Cognitive and affective associations with an ecologically valid test of theory of mind across the lifespan.

Using a naturalistic test of ToM, performance was shown to decline with age for ToM but not control scenarios. Across the lifespan, the variance in ToM performance was explained by cognitive abilities and empathy but not age. Age alone may not influence ToM ability, but may be associated with age-related changes in cognition and social-cognition. (PsycINFO Database Record