression because children can also leverage ToM to harm others. To resolve the dispute between the two views, we conducted a meta-analysis combining cross-sectional and longitudinal findings from 53 studies including a total of 11,579 children aged between 2 and 15 years. The overall negative correlation between ToM and aggression was small but significant (r = -0.08). The negative correlation was robust, with the magnitude of the correlation being similar across physical versus relational aggression, proactive versus reactive aggression, cognitive versus affective ToM, preschoolers versus school-aged children, different aggression measurements, and different levels of societal individualism. Moreover, the negative correlation was found regardless of whether ToM and aggression were measured concurrently or at different time points, but the correlation was the largest when ToM was measured before aggression. Whether the aggression was bullying or not also moderated the association, with ToM only being negatively related to non-bullying aggression but not bullying. Together, these findings suggest that ToM is a single-edged sword to decrease general aggression and that aggression might also give rise to lower ToM capacity during development. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: This study systemically reviewed the existing mixed findings on the association between aggression and ToM during childhood using a meta-analysis. There was a negative correlation between ToM and aggression in children aged between 2 and 15 years. The negative correlation between aggression and ToM was stronger when ToM was measured first, followed by aggression, than vice versa. There was a negative correlation between non-bullying aggression and ToM, whereas there was no correlation between bullying and ToM.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yiyi Wang
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China.,Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Siyuan Shang
- Department of Psychology, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Wanze Xie
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China.,PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Skylar Hong
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China.,Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Zexi Liu
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Yanjie Su
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China.,Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing, China
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7
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Chan MHM, Merrill SM, Konwar C, Kobor MS. An integrative framework and recommendations for the study of DNA methylation in the context of race and ethnicity. DISCOVER SOCIAL SCIENCE AND HEALTH 2023; 3:9. [PMID: 37122633 PMCID: PMC10118232 DOI: 10.1007/s44155-023-00039-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2023] [Accepted: 03/27/2023] [Indexed: 05/02/2023]
Abstract
Human social epigenomics research is critical to elucidate the intersection of social and genetic influences underlying racial and ethnic differences in health and development. However, this field faces major challenges in both methodology and interpretation with regard to disentangling confounded social and biological aspects of race and ethnicity. To address these challenges, we discuss how these constructs have been approached in the past and how to move forward in studying DNA methylation (DNAm), one of the best-characterized epigenetic marks in humans, in a responsible and appropriately nuanced manner. We highlight self-reported racial and ethnic identity as the primary measure in this field, and discuss its implications in DNAm research. Racial and ethnic identity reflects the biological embedding of an individual's sociocultural experience and environmental exposures in combination with the underlying genetic architecture of the human population (i.e., genetic ancestry). Our integrative framework demonstrates how to examine DNAm in the context of race and ethnicity, while considering both intrinsic factors-including genetic ancestry-and extrinsic factors-including structural and sociocultural environment and developmental niches-when focusing on early-life experience. We reviewed DNAm research in relation to health disparities given its relevance to race and ethnicity as social constructs. Here, we provide recommendations for the study of DNAm addressing racial and ethnic differences, such as explicitly acknowledging the self-reported nature of racial and ethnic identity, empirically examining the effects of genetic variants and accounting for genetic ancestry, and investigating race-related and culturally regulated environmental exposures and experiences. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s44155-023-00039-z.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meingold Hiu-ming Chan
- Department of Medical Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC Canada
- British Columbia Children’s Hospital Research Institute, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC Canada
- Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC Canada
| | - Sarah M. Merrill
- Department of Medical Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC Canada
- British Columbia Children’s Hospital Research Institute, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC Canada
- Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC Canada
| | - Chaini Konwar
- Department of Medical Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC Canada
- British Columbia Children’s Hospital Research Institute, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC Canada
- Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC Canada
| | - Michael S. Kobor
- Department of Medical Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC Canada
- British Columbia Children’s Hospital Research Institute, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC Canada
- Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC Canada
- Edwin S. H. Leong Healthy Aging Program, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC Canada
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8
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What does the Strange Stories test measure? Developmental and within-test variation. COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT 2023. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cogdev.2022.101289] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
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9
