Developmental Trajectories of Theory of Mind in Lebanese Children Aged 3 to 11: Adaptation and Preliminary Evaluation of the Arabic Version of Battery for Children-Theory of Mind (ABC-TOM)

No research has explored Theory of Mind (ToM) development in Lebanon, a culturally diverse country that defies the East-West dichotomy. This pilot study aims to adapt a ToM tool for Lebanese children, while examining age-related trends, developmental sequencing, and parental cultural influences. Forty-six children aged 3-11 years, completed the ABC-TOM and standard tasks. Parents completed an Individualism-Collectivism Scale. The internal consistency of the ABC-TOM was correct for the total and cognitive subscales, but questionable for the affective subscale, with good convergent validity with standard measures. An earlier acquisition of knowledge access was observed, with age-related variations. Sequencing patterns also varied according to parental individualism-collectivism. Overall, findings support the ABC-TOM's use and underscore the role of individual-level environmental factors in ToM development.