Language provides a rich source of information about other people’s thoughts and feelings. Consequently, delayed access to language may influence conceptual development in Theory of Mind (ToM). We use functional magnetic resonance imaging and behavioral tasks to study ToM development in child (n = 33, 4–12 years old) and adult (n = 36) fluent signers of American Sign Language (ASL), and characterize neural ToM responses during ASL and movie-viewing tasks. Participants include deaf children whose first exposure to ASL was delayed up to 7 years (n = 12). Neural responses to ToM stories (specifically, selectivity of the right temporo-parietal junction) in these children resembles responses previously observed in young children, who have similar linguistic experience, rather than those in age-matched native-signing children, who have similar biological maturation. Early linguistic experience may facilitate ToM development, via the development of a selective brain region for ToM.

语言提供了有关他人想法和感受的丰富信息来源。因此，延迟接触语言可能会影响心智理论（ToM）的概念发展。我们使用功能磁共振成像和行为任务来研究流利美国手语 (ASL) 手语者的儿童（ n = 33、4-12 岁）和成人（ n = 36）的 ToM 发展，并表征 ASL 期间的神经 ToM 反应和看电影的任务。参与者包括首次接触 ASL 延迟长达 7 年的聋哑儿童 ( n = 12)。这些儿童对 ToM 故事（具体来说，右侧颞顶叶交界处的选择性）的神经反应类似于之前在具有相似语言经验的幼儿中观察到的反应，而不是在具有相似生物学经验的年龄匹配的母语手语儿童中观察到的反应。成熟。早期的语言经验可能会通过选择性大脑区域的发展来促进 ToM 的发展。