Metacognitive variety, from Inner Mongolian Buddhism to Post-Truth

In this chapter I present a case study based on ethnographic research carried out in Inner Mongolia, northern China. A Buddhist teacher and his students have subtly different metacognitive relationships to Buddhism and their practice and knowledge are dramatically different as a result. I offer this case study as an example of metacognitive variety, and argue that a similar approach is required to understand other cases in which people reflect, and attempt to act, on their own cognition and cognitive experience, including the transformations that have been described as 'post-truth'. In conclusion I make some methodological remarks about the study of metacognition through ethnography

Individual Differences in Theory of Mind From Preschool to Adolescence: Achievements and Directions

In this article, we provide a state-of-the-science overview of research on normative individual differences in theory of mind. We begin by examining achievements in research on individual differences in theory of mind in the preschool years and more recent work on middle childhood and adolescence. In doing so, we outline several converging lines of evidence for social influences on individual differences in theory of mind, and assess the claim that individual differences in theory of mind matter for children’s social lives. We then evaluate two conceptualizations of individual differences in theory of mind: the developmental lag and genuine differences accounts. By placing the study of individual differences in theory of mind center stage, we aim to highlight fruitful avenues for research on normative variation in theory of mind both within and beyond the preschool years.Rory T. Devine was funded by a grant from the Isaac Newton Trust, Cambridge.This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Wiley at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cdep.12124/abstract

The Development of Theory of Mind: Historical Reflections

In this article, I reflect on theory of mind as a field, including how it arose and how it developed. My research has been intertwined with this process; beginning right out of graduate school, my career developed along with the field, and I contributed to the field and its development at various points. So this essay also traces my path as I strived, and still strive, to understand how theory of mind begins and unfolds in human development, what forces shape that development, and what accounts best explain the timetables and progressions of theory‐of‐mind understandings in humans. I end with my sense of where theory‐of‐mind research is likely to head in the near future.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/138418/1/cdep12236_am.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/138418/2/cdep12236.pd

Theory of mind in emerging reading comprehension: a longitudinal study of early indirect and direct effects

The relation between children’s theory of mind (ToM) and emerging reading comprehension was investigated in a longitudinal study over 2.5 years. 80 children were tested for ToM, decoding, language skills and executive function (EF) at Time 1 (mean age = 3:10 years). At Time 2 (mean age = 6:03 years) children's word reading efficiency, language skills and reading comprehension were measured. Mediation analysis showed that ToM at Time 1, when children were around four years old, indirectly predicted Time 2 reading comprehension, when children were six years old, via language ability, after controlling for age, non-verbal ability, decoding, EF and earlier language ability. Importantly, ToM at four years old also directly predicted reading comprehension two and a half years later at six years. This is the first longitudinal study to show a direct contribution of theory of mind to reading comprehension in typical development. Findings are discussed in terms of the Simple View of Reading (SVR); ToM not only supports reading comprehension indirectly by facilitating language, but also directly contributes to it over and above the SVR. The potential role of metacognition is considered when accounting for the direct contribution of early ToM to later reading comprehension

Weighing Outcome vs. Intent Across Societies: How cultural models of mind shape moral reasoning

Mental state reasoning has been theorized as a core feature of how we navigate our social worlds, and as especially vital to moral reasoning. Judgments of moral wrong-doing and punish worthiness often hinge upon evaluations of the perpetrator’s mental states. In two studies, we examine how differences in cultural conceptions about how one should think about others’ minds influence the relative importance of intent vs. outcome in moral judgments. We recruit participation from three societies, differing in emphasis on mental state reasoning: Indigenous iTaukei Fijians from Yasawa Island (Yasawans) who normatively avoid mental state inference in favor of focus on relationships and consequences of actions; Indo-Fijians who normatively emphasize relationships but do not avoid mental state inference; and North Americans who emphasize individual autonomy and interpreting others’ behaviors as the direct result of mental states. In study 1, Yasawan participants placed more emphasis on outcome than Indo-Fijians or North Americans by judging accidents more harshly than failed attempts. Study 2 tested whether underlying differences in the salience of mental states drives study 1 effects by inducing Yasawan and North American participants to think about thoughts vs. actions before making moral judgments. When induced to think about thoughts, Yasawan participants shifted to judge failed attempts more harshly than accidents. Results suggest that culturally-transmitted concepts about how to interpret the social world shape patterns of moral judgments, possibly via mental state inference

Culture, Neurobiology, and Human Behavior: New Perspectives in Anthropology

Our primary goal in this article is to discuss the cross-talk between biological and cultural factors that become manifested in the individual brain development, neural wiring, neurochemical homeostasis, and behavior. We will show that behavioral propensities are the product of both cultural and biological factors and an understanding of these interactive processes can provide deep insights into why people behave the way they do. This interdisciplinary perspective is offered in an effort to generate dialog and empirical work among scholars interested in merging aspects of anthropology and neuroscience, and anticipates that biological and cultural anthropology converge. We discuss new theoretical developments, hypothesis-testing strategies, and cross-disciplinary methods of observation and data collection. We believe that the exigency of integrating anthropology and the neurosciences is indisputable and anthropology's role in an emerging interdisciplinary science of human behavior will be critical because its focus is, and has always been, on human biological and cultural systems

Sibling, family, and social influences on children's theory of mind understanding : New evidence from diverse intracultural samples

Although a considerable body of research with samples from Western cultures shows that having siblings influences children’s theory of mind (ToM) understanding, research with samples from other cultures does not always support such findings. The current experiment was designed to examine in detail how family and social environment influence ToM competence in a group of Iranian children from various socioeconomic backgrounds. The participants were 142 preschoolers (4-5 years old) from high-SES (socioeconomic status) urban (n = 33), low-SES urban (n = 37), and rural villages (n = 72). The results failed to show any significant differences between children’s scores on ToM measures among the three subsamples, despite the differences between the number of siblings and playmates and the divergent family backgrounds and social experiences of these children. As such, no significant correlation was found between the number of siblings or playmates these children had and their ToM understanding. However, the number of days children spent playing with peers, and the level of parental interference in siblings’ conflicts, was correlated with children’s ToM understanding. The implications of these results are discussed