title: Relative roles of general and complementation language in theory-of-mind development: evidence from Cantonese and English.
abstract: Complex complements are clausal objects containing tensed verbs (e.g., that she cried) or infinitives (e.g., to cry), following main verbs of communication or mental activities (e.g., say, want). This research examined whether English- and Cantonese-speaking 4-year-olds' complement understanding uniquely predicts their representation of other minds (i.e., theory of mind). Results showed that neither meaning of main verbs (communication vs. desire) nor complement structure (tensed vs. infinitival) affected the correlation between complement understanding and theory of mind. More important, the correlation became insignificant after controlling for general language comprehension. These findings led to the conclusion that the syntax of complement per se does not contribute uniquely to theory-of-mind development; general language comprehension is a more important factor to consider.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin. hcheung@psy.cuhk.edu.hk
authors.forename: Him
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Cheung
authors.forename: Chen
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hsuan-Chih
authors.forename: Nikki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Creed
authors.forename: Lisa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ng
authors.forename: Sui
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ping Wang
authors.forename: Lei
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Mo
mesh_terms: D002675:Child, Preschool; D003071:Cognition; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D003469:Culture; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007802:Language; D008297:Male; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors