The Mediating Role of Metacognition in the Relationship between the Theory of Mind and Working Memory

This study examined the mediating role of metacognition in the relationship between ToM and working memory. The independent variable of this study was working memory, the dependent variable was ToM, and the mediating variable was metacognition. This study was conducted using a general survey model with 300 children in the age group of five years who attended an independent kindergarten affiliated with the Ministry of National Education in Konya city center. General Information Form, Metacognitive Knowledge Interview Form (McKI), Theory of Mind Task Battery (TOMTB), and Working Memory Scale were used as data collection tools. In the data analysis, the relationships between the measurements were examined. It was seen that there was a statistically significant positive relationship between the scores of the Metacognitive Knowledge Interview Form (McKI) and the Theory of Mind Task Battery (TOMTB); between the Working Memory Scale and the Theory of Mind Task Battery (TOMTB); and between the Working Memory Scale and the Metacognitive Knowledge Interview Form (McKI) (p<0.05). When the mediation model was established, it was seen that the theory of mind had no statistically significant effect on working memory; metacognition had a significant positive impact on working memory, and theory of mind and metacognition significantly explained the change in working memory scores. These results support the main hypothesis that the theory of mind significantly affects working memory through metacognition.