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ERIC Number: EJ685604
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2004-Jul
Pages: 16
Abstractor: Author
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0009-3920
EISSN: N/A
Relative Roles of General and Complementation Language in Theory-of-Mind Development: Evidence From Cantonese and English
Cheung, Him; Hsuan-Chih, Chen; Creed, Nikki; Ng, Lisa; Ping Wang, Sui; Mo, Lei
Child Development, v75 n4 p1155-1170 Jul 2004
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.
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Early Childhood Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A