title: How does it look? Level 2 perspective-taking at 36 months of age.
abstract: Previous research has found that children engage in Level 2 visual perspective-taking, that is, the understanding that others may see things in a different way, between 4 and 5 years of age (e.g., J. H. Flavell, B. A. Everett, K. Croft, & E. R. Flavell, 1981). This ability was reexamined in 36-month-olds using color filters. In Experiment 1 (N = 24), children had to recognize how an object looked to an adult when she saw it through a color filter. In Experiment 2 (N = 24), a novel production test was applied. Results of both studies show that 36-month-olds know how an object looks to another person. The discussion focuses on the psychological requirements of visual perspective-taking and its relation to other "theory of mind" abilities, such as the distinction between appearance and reality and understanding false belief.
authors.affiliation: University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA. moll@eva.mpg.de
authors.forename: Henrike
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Moll
authors.forename: Andrew N
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Meltzoff
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003118:Color Perception; D003210:Concept Formation; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D010775:Photic Stimulation / Q000379:methods; D056345:Theory of Mind