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Kong Q, Mulvihill A, Slaughter V, Fraser H, Cavanagh-Welch B, Elwina FC, Kang J, Ruffman T. Not just quantity but also quality of language: Cross-cultural comparisons of maternal mental state talk in New Zealand, Australia, and China. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0282480. [PMID: 36928220 PMCID: PMC10019639 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0282480] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2022] [Accepted: 02/15/2023] [Indexed: 03/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Western mothers use more mental state talk with children than do Chinese mothers (e.g., "think", "like", "happy"). The present study aimed to examine whether Western mothers not only produced a greater amount of mental state talk, but also used a wider range of mental state terms (i.e., greater lexical variety) compared to Chinese mothers. We compared maternal mental state talk in 271 mother-child dyads from New Zealand, Australia and China, and coded both quantity (i.e., frequency) and quality (i.e., type, variety, valence) of mothers' mental state talk to their 2.5- to 5-year-olds. Western mothers produced more talk about cognitions and emotions, as well as modulations of assertions, but a similar amount of desire talk, compared to Chinese mothers, with the same patterns found in the variety of talk. Western mothers produced an overall higher amount of mental state talk and a greater variety of mental state terms, but crucially, still produced more MS talk after controlling for the variety. Neither the amount nor the variety of maternal MS talk was correlated with children's theory of mind. These findings shed light on the diverse ways that mothers construe and describe mental states in different cultures, and highlight the importance of examining different aspects of maternal mental state talk and their impact on children's theory of mind in future longitudinal studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiuyi Kong
- Department of Psychology, The University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
- * E-mail: (QK); (TR)
| | - Aisling Mulvihill
- School of Psychology, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | | | - Harry Fraser
- Department of Psychology, The University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
| | | | | | - Jie Kang
- Department of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
| | - Ted Ruffman
- Department of Psychology, The University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
- * E-mail: (QK); (TR)
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Relación entre modelos operantes internos y nivel educacional materno, con la teoría de la mente en niños chilenos de 3 y 4 años: rol mediador del lenguaje mentalizante materno. ACTA COLOMBIANA DE PSICOLOGIA 2022. [DOI: 10.14718/acp.2023.26.1.11] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
La teoría de la mente (ToM) es la capacidad de reconocer los propios estados mentales y predecir los de otros, habilidad fundamental en el desarrollo socioemocional/cognitivo en preescolares. El presente estudio buscó describir la ToM de niños chilenos de 3 y 4 años, analizar las diferencias en su desarrollo según la edad y el rol mediador del lenguaje mentalizante(LM) materno, considerando el sexo de los niños, los modelos operantes internos (MOI) y el nivel educacional materno. La muestra fueron 110 niños con sus madres. Se aplicó un cuestionario sociodemográfico, pruebas para evaluar la ToM, el LM y los MOI de las madres. Un 50.9 % de los niños se ubicó en el quintil 1 de la ToM y ninguno logró llegar al quinto. Las habilidades de la ToM con un mayor nivel de logro diferenciaron entre pretender y realidad (60.0 %) y la de diferenciar laperspectiva visual propia y de otro (50.9 %). Un 59.1 % de los niños no logró inferir deseos a través de la mirada, un 83.6 % no logró la habilidad de acceso al conocimiento, y un 100 % no logró la falsa creencia. Los resultados muestran diferencias significativas entre niños de distintos rangos etarios en el desarrollo de la ToM, sugiriendo una creciente dificultad de adquisición de sus habilidades. Además, un mayor lm de las madres se relacionó con mayor desarrollo de la ToM en los niños,con un rol mediador en la influencia de los moi y nivel educacional materno sobre la ToM.
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11
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Hou XH, Liu Y, Li Y, Wang LY. Sequence of theory of mind acquisition in ethnic minority children in China: A comparison of Zhuang and Han samples. CURRENT PSYCHOLOGY 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s12144-022-03945-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
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12
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Linking early maternal input during shared reading to later theory of mind through receptive language and executive function: A within- and between-family design. J Exp Child Psychol 2022; 223:105469. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2022.105469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2021] [Revised: 05/03/2022] [Accepted: 05/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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13
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Laflamme E, Matte-Gagné C, Baribeau-Lambert A. Paternal mind-mindedness and infant-toddler social-emotional problems. Infant Behav Dev 2022; 69:101767. [PMID: 36058127 DOI: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2022.101767] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/01/2021] [Revised: 08/25/2022] [Accepted: 08/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
A growing body of evidence suggests that paternal behaviors are influential in child development. However, few studies have focused on paternal mind-mindedness, that is, the tendency of fathers to view their child as having mental agency, which is manifested as a propensity to name the child's mental states while they are interacting with the child. The purpose of this study was to better understand the role of paternal mind-mindedness in the development of social-emotional problems during infancy. 131 families (father-mother-child) were recruited from the community and assessed when children were 6, 12, and 18 months old. Paternal and maternal mind-mindedness was assessed through observation of father-child and mother-child dyads at 6 months. Children's social-emotional problems were measured with a questionnaire completed by both parents at 12 and 18 months. Results indicate that maternal mind-mindedness at 6 months predicts fewer social-emotional problems at 12 months, while fathers' mind-mindedness at 6 months predicts fewer social-emotional problems at 18 months. This study highlights the unique contribution of paternal mind-mindedness to children's early social-emotional development.
