Scientific tests known as false-belief tests are used to verify if a subject possesses a theory of mind.
Is it true that scientific tests known as false-belief tests are used to verify if a subject possesses a theory of mind?
Yes. False-belief tests are widely established across developmental and clinical literature as standard empirical measures for assessing an individual's theory of mind.
Verdict: SUPPORTED · 7 sources for, 0 against · Last checked
The retrieved literature consistently treats false-belief tasks (such as change-of-location and second-order tasks) as standard, validated instruments used to evaluate theory of mind abilities across diverse age groups, cultures, and clinical populations. There are no papers contradicting this premise.
Get citation
L, P., T, D., H, R., DBM, H., & R, S. (2026). Developmental Unity and Cultural Variation in Forms of Metarepresentational False Belief Understanding.. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.1111/desc.70249
See more details
Get citation
RJ, R., A, C., V, C., S, F., G, D., & DD, D. (2026). Differential Development of Object and Location Processing is a Critical Factor to a Child's Passing or Failing Explicit False-Belief Tasks.. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.1111/desc.70250
Get citation
TA, G., V, D. l. G., & E, D. (2026). Literacy predicts performance on a second-order false-belief task.. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0357313
Get citation
I, I., J, V., J, V., MÀ, P., & L, I. (2026). Development of Theory of Mind in Adults Between 18 and 94 Years of Age.. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.1177/00914150261467661
Get citation
M, B., J, P., M, S., & N, J. (2027). "Mary thinks that John thinks that…" Developmental change and individual stability in attributing second-order mental states in 5 to 7-year-olds.. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2026.106617
Get citation
A, J. & I, U. (2026). Emotional understanding in Japanese children 3-6 years: Language ability mediates the relations between theory of mind and executive function.. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0346175
Get citation
M, B., C, K., C, H., H, S., B, C., & P, S. (2026). Validation of the Arabic version of the "Cognitive Theory of Mind (ToM-15) scale" among Lebanese patients with schizophrenia.. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scog.2026.100442
What does the evidence say?
The retrieved literature consistently treats false-belief tasks (such as change-of-location and second-order tasks) as standard, validated instruments used to evaluate theory of mind abilities across diverse age groups, cultures, and clinical populations. There are no papers contradicting this premise.
Challenge the receipt
Citation formatting by citeproc-js (Frank Bennett) and the Citation Style Language project. Source and licenses.
Terms · Privacy · How verdicts work