Scaling of Theory-of-Mind Understandings in Chinese Children

Authors: Wellman, Henry M.¹; Fang, Fuxi²; Liu, David³; Zhu, Liqi²; Liu, Guoxiong²

Source: Psychological Science, Volume 17, Number 12, December 2006 , pp. 1075-1081(7)

Publisher: Blackwell Publishing

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Abstract:

Prior research demonstrates that understanding of theory of mind develops at different paces in children raised in different cultures. Are these differences simply differences in timing, or do they represent different patterns of cultural learning? That is, to what extent are sequences of theory-of-mind understanding universal, and to what extent are they culture-specific? We addressed these questions by using a theory-of-mind scale to examine performance of 140 Chinese children living in Beijing and to compare their performance with that of 135 English-speaking children living in the United States and Australia. Results reveal a common sequence of understanding, as well as sociocultural differences in children's developing theories of mind.

Document Type: Research article

DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9280.2006.01830.x

Affiliations: 1: University of Michigan; 2: Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; and 3: University of Washington