Kannada translation and validation of Wellman and Liu’s theory of mind scale and children’s social understanding scale in preschoolers

Abstract

Background: Assessing theory of mind (ToM) in children is crucial for understanding social cognition. Wellman and Liu’s ToM scale and the Children’s Social Understanding Scale (CSUS) have been used to study ToM in children but are not available in the local language. Aim: This study aims to translate both scales into Kannada and validate them in preschool children. Methods: Following the rigorous WHO protocol, we meticulously translated and back-translated Wellman and Liu’s ToM and CSUS into Kannada with the help of bilingual experts. Validation involved administering both scales to 118 preschool children aged 3 to 6 years from diverse urban and rural backgrounds in a cross-sectional study, ensuring the scales’ applicability across different settings. Results: The Cronbach’s alpha values for Wellman and Liu’s ToM and the CSUS were 0.769 (95% CI 0.698 to 0.828) and 0.983 (95% CI 0.978 to 0.987), respectively, indicating high internal consistency. The test–retest reliability for Wellman and Liu’s ToM scale domains ranged from 0.74 to 0.95, and for the CSUS, it was 0.99, demonstrating good reliability. Pearson’s correlation between the domains of two scales ranged from 0.32 to 0.69, suggesting a moderate relationship. Conclusion: Our study findings demonstrate that Kannada translations of Wellman and Liu’s ToM and CSUS have good internal consistency, test–retest reliability, and construct validity. These tools will be valuable for understanding social cognition in preschool children.