Abstract
A growing body of research on theory of mind (ToM) highlights its significance for childhood social outcomes. Extending the developmental scope of this work, the current study investigated links between advanced ToM abilities and peer attachment in adolescence. Polish adolescents (16 to 18 years old; N = 302; 57.6% girls) completed two advanced ToM measures and reported on their peer attachment. With the effects of age and language controlled, girls scored higher than boys for both advanced ToM and peer attachment. However, the association between these measures was only significant in boys. These results are discussed in terms of theory and research on gender-specific approaches to social cognitive development in adolescence.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 1202-1217 |
| Journal | Journal of Research on Adolescence |
| Volume | 31 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| Early online date | 26 Jul 2021 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | E-pub ahead of print - 26 Jul 2021 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:We express our gratitude to all the adolescents who participated in the study and all the team members for their hard work collecting and coding the data. This research was supported by a grant awarded to Marta Białecka‐Pikul from the National Science Centre, Poland (UMO 2013/10/M/HS6/00544).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 Society for Research on Adolescence
Keywords
- adolescence
- peer attachment
- theory of mind
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Cultural Studies
- Developmental and Educational Psychology
- Social Sciences (miscellaneous)
- Behavioral Neuroscience