The Relationship between Theory of Mind and Intelligence: A Formative <i>g</i> Approach
Theory of Mind (ToM) is the ability understand that other people’s mental states may be different from one’s own. Psychometric models have shown that individual differences in ToM can largely be attributed to general intelligence (<i>g</i>) (Coyle et al. 2018). Most psychometric models s...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2021-02-01
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| Series: | Journal of Intelligence |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2079-3200/9/1/11 |
| _version_ | 1797396025576521728 |
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| author | Ester Navarro Sara Anne Goring Andrew R. A. Conway |
| author_facet | Ester Navarro Sara Anne Goring Andrew R. A. Conway |
| author_sort | Ester Navarro |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Theory of Mind (ToM) is the ability understand that other people’s mental states may be different from one’s own. Psychometric models have shown that individual differences in ToM can largely be attributed to general intelligence (<i>g</i>) (Coyle et al. 2018). Most psychometric models specify <i>g</i> as a reflective latent variable, which is interpreted as a general ability that plays a causal role in a broad range of cognitive tasks, including ToM tasks. However, an alternative approach is to specify <i>g</i> as a formative latent variable, that is, an overall index of cognitive ability that does not represent a psychological attribute (Kovacs and Conway 2016). Here we consider a formative <i>g</i> approach to the relationship between ToM and intelligence. First, we conducted an SEM with reflective <i>g</i> to test the hypothesis that ToM is largely accounted for by a general ability. Next, we conducted a model with formative <i>g</i> to determine whether the relationship between ToM and intelligence is influenced by domain-specific tasks. Finally, we conducted a redundancy analysis to examine the contribution of each <i>g</i> variable. Results suggest that the relationship between ToM and intelligence in this study was influenced by language-based tasks, rather than solely a general ability. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T00:44:21Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0d8d3ebcbdd14cfa93920a46cc1a1d63 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2079-3200 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T00:44:21Z |
| publishDate | 2021-02-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Intelligence |
| spelling | doaj.art-0d8d3ebcbdd14cfa93920a46cc1a1d632023-12-11T17:35:06ZengMDPI AGJournal of Intelligence2079-32002021-02-01911110.3390/jintelligence9010011The Relationship between Theory of Mind and Intelligence: A Formative <i>g</i> ApproachEster Navarro0Sara Anne Goring1Andrew R. A. Conway2Division of Behavioral and Organizational Sciences, School of Social Science, Policy and Evaluation, Claremont Graduate University, Claremont, CA 91711, USADivision of Behavioral and Organizational Sciences, School of Social Science, Policy and Evaluation, Claremont Graduate University, Claremont, CA 91711, USADivision of Behavioral and Organizational Sciences, School of Social Science, Policy and Evaluation, Claremont Graduate University, Claremont, CA 91711, USATheory of Mind (ToM) is the ability understand that other people’s mental states may be different from one’s own. Psychometric models have shown that individual differences in ToM can largely be attributed to general intelligence (<i>g</i>) (Coyle et al. 2018). Most psychometric models specify <i>g</i> as a reflective latent variable, which is interpreted as a general ability that plays a causal role in a broad range of cognitive tasks, including ToM tasks. However, an alternative approach is to specify <i>g</i> as a formative latent variable, that is, an overall index of cognitive ability that does not represent a psychological attribute (Kovacs and Conway 2016). Here we consider a formative <i>g</i> approach to the relationship between ToM and intelligence. First, we conducted an SEM with reflective <i>g</i> to test the hypothesis that ToM is largely accounted for by a general ability. Next, we conducted a model with formative <i>g</i> to determine whether the relationship between ToM and intelligence is influenced by domain-specific tasks. Finally, we conducted a redundancy analysis to examine the contribution of each <i>g</i> variable. Results suggest that the relationship between ToM and intelligence in this study was influenced by language-based tasks, rather than solely a general ability.https://www.mdpi.com/2079-3200/9/1/11general intelligencetheory of mindfactor analysisstructural equation modeling |
| spellingShingle | Ester Navarro Sara Anne Goring Andrew R. A. Conway The Relationship between Theory of Mind and Intelligence: A Formative <i>g</i> Approach Journal of Intelligence general intelligence theory of mind factor analysis structural equation modeling |
| title | The Relationship between Theory of Mind and Intelligence: A Formative <i>g</i> Approach |
| title_full | The Relationship between Theory of Mind and Intelligence: A Formative <i>g</i> Approach |
| title_fullStr | The Relationship between Theory of Mind and Intelligence: A Formative <i>g</i> Approach |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Relationship between Theory of Mind and Intelligence: A Formative <i>g</i> Approach |
| title_short | The Relationship between Theory of Mind and Intelligence: A Formative <i>g</i> Approach |
| title_sort | relationship between theory of mind and intelligence a formative i g i approach |
| topic | general intelligence theory of mind factor analysis structural equation modeling |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2079-3200/9/1/11 |
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