A longitudinal, microgenetic study of the emergence of false belief understanding and inhibition skills

Flynn, E.; O'Malley, C.; Wood, D.

Abstract

Two theories that attempt to explain the relationship between false belief understanding and inhibition skills were investigated: (1) theory of mind development improves self-control, and (2) executive control is necessary for developing a theory of mind. A microgenetic approach was adopted, with a group of 21 children completing a battery of inhibition and false belief understanding tasks every four weeks for six phases of testing. The results showed that the majority of children were able to perform well on a test of executive inhibition before having a good understanding of false beliefs, thus supporting theory (2). The results also illustrated that while the children's inhibition skills developed relatively gradually, their understanding of false beliefs progressed from a consistent lack of understanding through a period of unstable performance, during which some children failed tests that they had previously passed.

Citation

Flynn, E., O'Malley, C., & Wood, D. (2004). A longitudinal, microgenetic study of the emergence of false belief understanding and inhibition skills. Developmental Science, 7(1), 103-115. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-7687.2004.00326.x

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Online Publication Date: Jan 14, 2004
• Publication Date: Feb 1, 2004
• Deposit Date: Sep 21, 2007
• Journal: Developmental Science
• Print ISSN: 1363-755X
• Electronic ISSN: 1467-7687
• Publisher: Wiley
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 7
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 103-115
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-7687.2004.00326.x
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1563162