Cognitive Control and Theory of Mind in Memory Guided Planning 

Presenter

Melody Mutlu Stelmaszek

Campus

UMass Boston

Sponsor

Tashauna Blankenship, Department of Psychology, UMass Boston

Schedule

Session 3, 1:30 PM - 2:15 PM [Schedule by Time][Poster Grid for Time/Location]

Location

Poster Board A90, Campus Center Auditorium, Row 5 (A81-A100) [Poster Location Map]

Abstract

Memory Guided Planning (MGP) is retrieving pertinent memories and utilizing that information to achieve a specific objective. MGP is a precursor for episodic future thinking (EFT), and EFT may be associated with executive functioning (EF) and Theory of Mind (ToM). Our study seeks to use a MGP task with a ToM component to find support for these correlations. 43 participants (23 3-year-olds [M=42.52, SD=2.97] and 20 4-year-olds [M=52.6, SD=3.56]) engaged in a battery of tasks. In the MGP task, children learned to use coins to make ice cream for animal characters, where one character has the same preference as them (congruent) and the other character has the opposite preference (incongruent). The EF task assessed children's ability to flexibly switch sorting rules based on shape or color cues. The EFT task explored children's ability to imagine the future and select an object to solve a future problem. The ToM task examined children's understanding of others' beliefs and perspectives. In the ICM task 3-year-olds had a mean score of 0.58 and were not significantly above chance (t=1.053, p=0.303), and 4-year-olds had a mean score of 0.83 and were significantly above chance (t=5.281, p <0.001). The incongruent condition was positively correlated with EF (p=0.011) and ToM (p=0.021). In summary, age differences were found in the MGP task. In addition, incongruent trials, which required more ToM, also required more cognitive flexibility.

Keywords

Episodic Future Thinking, Child Development, Memory Guided Planning, Theory of Mind

Research Area

Psychology and Behavioral Sciences

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