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Sudo M, Cheung ZKP, Okada Y, Daniels J. How I wonder what you are: Children's songs as a source of mental and internal state information. SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/sode.12632] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Mioko Sudo
- Department of Psychology University of Florida Gainesville Florida USA
- School of Social Sciences Nanyang Technological University Nanyang Singapore
| | - Zoe Ka Pui Cheung
- Department of Psychology University of Florida Gainesville Florida USA
| | - Yasuko Okada
- Research Institute for Language Education Seisen University Shinagawa‐ku Tokyo Japan
| | - Jaxenne Daniels
- Department of Psychology University of Florida Gainesville Florida USA
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15
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Wang Z, Gao X. Patience Is a Virtue: Theory of Mind Longitudinally Predicts Children's Delay during School Transition. Dev Neuropsychol 2022; 47:233-246. [PMID: 35786101 DOI: 10.1080/87565641.2022.2094382] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
Four- to seven-year-old children participated in a battery of tasks assessing their theory of mind, conflict inhibition, and delay at time 1, and theory of mind and delay one year later at time 2. Cross-lagged analysis revealed that earlier theory of mind predicted later delay after controlling for earlier conflict inhibition and theory of mind, child age, and family socioeconomic status. The findings highlighted the dynamic nature of the association between theory of mind and delay during the school transition years in its strength and direction, and the increasing specificity in the structure of executive function with age.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhenlin Wang
- Department of Psychology, The Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
| | - Xiaozi Gao
- Centre for Educational and Developmental Sciences, the Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
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16
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McCormick SA, Deater-Deckard K, Hughes C. Household clutter and crowding constrain associations between maternal sensitivity and child theory of mind. BRITISH JOURNAL OF DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY 2022; 40:271-286. [PMID: 35175643 DOI: 10.1111/bjdp.12406] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2021] [Accepted: 01/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Social interactions between parents and children are important for developing theory of mind, but these may be disrupted by aspects of the proximal home environment. The current study observed maternal sensitivity and its associations with child theory of mind and the housing environment (index by clutter and crowding) in a sample of mothers and their 3.5-year-old twins (N = 250 children). Maternal sensitivity and housing environment were measured from experimenter report and child theory of mind was measured through behavioural tasks. Results show that the association between maternal sensitivity and child theory of mind was moderated by the housing environment, where the positive associations between maternal sensitivity and child theory of mind were only observed at lower levels of clutter and crowding in the housing environment. Additional contextual variables and processes are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Claire Hughes
- Centre for Family Research, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
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17
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Afek E, Lev-Wiesel R, Federman D, Shai D. The mediating role of parental embodied mentalizing in the longitudinal association between prenatal spousal support and toddler emotion recognition. INFANCY 2022; 27:609-629. [PMID: 35150186 DOI: 10.1111/infa.12462] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2021] [Revised: 12/26/2021] [Accepted: 01/22/2022] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Abstract
Emotion recognition is an important developmental achievement in early childhood. Grounded in theoretical concepts of family systems theory and the spillover effect, the goal of the current study was to examine whether prenatal spousal support predicts toddler emotion recognition at 24 months, and whether this association is mediated by parental embodied mentalizing (PEM) at 6 months. PEM refers to the parent's capacity to understand the infant's mental states from his or her whole-body kinesthetic expressions and adjust their own kinesthetic patterns accordingly. One hundred and five families expecting their first child were included in the study. Results indicated that maternal PEM mediated the relationship between prenatal dyadic positive and overall support and toddler emotion recognition. Paternal PEM was not found to be related to either dyadic support or to toddler emotion recognition, and it did not mediate the relationship between the two. The findings of the current study support the importance of including both parents' embodied mentalizing and a systemic approach to illuminate child development. A significant clinical implication from this study is the usefulness of prenatal couple interventions to improve mutual support and communication as it can promote parents' parental mentalizing and ultimately the child's emotion recognition capacity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Einav Afek
- The Emili Sagol Research Center for Creative Arts Therapies, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
| | - Rachel Lev-Wiesel
- The Emili Sagol Research Center for Creative Arts Therapies, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel.,Social Work, Tel Hai College, Upper Galilee, Israel
| | - Dita Federman
- The Emili Sagol Research Center for Creative Arts Therapies, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
| | - Dana Shai
- SEED Center, School of Behavioral Science, The Academic College of Tel Aviv-Yaffo, Tel-Aviv, Israel
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18
