%0 Journal Article %A Köymen, Bahar %A O’Madagain, Cathal %A Domberg, Andreas %A Tomasello, Michael %+ Department of Developmental and Comparative Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Max Planck Society %T Young children’s ability to produce valid and relevant counter-arguments : %G eng %U https://hdl.handle.net/21.11116/0000-0005-4676-8 %R 10.1111/cdev.13338 %D 2020 %* Review method: peer-reviewed %X In collaborative problem solving, children produce and evaluate arguments for proposals. We investigated whether 3- and 5-year-olds (N = 192) can produce and evaluate arguments against those arguments (i.e., counter-arguments). In Study 1, each child within a peer dyad was privately given a reason to prefer one over another solution to a task. One child, however, was given further information that would refute the reasoning of their partner. Five-year-olds, but not 3-year-olds, identified and produced valid and relevant counter-arguments. In Study 2, 3-year-olds were given discourse training (discourse that contrasted valid and invalid counter-arguments) and then given the same problem-solving tasks. After training, 3-year-olds could also identify and produce valid and relevant counter-arguments. Thus, participating in discourse about reasons facilitates children’s counter-argumentation. %J Child Development %V 91 %N 3 %& 685 %P 685 - 693 %I Wiley