ABSTRACT
The false belief task is used to assess whether children have a theory of mind. The authors designed an ACT-R model of the minimal processes needed to simulate performance on the false belief task. The model consists of five productions: two that respond to the two control questions, two that respond to the false belief question, and one that stops the model. A correct response to the false belief question requires only a modification of the expected contents production: identify the current question as a special case, ignore the content knowledge about the specific box, and refrain from changing object-specific knowledge based on prior general knowledge. The developmental pattern in responses can be modeled by hypothesizing that the older children have had further experience with these special questions while the younger children have not.
