The Effect of Storytelling on the Theory of Mind in Preschoolers

Novia Solichah and Dewi Retno Suminar

Faculty of Psychology, Univesitas Airlangga, Surabaya, Indonesia

Keywords: theory of mind, storytelling, preschooler.

Abstract: This study aims to see the effect of storytelling on the theory of mind in preschoolers. Subjects in this study

were 24 preschoolers (M = 60.62, SD = 2.41), who were given informed consent by their parents. The

design of this study is one group of a pre-test/post-test design, measuring the theory of the mind before and

after intervention. Data were analyzed with the Wilcoxon signed rank test. The measuring tool used in this

study is the scale of the theory of mind. Storytelling is given daily to children for four weeks. Results show

that storytelling can improve the theory of mind (p < .05) and affect its size (η2 = .80). The implications of

this study is that giving storytelling will help to increase preschoolers’ theory of mind, so they can imagine,

think, and predict the next actions in a story. In addition, the interaction of the subjects with the researcher

in storytelling sessions will also be able to stimulate verbal words that indicate an understanding of the

feelings or thoughts of others.

1 INTRODUCTION

Understanding the mind is the main skill for children

and is an important step towards subsequent stages

of conceptual development. Understanding the mind

is also a fundamental to developing an

understanding of the social world (Fagnant and

Crahay, 2011).

The Theory of Mind is important; it is used for

socializing, so children can be accepted in their

environment. This is in line with some studies that

state that the Theory of Mind can develop the social

competence of children (Aryanti, 2009; Astington,

2010; Walker, 2005) and can become the best

predictor of peer acceptance (Slaughter, Dannis and

Pritchard, 2002), can develop the ability of

interpersonal relationships (Meltzoff, 2011), and

cooperation, reducing prejudice, resolving conflicts

(Gehlbach in Woolfolk, 2009), and the ability to

interact precisely with others (Astington & Gopnik

in Barr, 2006). In addition, the results of the

Slaughter, Dennis, and Pritchard (2002) studies

conclude that preschoolers with well-developed

Theory of Mind skills tend to be more accepted by

their peers. Another study conducted by Walker

(2005) reveals that Theory of Mind is related to the

early formation of social competence.

A lack of Theory of Mind skills in preschool

children has a negative impact, especially in terms of

social skills. The inability to understand the mental

state of others is referred to as mind blindness or

"blindness in understanding the mind" (Doherty,

2009). This low ability then implicates the social

functioning of children. In Hughes's (2004) study, it

is stated that children tend to be "hard to manage",

aggressive, and children with behavioral disorders

(conduct disorder) are also known to have a poor

mastery of the Theory of Mind. In addition, the

research conducted by Izard (Tentama, 2012)

suggests that children who find it difficult to

understand their feelings and those of others, are

vulnerable to developing behavioral and learning

problems when they are older.

Astington and Edward (2010) explain that the

development of the Theory of Mind will have an

impact on children's social relationships as well as

their success in school. Children with more

developed Theory of Mind have better

communication skills and conflict handling skills,

engage in more complex pretend play, are judged to

have better social competence by teachers, feel

happier in school and more popular with their peers,

and school tasks can also be completed successfully.

A study concludes that Theory of Mind abilities are

associated with common bullying that happens at

school age (Westby, 2013). Demonstrating a low

Theory of Mind at the age of five can predict that a

child is likely to become a victim or perpetrator

248

Solichah, N. and Suminar, D.

The Effect of Storytelling on the Theory of Mind in Preschoolers.

DOI: 10.5220/0008587802480252

In Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Psychology in Health, Educational, Social, and Organizational Settings (ICP-HESOS 2018) - Improving Mental Health and Harmony in

Global Community, pages 248-252

ISBN: 978-989-758-435-0

(engaging in aggressive activities as both in action

and bullying) during early adolescence.

The problems described above are the basic

reason the study of Theory of Mind needs to be

carried out. Wellman and Liu (2004) suggest there

are several independent factors that influence the

development of the Theory of Mind, including

conversation, language, and executive function.

However, these abilities cannot be separated from

the factors that affect it. One of the factors that

empirically influences the ability of the Theory of

Mind is the ability of language (Astington and Baird,

2005; Miller, 2006; Milligan, Astington and Dack,

2007; Novitasari, 2013; Slade and Ruffman, 2005).

Storytelling is an activity that involves language

skills and improves understanding of the Theory of

Mind during early childhood (Fernandez, 2011).

Storytelling is an activity carried out orally, with or

without tools (Dhieni, 2005). In storytelling

activities there is a communication process that

involves the interaction of the child with the

storyteller about emotions, thoughts, beliefs, and

desires shown by characters in the story (Fernandez,

2011).

