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Knowing minds: Linking early perspective taking and later metacognitive insight
Author(s) -
Kloo Daniela,
Sodian Beate,
KristenAntonow Susanne,
Kim Sunae,
Paulus Markus
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
british journal of developmental psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.062
H-Index - 75
eISSN - 2044-835X
pISSN - 0261-510X
DOI - 10.1111/bjdp.12359
Subject(s) - psychology , metacognition , perspective (graphical) , theory of mind , task (project management) , cognitive psychology , developmental psychology , cognition , perspective taking , executive functions , cognitive development , social psychology , management , neuroscience , artificial intelligence , empathy , computer science , economics
Recent metacognitive research using a partial knowledge task indicates that a firm understanding of ‘knowing about knowing’ develops surprisingly late, at around 6 years of age. To reveal the mechanisms subserving this development, the partial knowledge task was used in a longitudinal study with 67 children (33 girls) as an outcome measure at 5;9 (years;months). In addition, first‐ and second‐order false belief was assessed at 4;2, 5;0, and 5;9. At 2;6, perspective taking and executive abilities were evaluated. Metacognition at 5;9 was correlated with earlier theory of mind and perspective taking – even when verbal intelligence and executive abilities were partialled out. This highlights the importance of perspective taking for the development of an understanding of one’s own mind.