The TOM test: a new instrument for assessing theory of mind in normal children and children with pervasive developmental disorders.
The TOM test is a solid face-to-face tool for young kids, but newer caregiver forms reach wider ages and avoid ceiling effects.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Hagopian et al. (1999) built a new kid-friendly test called the TOM test. It checks if children can guess what others think or feel.
They ran four small studies. Kids with autism, ADHD, and typical kids aged 3-11 played picture and story games. The team looked at whether scores stayed the same on repeat tests and if they matched other mind-reading tasks.
What they found
The TOM test gave steady scores each time. Children with autism scored lower than same-age peers.
The pattern matched results from older belief tasks, so the test does its job.
How this fits with other research
Goodwin et al. (2012) and Matson et al. (2008) later built caregiver checklists that cover the same skill but for ages 3-18. These newer tools avoid the ceiling effect seen in the child test.
Amorim et al. (2025) used similar mind-reading tasks across autism, ADHD, and OCD. They found that IQ and social communication, not the label itself, best predict scores.
Kaland et al. (2008) pushed the age range up to 18 and showed that harder mind-reading tasks tap different skills. One size does not fit all.
Why it matters
If you need a quick, play-based check for preschool or early grade clients, the TOM test still works. For older kids or when you want parent input, switch to the free Theory of Mind Inventory or PCToMM-E. Always pair results with IQ and language data, because those scores shape performance more than the autism label alone.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
This article describes a first attempt to investigate the reliability and validity of the TOM test, a new instrument for assessing theory of mind ability in normal children and children with pervasive developmental disorders (PDDs). In Study 1, TOM test scores of normal children (n = 70) correlated positively with their performance on other theory of mind tasks. Furthermore, young children only succeeded on TOM items that tap the basic domains of theory of mind (e.g., emotion recognition), whereas older children also passed items that measure the more mature areas of theory of mind (e.g., understanding of humor, understanding of second-order beliefs). Taken together, the findings of Study 1 suggest that the TOM test is a valid measure. Study 2 showed for a separate sample of normal children (n = 12) that the TOM test possesses sufficient test-retest stability. Study 3 demonstrated for a sample of children with PDDs (n = 10) that the interrater reliability of the TOM test is good. Study 4 found that children with PDDs (n = 20) had significantly lower TOM test scores than children with other psychiatric disorders (e.g., children with Attention-deficit Hyperactivity Disorder; n = 32), a finding that underlines the discriminant validity of the TOM test. Furthermore, Study 4 showed that intelligence as indexed by the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children was positively associated with TOM test scores. Finally, in all studies, the TOM test was found to be reliable in terms of internal consistency. Altogether, results indicate that the TOM test is a reliable and valid instrument that can be employed to measure various aspects of theory of mind.
Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 1999 · doi:10.1023/a:1025922717020