The acquisition and development of theory of mind (ToM) is an important issue receiving attention of research on infants and toddlers (0－ 3 years old), involving the research on the processing mechanism of ToM and the establishment of theoretical framework during this period. From the perspective of cognitive neuroscience, we summarize the brain imaging evidence based on the observation of different neuroimaging technologies, for the two components of ToM in infancy and toddlerhood. The results support the view that “children acquire ToM during the age of 0－3”, enriching the lifespan development perspective of ToM and providing comprehensive evidence for exploring the acquisition time, neural processing mechanism as well as the brain network foundation of ToM. In order to prove that ToM has been acquired in the early age, future research can combine cognitive neuroscience and developmental psychology and use a variety of neuroimaging techniques to track the development of children’s ToM.

摘要： 心理理论的获得与发展是婴幼儿早期研究关注的焦点之一,关系到这一时期心理理论的加工机制研究和理论框架建立.从认知神经科学的角度出发,针对婴幼儿心理理论两个成分——情感性心理理论和认知性心理理论,综述了基于不同神经影像技术所观测的脑影像学证据.领域文献总结支持"儿童在婴幼儿早期获得心理理论"的观点,发现:儿童心理理论相关的脑网络连接表现出"全脑相关,局部更强"的模式,并且不同成分的脑网络出现了一定程度的分化.这丰富了心理理论的毕生发展观,为探究心理理论的获得时间、 神经加工机制、 脑网络连接基础提供了综合证据.未来,为探究婴幼儿早期年龄段适用的心理理论划分标准,需将多种神经影像技术手段结合起来,对儿童心理理论的发展进行大型追踪研究.

国家社会科学基金重大项目(20＆ZD296)；广东省重点领域研发计划(2019B030335001)