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Module

Theory of Mind

Step-by-step training in understanding what others think, feel, and intend. This module addresses a core challenge for many autistic children — recognising that other people have different perspectives, beliefs, and knowledge states.

  • Target group

    Autism-specific

  • Age range

    Ages 6–16

  • Sub-modules

    16

About this module

Theory of Mind describes the ability to recognise and reason about the thoughts, beliefs, desires, and intentions of others. Many autistic children develop this ability later or differently than neurotypical peers, which can make social interaction harder to read. The research field traces back to Premack and Woodruff in the late 1970s and was established through classic false-belief tasks by Wimmer and Perner. Our module translates this concept into a systematic, child-friendly learning sequence: from simple desire and knowledge states, through perspective-taking, to complex inferences such as sarcasm and figurative language. Each stage builds on the previous one and is practised through interactive scenarios with immediate, non-judgmental feedback.

Learning goals

  • Distinguish between one's own and others' mental states

  • Recognise that others may hold different beliefs and knowledge

  • Infer the intentions, desires, and emotions of other people

  • Practise perspective-taking in increasingly complex social situations

  • Understand implicit and figurative language such as irony, sarcasm, and idioms

Didactic approach

  1. 01

    Stepwise progression aligned with classic Theory of Mind developmental models

  2. 02

    Concrete scenarios with both visual and verbal encoding

  3. 03

    Gradual increase in complexity: first-, second-, and higher-order beliefs

  4. 04

    Explicit marking of mental terms such as think, believe, know, and suspect

  5. 05

    Reflection phases that make the child's own reasoning visible

Sub-modules

  • Simple Desires & Preferences

    Understanding that people want different things and that desires drive behaviour. The foundation for recognising why people act in certain ways.

  • Beliefs & False Beliefs

    Learning that people can hold beliefs that differ from reality. Classic false-belief tasks adapted into engaging, child-friendly scenarios.

  • Emotions from Situations

    Connecting specific situations to the emotions they typically cause. Building the ability to predict how someone will feel based on what happened.

  • Perspective Taking

    Practising seeing situations from another person's point of view. Understanding that different people may experience the same event differently.

  • Intentions & Motives

    Distinguishing between accidental and intentional actions. Learning to read the reasons behind people's behaviour.

  • Sarcasm & Figurative Language

    Recognising when words don't mean what they literally say. Exercises on irony, idioms, and implied meaning in everyday conversation.

More modules

  • Understanding white lies & social lies

    When a white lie serves a social purpose and when it does not. Distinguishing friendly politeness, avoidance and deception.

  • Recognising deception & manipulation

    Recognising signs of deliberate misleading. Checking one’s own expectations and perceptions without tipping into blanket mistrust of every claim.

  • Second-order false beliefs (what she thinks he thinks)

    Beliefs about beliefs: what one person assumes another person believes. The classic higher-order construct in age-appropriate scenarios.

  • Understanding misunderstandings & their repair

    When a conversation derails: how to notice the other person has understood something different. Repair sentences, follow-up questions and respectful correction.

  • Reading social hierarchies & group dynamics

    Status roles, informal leaders, cliques and group rules. Making visible what is rarely stated in most social settings.

  • Interpreting non-verbal cues (gestures, posture, gaze)

    Reading facial expressions, posture, gaze and tone as carriers of social information. Practised in ambiguous scenarios rather than clean ideal cases.

  • Understanding promises & trust

    What does a promise mean socially. Expected reliability, dealing with broken commitments and rebuilding trust.

  • Perspective in storytelling & narratives

    Who is telling a story, from whose perspective. Spotting narrator shifts, questioning one’s own preferred angle, following someone else’s.

  • Predicting emotional reactions of others

    Predicting how someone will feel in a situation before it happens. The bridge between theory of mind and everyday empathy.

  • Moral reasoning & fairness judgements

    What people consider fair, and why. Making conflicts between rules, consequences and intentions visible in age-appropriate dilemmas.

Age range

Theory of Mind tasks become solvable in their simplest form around age 4, but in autistic development these skills are often acquired later or through different cognitive strategies. Our module therefore starts at age 6 with basic desire-knowledge distinctions and extends to age 16 with complex inferences about social subtext. The adaptive AI follows the prerequisites the child has actually mastered rather than chronological age. This prevents both over- and underchallenge.

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