The development of co-representation effects in a joint task: do children represent a co-actor?

Area of Science:

• Developmental Psychology
• Cognitive Science
• Social Cognition

Background:

• Adults exhibit interference effects during joint tasks, indicating co-representation of a partner's actions.
• The presence of similar co-representation effects in children is debated due to difficulties in identifying underlying mechanisms.
• Joint action in children is a critical area for understanding social cognitive development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate whether young children exhibit co-representation effects during joint task performance.
• To establish co-representation as a potential criterion for adult-like joint action in children.
• To determine the developmental trajectory of co-representation abilities in early childhood.

Main Methods:

• Experiment 1: Adapted Bear Dragon task assessing interference in same vs. different task conditions.
• Experiment 2: Investigated switch costs in task rules across different and same task conditions.
• Experiment 3: Replicated findings using a computer-based paradigm in 4-5-year-olds and younger children.

Main Results:

• Children made significantly more errors in the Different Task condition compared to the Same Task condition, indicating task interference.
• Lower switch costs were observed in the Different Task condition, suggesting prior representation of the partner's rule.
• Co-representation effects were evident in 4-5-year-olds but not in younger children.

Conclusions:

• Children as young as 4 years old demonstrate the ability to co-represent a partner's task during joint activities.
• The findings provide the first direct evidence of co-representation in young children, supporting adult-like joint action.
• Co-representation appears to be a developing skill, with younger children not yet capable of this complex social cognitive process.