title: Is thinking about the future related to theory of mind and executive function? Not in preschoolers.
abstract: The capacity to mentally project the self into the future, or what has been termed "episodic foresight" (EpF), is becoming a popular topic of study in developmental psychology. Several theories propose that EpF is related to theory of mind (ToM) and executive function (EF). However, these links have not been tested using standard behavioral tasks in young children. Accordingly, we administered a battery of EpF, ToM, and EF tasks to 90 3-, 4-, and 5-year-olds. After controlling for age and language ability, the EpF tasks were not intercorrelated, nor were they individually related to EF or ToM. As such, this study challenges the claim that EpF, at least as currently assessed in young children, is related to their developing ToM and EF abilities.
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario K1N 6N5, Canada.
authors.forename: Laura K
authors.initials: LK
authors.lastname: Hanson
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario K1N 6N5, Canada. Electronic address: atance@uottawa.ca.
authors.forename: Cristina M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Atance
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario K1N 6N5, Canada.
authors.forename: Sarah W
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Paluck
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D056344:Executive Function; D005260:Female; D005544:Forecasting; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008570:Memory, Short-Term; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D002666:Psychology, Child; D056345:Theory of Mind; D013850:Thinking
keywords: Development; Executive function; Future thinking; Preschoolers; Theory of mind