Journal of Rehabilitation Sciences & Research

Interrelationships between Theory of Mind and Language Skills in Children with Cerebral Palsy: A Review of the Literature

Document Type : Literature Reviews

Authors

Sanaz Tajadini 1
Sima Farpour 2
Hamidreza Farpour 3
Farideh Nikpour 4

1 Ph.D. student of general linguistics, Department of Foreign Languages and Linguistics, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran.

2 Ph.D. Candidate of neuroscience , Neuroscience Research Center, Institute of Neuropharmacology, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran

3 1- Bone and Joint Diseases Research Center, department of physical medicine and rehabilitation, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran. 2- Shiraz Geriatric Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.

4 Ph.D. Candidate of General linguistics, Department of Foreign Languages and Linguistics, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran

https://doi.org/10.30476/jrsr.2021.88453.1111
Abstract
Theory of Mind (ToM) is an essential component of communication
with the others and social understanding. Cognitive structures, such as language,
working memory, and executive functions play a special role in understanding
the others҆ minds. Thus, given importance of the role of language skills in
development of ToM and the previous research findings regarding the restricted
capacity of children with cerebral palsy (CP) in development of their ability to
understand others’ thoughts and feelings, this review study was designed to
mainly evaluate the influence of language on ToM in children with CP.
Methods: For this purpose, initially, electronic databases (PubMed, Scopus,
PsycINFo, MEDLINE, Embase, and Web of Science) were searched from
September 1 to 30 , during 2000-2020. Search was done focusing on the Englishwritten
papers using a combination of keywords including: “Cerebral Palsy,
Theory of Mind, Mentalization, and Language” to identify relevant studies from
2000 to 2020.
Results: A total of 978 publications were identified according to the initial search
criteria. After reviewing abstracts, titles, and references of the identified papers,
10 potentially relevant papers were selected. Based on assessing their full-text, 7
papers completely met the inclusion criteria.
Conclusion: Given that children with CP have not been addressed by numerous
investigations to date, there is limited information about their ToM skills and
the role of other different components of ToM development. Therefore, further
research should be carried out to investigate this issue. The combined findings
of the reviewed papers showed that language skills had an effect on capacity to
elaborate ToM competence in children with CP. This review study paves the path
to the future common research on children with CP and underlines importance
of using a methodology, in which ToM performance is studied in concert with a
detailed investigation of speech and motor impairments.
2021© The Authors. Published by JRSR. All rights reserved.

Keywords

Theory of mind
Language
Cerebral palsy
Communication
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Journal of Rehabilitation Sciences & Research
Volume 8, Issue 3
September 2021
Pages 101-105

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