Mary loves chocolate milk, but she hates white milk. Her teacher pours chocolate milk into a big blue thermos, as Mary and Kate watch. Mary gets called out of the room. While she is gone, her teacher pours the chocolate milk down the sink and fills the thermos with white milk. Kate has seen this and is aware, but Mary is out of the room. The teacher now turns to Kate, and says, "When Mary returns, what kind of milk will she think is in the thermos?" This experiment is testing the concept of

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This experiment is testing the concept of theory of mind, which is the ability to understand that others have beliefs, desires, intentions, and perspectives that are different from one's own. In this scenario, Mary believes the thermos contains chocolate milk because she did not see it being replaced with white milk, while Kate knows the truth. This tests whether one can understand that Mary holds a belief that is different from reality and from Kate's own knowledge.

Mary Loves Chocolate Milk, but She Hates White Milk