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Yang R, Zhang L, Wu X, Fu Q, Bao Q. Caregivers' mind-mindedness and rural left-behind young children's insecure attachment: The moderated mediation model of theory of mind and family status. CHILD ABUSE & NEGLECT 2022; 124:105472. [PMID: 34991010 DOI: 10.1016/j.chiabu.2021.105472] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2021] [Revised: 12/09/2021] [Accepted: 12/21/2021] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND China's rapid development and urbanization since the early 1980s have compelled many rural residents to move from rural to urban areas for work, leaving thousands of children at home. OBJECTIVE This study tested the mediating effect of children's theory of mind on the relationship between caregivers' mind-mindedness and their children's insecure attachment differently depending on the different family status (the moderator) of left-behind and non-left-behind. PARTICIPANTS The participants were 3 to 6 years old 74 left-behind children (LBHC) and 89 non-left-behind children (NLBHC). SETTINGS Participants were from rural counties of central China in Henan province that has experienced a large labor migration. METHODS A cross-sectional moderated mediation model linked mind-mindedness (independent variable) and insecure attachment (dependent variable) through the theory of mind (mediator) and family status (moderator: left-behind/non-left-behind), controlling for age, gender, and siblings. RESULTS First, LBHC scored higher on insecure-disorganized attachment than NLBHC. Second, the early childhood theory of mind mediated the relationship between the caregiver's mind-mindedness and young children's insecure attachment. Third, family status moderated the effects of the theory of mind on insecure attachment. The mediating role was established only for the left-behind family, and the lower theory of mind ability was associated with the greater insecure attachment of LBHC. CONCLUSIONS Our findings highlight the critical role of mind-mindedness, theory of mind, and family status in the attachment theory and clarify the association between different levels of young children's theory of mind and insecure attachment based on family status.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rui Yang
- School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, China.
| | - Lijin Zhang
- School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, China; Shaanxi Provincial Key Research Center of Child Mental and Behavioral Health, Xi'an, China; Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience, Xi'an, China.
| | - Xiujuan Wu
- School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, China
| | - Qianqian Fu
- School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, China
| | - Qing Bao
- School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, China
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19
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Fujita N, Devine RT, Hughes C. Theory of mind and executive function in early childhood: A cross-cultural investigation. COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cogdev.2021.101150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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20
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Aldrich NJ, Chen J, Alfieri L. Evaluating associations between parental mind-mindedness and children’s developmental capacities through meta-analysis. DEVELOPMENTAL REVIEW 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.dr.2021.100946] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
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21
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Dias NM, Pontes JM, Silva LDPD, Mecca TP. Relations between theory of mind and family environment among Brazilian preschool children. APPLIED NEUROPSYCHOLOGY-CHILD 2021; 11:471-479. [PMID: 33689507 DOI: 10.1080/21622965.2021.1892494] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
Given the importance of the environment for the development of the theory of mind (ToM) in childhood, as well as the scarcity of studies in low-income Latin American countries, we aimed to investigate the relation between family environment characteristics and performance in ToM tasks in a group of Brazilian children. A total of 49 children participated, whose ages ranged between 3 and 5 years (M = 4.43; SD = 0.71), all of whom attended a public kindergarten school located in the metropolitan region of São Paulo, Brazil, and took the Theory of mind test for children (TMTC). The observation of the characteristics of the family environment was conducted by using the Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment (HOME) instrument in the very home setting of each participating child. By controlling the effects of children's age, intelligence, vocabulary, and mother's and father's educational level, a consistent positive, significant, and low-magnitude correlation was found between HOME's Responsiveness subscale with the total score in TMTC. A robust regression analysis also showed that individual and contextual variables (above cited, plus sex) and Responsiveness accounted for 28.4% of ToM variance. This study corroborates previous findings on the relation between family aspects and ToM, specifically highlighting parents' responsiveness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natália Martins Dias
- Psychology Department, Federal University of Santa Catarina-UFSC, Florianópolis, Brazil
| | | | | | - Tatiana Pontrelli Mecca
- Department of Mental Health-Santa Casa de Sao Paulo School of Medical Sciences, São Paulo, Brazil
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22
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Wang Z, Wang L. Little pranksters: Inhibitory control mediates the association between false belief understanding and practical joking in young children. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BEHAVIORAL DEVELOPMENT 2021. [DOI: 10.1177/0165025420988594] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