Longitudinal research conducted by Huijung et

al. (2008) demonstrates that storytelling activity

prompted improvement in the Theory of Mind on a

false belief task with 52 children aged 3–4 years.

Studies by Symons et al. (2010) suggest that reading

storybooks and storytelling activities can develop

the mental state and Theory of Mind in children

aged 5–7 years. Hacin (2016) also conducted

research and results show that storytelling activities

can also improve the Theory of Mind and the

metalinguistic ability of children aged 4–6 years.

Based on the explanations above, the researcher tries

to investigate whether there is a significant influence

between storytelling and the ability or development

of preschoolers’ Theory of Mind.

2 METHOD

2.1 Research Design

This study used a quasi-experimental research

design that comprises of a one group pre-test/post-

test design. Based on the design, for one group, the

study measured the participants’ Theory of Mind

before the treatment (pretest). It then implemented

storytelling, and finally, after the treatment, their

Theory of Mind was remeasured (Neuman, 2006).

2.2 Participants

This study involved 24 children (57–64 months),

comprising of 13 girls and 11 boys. Researchers

sought the approval of the subjects’ parents first by

requesting their informed consent.

2.3 Procedure

The steps taken by the narrator or storyteller during

the storytelling (Fernandez, 2011) were: 1) The

storyteller started by communicating the theme to

the child and keeping eye contact. 2) The storyteller

told the child about the characters in the story. 3)

The storyteller conveyed the content of the story

with and without tools, using unique sounds linked

to the characters to keep the listener's attention. 4)

During the storytelling, the storyteller interacting

with the children and they were encouraged to hold

props used by the storyteller, such as dolls,

drawings, and sticks. 5) After finishing the story, the

storyteller asked the child about the story just told.

Questions included: what is the title of the story?

Who are the characters in the story? How do the

characters behave in the story? What problems did

the characters in the story fix? 6) The storyteller

conveyed the wisdom, values, or messages

contained in the story

This storytelling session was conducted for four

weeks (each with six days in a week) for an average

10–15 minutes per session. This duration was based

on an article written by Texas (2015), which states

that five-year-olds can sit still and listen for 10–15

minute; they are optimistic, eager, and interested in

learning, but they have a short attention span.

The storytelling used in this study was based on

Astington and Edward's (2010) opinion that a story

that can be used to increase the Theory of Mind

skills is a story that involves surprises, secrets,

tricks, and problems that are then corrected. This

invites children to see things from different points of

view (for example, a red-hooded girl did not know

that the wolf dresses up and pretended to be a

grandmother). From these criteria, the researcher

chose stories to be told during the storytelling

session.

The researcher selected six stories for

storytelling, including Pinocchio, Brave Timun Mas,

The Shepherd and the Wolf, the Prince of Thabit and

the Ungu Monsters, Silver Forest Residents, and The

Wizard of Oz (Witch of Oz Country).

The Effect of Storytelling on the Theory of Mind in Preschoolers

249

2.4 Data Analysis

The data analysis technique used in this study was

non-parametric statistical analysis with the

Wilcoxon test using SPSS 16. The Wilcoxon test is a

statistical test similar to a t-test in independent

groups, and uses ordinal data (Jakson, 2009). The

Wilcoxon test involves two measurements on the

same subject against a particular treatment. The first

measurement was performed before the treatment,

while the second measurement was performed

afterwards. The Wilcoxon test looked at the

magnitude of the difference in the scores before and

after treatment (Trihendardi, 2009).

2.5 Measurements

2.5.1 Theory of Mind Scale

The data collection tool used in this study was the

scale for measuring the Theory of Mind ability of

preschoolers. The researcher used the Theory of

Mind scale adapted by Puteri (2014) from Wellman

and Liu (2004). Some adjustments or modifications

to the property or objects used from the Theory of

Mind scale were made by Wellman and Liu (2004).

The Theory of Mind scale used by Wellman and Liu

(2004) was used for research that aimed to create a

series of tasks capable of capturing the concept of

understanding in preschoolers. The study involved

75 children aged approximately 3–5 years (age range

from 2 years and 11 months to 5 years and 6

months).

The scale consists of seven questions, which

were administered individually on each child. For

each item that required the presentation of a real

object, a doll was used to describe the character of

the protagonist. In addition, assigned tasks also used

the property of the image to show objects, situations,

and facial expressions.

Each question consists of two parts: a target

question that asked about the mental state or

behavior of the protagonist character and a control

question that asked about the reality, expression, or

circumstances of others. The point on each question

had a question that contrasted with another. A score

was given if the child answered both questions

correctly. The study results stated that the scale had

good validity for use as a battery test to measure

Theory of Mind ability, especially in preschoolers

(3–5 years).

