Psychometric Properties of Mind-reading Belief Scale on an Italian Sample and Correlation with the Self-Construal

Abstract

Theory of Mind (ToM) is the lifespan developing ability to attribute mental states. This ability enables the individual to predict and interpret one’s own and others’ behavior. In this respect, beliefs about one’s own capacity to attribute mental states represent a fundamental component of this construct. The present study aims to compare the unidimensional structure of the Mindreading Belief Scale, evaluating beliefs about personal ToM skills, with an alternative two-factor model, which could better explain the latent structure of the scale outlining the relational nature of the construct through the articulation self-other. Moreover, the relations with self-construal, as a pivotal element for subjective differentiation, were also investigated. Our data support the two-factor model as a better structuring of the pool of original items. Finally, the correlations found with self-construal scales indicate that self-construal is involved in defining beliefs about one’s own meta-representational skills.

Keywords

• Theory of Mind
• self-report
• self-construal
• mind-reading