To successfully pull a practical joke on someone, children need to understand that their victims do not know what they themselves know, be able to intentionally manipulate others’ beliefs, and maintain a straight face to safeguard the integrity of the joke. This study examined the relationship between children’s developing theory of mind (ToM), inhibitory control, and their ability to pull a practical joke. Ninety-five children between ages 2 and 6 participated in, among other measures, a practical joke task that required them to knowingly give one of the experimenters a gift box containing a rubber insect. Results showed that children’s ability to pull a practical joke was significantly related to their age, false belief understanding (FBU), inhibitory control, and verbal ability. Children with more siblings were more likely to successfully pull a practical joke. Most importantly, inhibitory control was shown to mediate the relation between FBU and practical joking. The findings provide evidence that practical joking as an example of ToM use is effortful.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhenlin Wang
- The Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
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23
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Stengelin R, Hepach R, Haun DBM. Cultural variation in young children's social motivation for peer collaboration and its relation to the ontogeny of Theory of Mind. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0242071. [PMID: 33211711 PMCID: PMC7676710 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0242071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2020] [Accepted: 10/14/2020] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Children seek and like to engage in collaborative activities with their peers. This social motivation is hypothesized to facilitate their emerging social-cognitive skills and vice versa. Current evidence on the ontogeny of social motivation and its’ links to social cognition, however, is subject to a sampling bias toward participants from urban Western populations. Here, we show both cross-cultural variation and homogeneity in three- to eight-year-old children’s expressed positive emotions during and explicit preferences for peer collaboration across three diverse populations (urban German, rural Hai||om/Namibia, rural Ovambo/Namibia; n = 240). Children expressed more positive emotions during collaboration as compared to individual activity, but the extent varied across populations. Children’s preferences for collaboration differed markedly between populations and across ages: While German children across all ages sought collaboration, Hai||om children preferred to act individually throughout childhood. Ovambo children preferred individual play increasingly with age. Across populations, positive emotions expressed selectively during collaboration, predicted children’s social-cognitive skills. These findings provide evidence that culture shapes young children’s social motivation for dyadic peer collaboration. At the same time, the positive relation of social motivation and social cognition in early ontogeny appears cross-culturally constant.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roman Stengelin
- Department of Comparative Cultural Psychology, Max-Planck-Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
- Leipzig Research Center for Early Child Development, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany
- * E-mail:
| | - Robert Hepach
- Department of Comparative Cultural Psychology, Max-Planck-Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
- Department of Research Methods in Early Child Development, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Daniel B. M. Haun
- Department of Comparative Cultural Psychology, Max-Planck-Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
- Leipzig Research Center for Early Child Development, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany
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24
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Barrett HC. Towards a Cognitive Science of the Human: Cross-Cultural Approaches and Their Urgency. Trends Cogn Sci 2020; 24:620-638. [DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2020.05.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2020] [Revised: 05/11/2020] [Accepted: 05/18/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
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25
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Pequet A, Warnell KR. Thinking of you: Relations between mind‐mindedness, theory of mind, and social anxiety traits in middle childhood and adulthood. SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/sode.12468] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Allison Pequet
- Department of Psychology Texas State University San Marcos TX USA
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26
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27
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Cheng M, Setoh P, Bornstein MH, Esposito G. She Thinks in English, But She Wants in Mandarin: Differences in Singaporean Bilingual English-Mandarin Maternal Mental-State-Talk. Behav Sci (Basel) 2020; 10:bs10070106. [PMID: 32605140 PMCID: PMC7408008 DOI: 10.3390/bs10070106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2020] [Revised: 06/19/2020] [Accepted: 06/22/2020] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Chinese-speaking parents are believed to use less cognitive mental-state-talk than their English-speaking counterparts on account of their cultural goals in socializing their children to follow an interdependence script. Here, we investigated bilingual English–Mandarin Singaporean mothers who associate different functions for each language as prescribed by their government: English for school and Mandarin for in-group contexts. English and Mandarin maternal mental-state-talk from bilingual English–Mandarin mothers with their toddlers was examined. Mothers produced more ‘’cognitive’’ terms in English than in Mandarin and more ‘’desire’’ terms in Mandarin than in English. We show that mental-state-talk differs between bilingual parents’ languages, suggesting that mothers adjust their mental-state-talk to reflect the functions of each language.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michelle Cheng
- Psychology, School of Social Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 639818, Singapore; (M.C.); (G.E.)
| | - Peipei Setoh
- Psychology, School of Social Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 639818, Singapore; (M.C.); (G.E.)
