Cognitive empathy, also known as theory-of-mind, is the capacity to take the perspective of others and feel concern for others.

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The ability to attribute mental states to ourselves as well as others. This capacity is not logically derived, but rather, exists as an innate neurocognitive mechanism. As a foundational element of social behavior, it provides the capacity to interpret the behavior of others. Believed to develop in toddlers as young as 15 months old and is studied in apes and primates. 

Theory of Mind (Cognitive Empathy)

Spielman, R. M., Jenkins, W. J., & Lovett, M. D. (2020, April 22). Psychology (2nd ed.). OpenStax. https://openstax.org/books/psychology-2e/pages/1-introduction

OpenStax Psychology (2nd ed.) Textbook

By age 3, children can understand the visual perspective of other people.

Theory of Mind (age 3)

By age 7, children understand embedded subjectivity and how one person’s understanding may be understood differently by a different person. This encapsulates the concept of misunderstandings that requires keeping track of the mental understanding one person has of someone else.

Theory of Mind (age 7)

Each theory of mind stage and narrative processing stage line up together and are about similar concepts. However, this doesn’t mean there is a causal relationship between the two. It’s also not clear if ToM stages happens before or after the narrative processing stages.

Theory of Mind and Narrative Processing 

A measure used to test a child’s theory of mind. A scene takes place containing two characters. The first character leaves an item in one place and leaves the area. The second character moves that item to a different place. The first character comes back to the area at the end. Children are then asked where the first character will go to find their item. If the child answers where the item actually is, this means that they are not able to understand another person’s mental understanding. If the child answers where the first character had left the item, this means the child can understand another person’s mental representation.

False Belief Task

Theory of mind is thought to improve reading comprehension through narrative processing. By being able to know what a character is thinking or why they are doing something, reading comprehension is enhanced in fiction. This is a framework and still needs more research to prove it's causality. It is also thought that this could be a reciprocal relationship with reading comprehension improving theory of mind.

Theory of Mind and Reading Comprehension

- Healthy controls (HCs) had increased functional connectivity (FC) between precuneus and default mode network (DMN)-associated structures
- BPD patients had less intrinsic connectivity between DMN structures than HCs
   - extrapolation: BPD patients seemed more doubtful and unsure about the interpersonal content of the stimuli, which is in line with BPD symptomatology
- Also found decreased FC between anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and ToM-associated regions in BPD patients
   - Pain activates the limbic system because the unpleasantness of pain is encoded in the ACC (ACC neurons have large, diffuse receptive fields); thus, this enables pain to be cognitive-emotional
      - i.e., assigns feelings/emotions to physical sensations
   - Reduced FC indicates lack of modulation of ToM network from regions involved in emotional processing


 Deficits in Theory of Mind (ToM) processing in BPD

Egocentrism. (2018). In Encyclopedia of Adolescence.

Egocentrism Reference

- First-order vs. Second-order
- Cognitive vs. Affective

Subtypes of Theory of Mind

Cognitive empathy, also known as theory-of-mind, is the capacity to understand another person's perspective and experience concern for them. This ability, which is vital for effective social problem-solving and conflict avoidance, shows significant development during adolescence. Research indicates that this growth in cognitive empathy typically begins around age 13 for girls and age 15 for boys.

Cognitive Empathy During Adolescence

Egocentrism, a key characteristic of Piaget's preoperational stage, is the inability of a child to take another person's perspective. Children at this stage operate under the assumption that everyone else sees, thinks, and feels exactly as they do. Consequently, they are unable to infer the viewpoints of others and instead attribute their own perspective to them.

Egocentrism in the Preoperational Stage

Between the ages of 3 and 5, children develop Theory of Mind (TOM), a significant cognitive shift enabling them to understand that others have thoughts, feelings, and beliefs different from their own. This marks a departure from egocentrism and allows them to recognize that others can hold false beliefs. This developing skill has practical applications in social interactions, such as teasing others, persuading parents, or understanding a sibling's anger.

Development of Theory of Mind (Ages 3-5)

After reading the short scenario, predict where Leo will first look for his toy car and explain your reasoning. Your explanation should focus on the difference between what Leo believes and what is actually true.

Predicting Behavior Based on Beliefs

Leo puts his favorite teddy bear in a toy chest and then leaves the room to get a snack. While he is gone, his sister, Mia, takes the teddy bear out of the toy chest and hides it under Leo's bed. When Leo returns to the room to play with his teddy bear, where will he most likely look for it first?

This node categorizes references, studies, and academic literature related to Theory of Mind.

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