title: False Belief Performance of Children Adopted Internationally.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this study was to explore relationships among adoption, individual, and family variables on false belief performance of children adopted internationally (CAI).
  
  
  METHODS
  Using a quasiexperimental design, thirty-five 4-year-old children adopted from Asian and Eastern European countries before age 2 years were compared with a U.S. group of 33 nonadopted 4-year-old children on a standardized English-language measure, 3 false belief tasks, and a go/no-go inhibition measure.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The adopted group differed significantly from the U.S. nonadopted group in expressive language and false belief performance. For the adopted group, inhibition measures were significantly correlated with core language scores. Core language scores and number of older siblings predicted false belief performance.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Similar to children who are not adopted, language competence and living with older siblings positively influenced social understanding in CAI. Because CAI experience interrupted language acquisition and live with fewer older siblings, they are at risk of having weaker language competence and social understanding in their adopted language. When working with CAI, practitioners should assess social communication, language competence, and inhibition skills. They should assist adoptive families in providing socially mentored opportunities for their children to observe and interact with older children.
authors.affiliation: Saint Louis University, MO.
authors.forename: Deborah A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Hwa-Froelich
authors.affiliation: Saint Louis University, MO.
authors.forename: Hisako
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Matsuo
authors.affiliation: Saint Louis University, MOKaskaskia Special Education District 801, Centralia, IL.
authors.forename: Kristal
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Jacobs
mesh_terms: D001208:Asia / Q000208:ethnology; D017028:Caregivers / Q000523:psychology; D002648:Child; D000073922:Child, Adopted / Q000523:psychology*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003466:Cultural Characteristics; D003469:Culture; D005061:Europe, Eastern / Q000208:ethnology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007266:Inhibition, Psychological; D038622:Internationality; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D007805:Language Development Disorders / Q000523:psychology; D008297:Male; D012016:Reference Values; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D056345:Theory of Mind; D014481:United States