- Correspondence:
| | - Marc H. Bornstein
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA;
- United Nations Children’s Fund, New York, NY 10017, USA
- Institute for Fiscal Studies, London WC1E 7AE, UK
| | - Gianluca Esposito
- Psychology, School of Social Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 639818, Singapore; (M.C.); (G.E.)
- Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 636921, Singapore
- Department of Psychology and Cognitive Science, University of Trento, 38068 Rovereto, TN, Italy
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28
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Rivas-Garcia S, Bateman A, Caracuel A. Validation of the ToMas-child Scale for the Assessment of the Theory of Mind in a Group of Spanish Speaking Children Aged 3 to 7 Years from Spain. Dev Neuropsychol 2020; 45:232-245. [PMID: 32419516 DOI: 10.1080/87565641.2020.1764567] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
This study aimed to determine the psychometric properties of the Theory of Mind assessment scale in children (ToMas-child). Two hundred and fifty-two Spanish children from 3 to 7 years were assessed in school settings. Rasch analysis showed the ToMas-child is a unidimensional scale valid for the assessment of the main components of the ToM in children. Data of hierarchical distribution of six items (seven tasks) are discussed as milestones in the latent construct of ToM development in childhood, and construct validity of the scale is examined. A reliability index of PSI = 0.7 indicated the usefulness of the scale as a screening tool.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sandra Rivas-Garcia
- Mind, Brain and Behaviour Research center-CIMCYC , Granada, Spain.,Developmental and Educational Psychology department, University of Granada , Granada, Spain
| | - Andrew Bateman
- School of Health and Social Care, University of Essex , Colchester, UK.,School of Health and Social Care, NIHR Research Design Service. East of England , Colchester, UK
| | - Alfonso Caracuel
- Mind, Brain and Behaviour Research center-CIMCYC , Granada, Spain.,Developmental and Educational Psychology department, University of Granada , Granada, Spain
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29
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Fujita N, Hughes C. Mind‐mindedness and self–other distinction: Contrasts between Japanese and British mothers’ speech samples. SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/sode.12454] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Nao Fujita
- Centre for Family Research University of Cambridge Cambridge UK
| | - Claire Hughes
- Centre for Family Research University of Cambridge Cambridge UK
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30
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Farkas C, Santelices MP, Vallotton CD, Brophy-Herb HE, Iglesias M, Sieverson C, Cuellar MDP, Álvarez C. Children’s storybooks as a source of mental state references: Comparison between books from Chile, Colombia, Scotland and USA. COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT 2020. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cogdev.2019.100845] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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31
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Aival-Naveh E, Rothschild‐Yakar L, Kurman J. Keeping culture in mind: A systematic review and initial conceptualization of mentalizing from a cross‐cultural perspective. CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY-SCIENCE AND PRACTICE 2019. [DOI: 10.1111/cpsp.12300] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Jenny Kurman
- Department of Psychology University of Haifa Israel
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32
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Keeping cultural in cultural evolutionary psychology: Culture shapes indigenous psychologies in specific ecologies. Behav Brain Sci 2019; 42:e179. [PMID: 31511118 DOI: 10.1017/s0140525x19001109] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
In Cognitive Gadgets, Heyes seeks to unite evolutionary psychology with cultural evolutionary theory. Although we applaud this unifying effort, we find it falls short of considering how culture itself evolves to produce indigenous psychologies fitted to particular environments. We focus on mentalizing and autobiographical memory as examples of how socialization practices embedded within culture build cognitive adaptations.
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33
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Dai Q, McMahon C, Lim AK. Cross-cultural comparison of maternal mind-mindedness among Australian and Chinese mothers. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BEHAVIORAL DEVELOPMENT 2019. [DOI: 10.1177/0165025419874133] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Evidence suggests that parental mind-mindedness is important for children’s social-emotional development; however, almost all research exploring mind-mindedness has been conducted with families from Western backgrounds. The current study explored cross-cultural differences in mind-mindedness based on observed real-time interactions between urban Australian ( N = 50, M age = 30.34 years, SD = 3.14) and urban mainland Chinese ( N = 50, M age = 29.18 years, SD = 4.14) mothers and their toddlers (Australian: M age = 18.98 months, SD = 0.87; Chinese: M age = 18.50 months, SD = 2.25). Controlling for education, the Australian mothers used a higher proportion of appropriate mind-related comments and were less likely to use non-attuned mind-related comments than their Chinese counterparts, adjusting for total number of comments. Transcript analysis showed that the Australian mothers used more mental state terms referring to desires and preferences than Chinese mothers. Findings are discussed in relation to cultural influences in child-rearing goals, beliefs, and values and the need for cross-cultural validation of the mind-mindedness construct.
