Theory of mind and peer relationships: The role of social anxiety

Abstract

Recent research has shown that individual differences in theory of mind (ToM) during middle childhood are linked with individual differences in children's peer relationships. The present longitudinal study investigated this association more deeply, exploring the potential mediating role played by children's social anxiety. We tested a group of 66 children (11.5 years old at Time 1) three times over one year after their transition to secondary school. Over and above language, SES and stability in individual differences, ToM performance shortly after starting secondary school (Time 1) predicted higher peer acceptance, as well as lower peer rejection, one year later (Time 3) via lower levels of social anxiety over time (Time 2). This study extends our knowledge about the links between social understanding and interpersonal relations in middle childhood. The results suggest that ToM may play an important role in children's adjustment when confronting new social contexts.

Thinking of you: Relations between mind‐mindedness, theory of mind, and social anxiety traits in middle childhood and adulthood

“…Subclinical levels of social anxiety may not affect the basic capacity to attribute mental states to others. Another possibility is that relations between social anxiety and social cognition are best captured by measuring their interplay at multiple time points, as some developmental research finding negative relations between ToM and social anxiety has employed longitudinal designs (Ronchi et al., 2019). Still another explanation is that relations between social anxiety and ToM are measure‐specific.…”

“…Studies using vignettes to examine multiple components of ToM (including false belief, emotion, and sarcasm) have also found links between lower ToM and both higher social anxiety (Colonnesi, Nikolić, Vente, & Bögels, 2017) and higher behavioral inhibition (Broeren & Muris, 2009). A recent longitudinal study of middle childhood found that, over time, higher ToM ability increased peer acceptance via links between greater ToM and lower levels of social anxiety traits (Ronchi, Banerjee, & Lecce, 2019). Attesting to the complexity of these relations, a recent study found a curvilinear relationship between ToM and social anxiety traits in children aged 8–12, such that both high and low levels of ToM were related to increased social anxiety (Nikolić et al, 2019).…”

Social Cognition, Self-Perceptions, and Social Withdrawal in Adolescents

“…Such skill is associated with important social qualities and interactions with children and adolescents including peer coordination, cooperation, and empathy (Hughes, 2011). In the applied literature, poorer performance on theory of mind, particularly emotion recognition tasks, is associated with poorer interpersonal functioning and social competence challenges (Imuta et al, 2016;Ronchi et al, 2020).…”

“…Despite the importance of studying the personal and social world of adolescents who self-select constructive solitude, or who tend to avoid or control their social experiences due to fear and anxiety (Ronchi et al, 2020), empirical support for the links between adolescents' preferences for social withdrawal and social-cognitive skills remains sparse, and the findings are inconsistent and variable (Bowker et al, 2016;Rubin & Asendorpf, 1993;Rubin et al, 2009;Pequet & Warnell, 2020;Wichmann et al, 2004). Studies show that throughout childhood and adolescence, mental state reasoning can be used as a social-cognitive mechanism for social orientations such as approaching or avoiding others (Thompson & Thornton, 2014).…”

A confirmatory factor analysis of social anxiety scale for adolescence in Indonesian form

“…Various studies have found that this scale provides a valid and reliable socialbanxiety measure for either clinical or community samples (Ronchi, Banerjee, & Lecce, 2019).Although the SAS-A has shown good test-retest reliability and construct validity for English there are no data to support the psychometric properties and factor structure of this instrument for measuring social anxiety in an adolescent Indonesia Form (Delgado et al, 2019;Hayajneh, 2019).The objective of this instrumental study was to carry out a cross-cultural study to determine the SAS-A psychometric properties for Indonesian adolescents. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to confirm the factorialstructure proposed by La Greca and Lopez (1998) (Olivares et al, 2005).…”