3 RESULT

The data from the pre-test and post-test obtained by

the subjects were processed using non-parametric

statistic analysis with the Wilcoxon test using SPSS

16. The researcher used non-parametric statistics

because 24 subjects were involved in the study. The

median of the pre-test and post-test scores/ranks

were significantly higher than the pre-test (Me pre =

2, Me post = 5). Because the Z-value was -4.398 and

the significance value of the Wilcoxon Signed Ranks

Test was .000, it can be concluded that there is a

significant difference between the results of the pre-

test and post-test of the Theory of Mind variable.

The Effect Size in this study used Cliff's Delta. The

value of the Effect Size of this research data was .80.

These values indicate that storytelling treatment has

a high impact on improving the Theory of Mind in

preschoolers.

4 DISCUSSION

The results show that storytelling can improve the

Theory of Mind in preschoolers, as in the study of

Guajardo and Watson (2002) who tested the

hypothesis that storytelling activities can improve

the Theory of Mind in children. His research proved

that performance in false-belief tasks (which sees a

child's understanding that one's beliefs may be

different from reality) and deception (the use of

information that does not correspond to reality)

increases significantly in the subject of preschool-

aged children provided with storytelling activities

conducted in a school setting.

In this storytelling activity, the researcher acted

as a storyteller to try and help the subject to

understand the various characters, emotional

expressions, actions, and story plots presented in

each story. Through this storytelling, children are

given the opportunity to interact with adults who

have better Theory of Mind skills. Storytelling can

also help children understand the complexities of

social life, in addition to developing their Theory of

Mind. In terms of cognitive and language

development, the ZPD (Zone of Proximal

Development) term put forward by Vygotsky

becomes quite relevant. This is a scaffolding

strategy carried out by adults during a storytelling

session. He believes that children involved in a large

number of private conversations, both with older

children and adults, will be more socially competent

(Santrock, 2011).

ICP-HESOS 2018 - International Conference on Psychology in Health, Educational, Social, and Organizational Settings

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The storytelling method used in this research was

direct storytelling using media (dolls and pictures).

Ariyus (2006) found that preschoolers find it easier

to learn a concrete object than abstract object by

delivering familiar and simple words. The

storytelling contents were selected based on the

opnion of Astington and Edward (2010); stories that

can be used to improve Theory of Mind skills are

stories that involve surprises, secrets, tricks, and

problems that are then corrected, inviting the child to

see things from different perspectives. Stories that

contain these characteristics are expected to form a

child's understanding of others' perspectives. This

supports the results of research by Peskin and

Astington (2004) who suggest that Metacognitive

vocabulary improves the conceptual understanding

of a child’s mental state.

When the subjects received storytelling

stimulation for four weeks, indirectly stimulated

them to think about and predict the events in the

story, or at least predict the subsequent actions of the

characters in the book. This predicting activity is

also part of the development of the Theory of

Mind's, in which one of the roles of the Theory of

Mind is to explain and predict behavior. The process

of explaining and predicting this behavior alone can

only be carried out if one can understand desires and

beliefs as well as the feelings of others (Doherty,

2009).

Stories containing metacognitive vocabulary can

increase children’s ability regarding the Theory of

Mind. It is acquired through a dialogue process

between the storyteller and the subjects. When it

happens, the subject has an opportunity engage in a

conversation involving various concepts and mental

states, such as desires, beliefs, emotions, and

sentences, which can describe various other mental

states. It is closely related to aspects of language

development, in which various linguistic activities

can provide stimulation for children to develop their

abilities.

This storytelling provides an opportunity for the

child to achieve both factors mentioned above.

Through storytelling, accompanied by the properties

used, the child will develop their Theory of Mind, so

they can imagine, think, and predict actions that will

happen next in the story. In addition, the interaction

of subjects with the researcher in storytelling

sessions can stimulate verbal words that indicate an

understanding of the feelings or thoughts of others.

It mainly applies to words that indicate emotion;

storytelling provides many emotionally nuanced

words, such as sadness, happiness, and joy.

In general, this study yields the conclusion that

storytelling can improve the Theory of Mind in

preschoolers. Research has been carried out but

regarding the implementation, there are still

limitations. This method uses image media only. In

terms of story selection, existing and famous stories

were used.

The recommendations for further research

include using a larger number of subjects to achieve

a more generalizable process. The story selection

process can be more varied by making up new

stories. Research could implement varied

storytelling methods to measure the differences in

the influence of each method.

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