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34
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Taumoepeau M, Sadeghi S, Nobilo A. Cross-cultural differences in children’s theory of mind in Iran and New Zealand: The role of caregiver mental state talk. COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cogdev.2019.05.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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35
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Miller JE, Kim S, Boldt LJ, Goffin KC, Kochanska G. Long-term sequelae of mothers' and fathers' mind-mindedness in infancy: A developmental path to children's attachment at age 10. Dev Psychol 2019; 55:675-686. [PMID: 30525830 PMCID: PMC6422742 DOI: 10.1037/dev0000660] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Rapidly growing research on parental mind-mindedness, a tendency to treat one's young child as a psychological agent and an individual with a mind, internal mental states, and emotions, has demonstrated significant links among parents' mind-mindedness, their parenting, and multiple aspects of children's development. This prospective longitudinal study of 102 community mothers, fathers, and infants, followed from 7 months to 10 years, contributes to research on mind-mindedness by addressing several existing gaps and limitations. We examine mechanisms that account for associations between parents' early mind-mindedness and children's future attachment security, using robust behavioral measures. Teams of trained observers coded parents' mind-minded comments to their infants at 7 months during naturalistic interactions, parents' responsiveness in naturalistic interactions and in elicited imitation tasks at 15 months, and children's security, using Attachment Q-Set at 2 years and Iowa Attachment Behavioral Coding at 10 years. Sequential mediation analyses supported a model of a developmental path from parents' appropriate mind-minded comments in infancy to children's security at age 10. For mothers and children, the path was mediated first through responsiveness at 15 months and then security at 2 years. For fathers and children, the path was mediated through attachment security at 2 years. Parents' nonattuned mind-minded comments had no effects on responsiveness or security. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).
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Affiliation(s)
- Jane E Miller
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa
| | | | - Lea J Boldt
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa
| | - Kathryn C Goffin
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa
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36
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Kristen-Antonow S, Licata-Dandel M, Müller M, Sodian B. Maternal cognition talk in the mother-toddler dyad mediates the influence of early maternal emotional availability on preschoolers' belief reasoning. SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT 2018. [DOI: 10.1111/sode.12301] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
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37
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Cheng N, Lu S, Archer M, Wang Z. Quality of Maternal Parenting of 9-Month-Old Infants Predicts Executive Function Performance at 2 and 3 Years of Age. Front Psychol 2018; 8:2293. [PMID: 29375425 PMCID: PMC5767245 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2017.02293] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2017] [Accepted: 12/18/2017] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Whereas the effects of maternal parenting quality during infants' 2nd year on later executive function (EF) have been studied extensively, less is known about the impact of maternal parenting quality during the 1st year. The aim of this study was to examine whether maternal parenting during infants' 1st year predicted EF performance at 2 and 3 years of age in a Chinese sample. Data were collected from 96 mother-infant dyads (42 males) when the infants were 6, 9, 25, and 38 months old. Cognitive development as a control variable was measured with the Bayley Scales of Infant Development II at 6 months. At 9 months, three aspects of maternal parenting quality (sensitivity, mind-mindedness, and encouragement of autonomy) were assessed with MBQS, mind-mindedness coding system, and encouragement of autonomy coding schema within a 15-min mother-infant interaction. Three aspects of EF (working memory, inhibitory control, and delay EF) were measured at 25 and 38 months with age-appropriate tasks. Hierarchical regression analysis showed that maternal mind-mindedness had a more important effect than did the encouragement of autonomy and maternal sensitivity during infants' preverbal period. More precisely, maternal mind-mindedness at 9 months predicted inhibitory control at 2 and 3 years, and maternal encouragement of autonomy predicted performance on delay EF tasks at 3 years, maternal sensitivity had no observed effect on children's EF. This study suggests that maternal parenting quality during the 1st year (maternal mind-mindedness and encouragement of autonomy, but not maternal sensitivity) impacts later EF development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nanhua Cheng
- School of Psychology, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China
- Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- Department of Psychology, University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Shan Lu
- School of Psychology, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China
- Center for Child Development, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Learning and Cognition, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Marc Archer
- School of Public Health, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Zhengyan Wang
- School of Psychology, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China
