US psychologist, David Premack, coined the term ‘theory of mind’.
The core concepts involved are beliefs, desires, and intentions, that are used to understand why an individual is acting in a certain manner and predict the behavior of the individual based on that knowledge. This theory suggests that humans can construct a model in their brains of the thoughts and intentions of others.
The theory holds that humans anticipate and make sense of the behavior of others by activating mental processes that, if carried into action, would produce similar behavior including intentional behavior and the expression of emotions.
Around the age of 4, children show improvement in the theory of mind tasks and are able to understand other person’s behavior and have a better understanding of the events. It is the base of children’s social understanding.
Mirror neurons (brain cells) are activated both when actions are executed, and the actions are observed. This function of mirror neurons may explain how people recognize and understand the states of others.
Mind-blindness is opposite to theory of mind. It is a cognitive disorder, characterized by inability to understand behavior and mental states of other people.
Theory of mind is one of the key cognitive ability including social instinct in humans. The psychological mechanisms underlying this ability are of intense current interest but still their nature remains controversial.