- Center for Child Development, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Learning and Cognition, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China
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38
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McMahon CA, Bernier A. Twenty years of research on parental mind-mindedness: Empirical findings, theoretical and methodological challenges, and new directions. DEVELOPMENTAL REVIEW 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.dr.2017.07.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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39
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Wang L, Zhu L, Wang Z. Parental mind-mindedness but not false belief understanding predicts Hong Kong children’s lie-telling behavior in a temptation resistance task. J Exp Child Psychol 2017; 162:89-100. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2017.04.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2016] [Revised: 04/13/2017] [Accepted: 04/13/2017] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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40
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Hughes C, Devine RT. For Better or for Worse? Positive and Negative Parental Influences on Young Children's Executive Function. Child Dev 2017; 90:593-609. [PMID: 28800148 DOI: 10.1111/cdev.12915] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Despite rapidly growing research on parental influences on children's executive function (EF), the uniqueness and specificity of parental predictors and links between adult EF and parenting remain unexamined. This 13-month longitudinal study of 117 parent-child dyads (60 boys; Mage at Time 1 = 3.94 years, SD = 0.53) included detailed observational coding of parent-child interactions and assessed adult and child EF and child verbal ability (VA). Supporting a differentiated view of parental influence, negative parent-child interactions and parental scaffolding showed unique and specific associations with child EF, whereas the home learning environment and parental language measures showed global associations with children's EF and VA.
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41
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Wang Z, Wang XC, Chui WY. Young Children's Understanding of Teaching and Learning and Their Theory of Mind Development: A Causal Analysis from a Cross-Cultural Perspective. Front Psychol 2017; 8:725. [PMID: 28559863 PMCID: PMC5432649 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00725] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2017] [Accepted: 04/21/2017] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Children's understanding of the concepts of teaching and learning is closely associated with their theory of mind (ToM) ability and vital for school readiness. This study aimed to develop and validate a Preschool Teaching and Learning Comprehension Index (PTLCI) across cultures and examine the causal relationship between children's comprehension of teaching and learning and their mental state understanding. Two hundred and twelve children from 3 to 6 years of age from Hong Kong and the United States participated in study. The results suggested strong construct validity of the PTLCI, and its measurement and structural equivalence within and across cultures. ToM and PTLCI were significantly correlated with a medium effect size, even after controlling for age, and language ability. Hong Kong children outperformed their American counterparts in both ToM and PTLCI. Competing structural equation models suggested that children's performance on the PTLCI causally predicted their ToM across countries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhenlin Wang
- Department of Psychology, The Education University of Hong KongTai Po, Hong Kong
| | - X Christine Wang
- Department of Learning and Instruction, University at Buffalo, SUNYBuffalo, NY, USA
| | - Wai Yip Chui
- Department of Psychology, The Education University of Hong KongTai Po, Hong Kong.,Assessment Research Centre, The Education University of Hong KongTai Po, Hong Kong
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42
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Ellefson MR, Ng FFY, Wang Q, Hughes C. Efficiency of Executive Function: A Two-Generation Cross-Cultural Comparison of Samples From Hong Kong and the United Kingdom. Psychol Sci 2017; 28:555-566. [PMID: 28384072 DOI: 10.1177/0956797616687812] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Although Asian preschoolers acquire executive functions (EFs) earlier than their Western counterparts, little is known about whether this advantage persists into later childhood and adulthood. To address this gap, in the current study we gave four computerized EF tasks (providing measures of inhibition, working memory, cognitive flexibility, and planning) to a large sample ( n = 1,427) of 9- to 16-year-olds and their parents. All participants lived in either the United Kingdom or Hong Kong. Our findings highlight the importance of combining developmental and cultural perspectives and show both similarities and contrasts across sites. Specifically, adults' EF performance did not differ between the two sites; age-related changes in executive function for both the children and the parents appeared to be culturally invariant, as did a modest intergenerational correlation. In contrast, school-age children and young adolescents in Hong Kong outperformed their United Kingdom counterparts on all four EF tasks, a difference consistent with previous findings from preschool children.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Qian Wang
- 3 Department of Psychology, Chinese University of Hong Kong
| | - Claire Hughes
- 4 Centre for Family Research, University of Cambridge
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