Characteristics of preschool and school-age children with imaginary companions

The authors investigated the prevalence and characteristics of children who experience or who have experienced imaginary companions. For the study, a self-administered questionnaire that sought information regarding the characteristics of children with and without imaginary companions was completed by 478 parents of children within the age range of 3 to 9.5 years. A significantly larger number of children with imaginary companions were reported to be first-born children, to be very imaginative, to incorporate myth in their play, and to explain events as magical. Overall, these results are interpreted to indicate that birth order, combined with characteristics such as imaginativeness and a predisposition to engage in fantasy, characterizes children with imaginary companions.     

The characteristics and correlates of fantasy in school-age children: imaginary companions, impersonation, and social understanding

Past research with 152 preschoolers found that having an imaginary companion or impersonating an imaginary character was positively correlated with theory of mind performance. Three years later, 100 children from this study were retested to assess the developmental course of play with imaginary companions and impersonation of imaginary characters and how these types of role play were related to emotion understanding, self-perception, and personality. The results showed that school-age children interact with imaginary companions and impersonate imaginary characters as much as preschoolers. Overall, 65% of children up to the age of 7 had imaginary companions at some point during their lives. School-age children who did not impersonate scored lower on emotion understanding. Theory of mind at age 4 predicted emotion understanding 3 years later.     

The referential communication skills of children with imaginary companions

The present study investigated the referential communication skills of children with imaginary companions (ICs). Twenty-two children with ICs aged between 4 and 6 years were compared to 22 children without ICs (NICs). The children were matched for age, gender, birth order, number of siblings, and parental education. All children completed the Test of Referential Communication (Camaioni, Ercolani & Lloyd, 1995). The results showed that the children with ICs performed better than the children without ICs on the speaker component of the task. In particular, the IC children were better able to identify a specific referent to their interlocutor than were the NIC children. Furthermore, the IC children described less redundant features of the target picture than did the NIC children. The children did not differ in the listening comprehension component of the task. Overall, the results suggest that the IC children had a better understanding of their interlocutor's information requirements in conversation. The role of pretend play in the development of communicative competence is discussed in light of these results.     

Prevalence of imaginary companions in Japanese children

Having an imaginary companion (IC) is an example of children's pretend play. However, most research regarding children's ICs is from Western cultures. In this study, the prevalence of ICs was assessed among Japanese children (2‐ to 9‐year‐old children, N = 800). The developmental (age), biological (sex), and environmental (birth order) effects on Japanese children's ICs were also assessed. Moreover, whether IC status can be an indicator of fantasy orientation in Japanese children was examined. The results revealed that the prevalence of the invisible friend was relatively rare, but the personified object was prevalent in Japanese children. Age and sex, but not birth order, significantly affected the prevalence of ICs in Japan. Moreover, IC status significantly indicated children's fantasy orientation. The results suggest that the characteristics of Japanese children's ICs are partly different from those in Western children. Social‐cultural contexts can affect this difference.     

An adolescent and his imaginary companions: from quasi-delusional constructs to creative imagination

In this paper I shall describe the psychotherapeutic treatment of a 14-year-old boy, who suffered from mild Asperger's syndrome. This adolescent had a multiplicity of imaginary friends, which protected him from catastrophic feelings of loneliness and deadness, but at the same time interfered with the possibility of establishing meaningful relations with human beings. As the relationship with the therapist gradually gained the vitality and importance originally invested in his parallel fantasy world, the imaginary companions simultaneously faded away. His imagination then became more closely connected to inner reality and to creative processes. The psychoanalytic literature on imaginary companions is reviewed, and it is suggested that the concept of a self-protective device could be usefully applied to understanding the functions that this fantasy performed for the patient.

Dans cet article, l'auteur décrit le traitement psychothérapeutique d'un garçon de 14 ans qui présentait une forme atténuée du syndrome d'Asperger. Cet adolescent avait une foule d'amis imaginaires, ce qui, tout en le protégeant contre le sentiment catastrophique de solitude et de morne tristesse, l'empêchait d'établir des rapports authentiques avec des êtres humains. Au fur et à mesure que sa relation à sa thérapeute était investie de la vitalité et de l'importance initialement accordées à son monde fantasmatique parallèle, ses compagnons imaginaires s'effaçaient. Son imagination était alors davantage en contact avec sa réalité intérieure et avec sa créativité. Passant en revue un certain nombre de textes psychanalytiques sur les compagnons imaginaires, l'auteur suggère que le concept d'un dispositif d'auto-protection pourrait aider à comprendre le rôle que jouait pour son patient cet univers fantasmatique.

In questo articolo l'autrice descrive il trattamento psicoterapeutico di un ragazzo di 14 anni con sindrome di Asperger in forma leggera. Questo ragazzo aveva una molteplicita' di amici immaginari che lo proteggevano da sentimenti catastrofici di solitudine e senso di morte, ma che allo stesso tempo interferivano con la possibilita' che egli stabilisse delle relazioni significative con altri esseri umani. Con l'intensificarsi della relazione con la terapeuta, che gradualmente acquisi' la vitalita' ed importanza originariamente investiti nel suo mondo di fantasia parallelo, simultaneamente i compagni immaginari scomparvero. La sua immaginazione divenne allora piu' strettamente connessa con la realta' interna e con i processi creativi. Nell'articolo viene passata in rassegna la letteratura psicoanalitica sui compagni immaginari, e si avanza l'ipotesi che il concetto di manovra protettiva per il se' potrebbe essere utilmente applicato alla comprensione delle funzioni che tale fantasia fungeva per il paziente.

In diesem Artikel werde ich die psychotherapeutische Behandlung eines 14-jährigen Jungens beschreiben, der an leichtem Asperger Syndrom litt. Dieser Jugendliche hatte eine Vielzahl von imaginären Freunden, die ihn vor katastrophalen Gefühlen der Einsamkeit und Leblosigkeit schützten, aber gleichzeitig die Möglichkeit, bedeutsame Beziehungen mit Menschen herzustellen, beeinträchtigten. Als die Beziehung mit der Therapeutin allmählich die Vitalität und Bedeutung erlangte, die ursprünglich in seiner parallellen Phantasiewelt investiert war, verblassten gleichzeitig die imaginären Begleiter. Seine Phantasiewelt war dann näher mit seiner inneren Realität und kreativen Prozessen verbunden. Es wird die psychoanalytische Literatur über imaginäre Begleiter rezensiert und vorgeschlagen, dass das Konzept einer selbst-schützenden Vorrichtung nützlich zum Verstehen der Funktionen angewendet werden kann, die diese Phantasie für den Patienten erfüllten.     

Chinese children's imaginary companions: Relations with peer relationships and social competence

We investigated relationships between Chinese children's imaginary companions (ICs) and peer relationships and social competence in 160 children, aged 5–6 years old. Children and their mothers participated in the interviews regarding the details of the children's ICs, including the type of the companion and the quality of the child–IC relationship. Peer relationships were assessed using sociometric nomination and perceived popularity nomination. Teachers rated children's social competence. Here, 55 children (34.3%) were deemed to have engaged in imaginary companion play. There was no relationship between imaginary companion types and child–IC relationship qualities. Children with invisible friends received more positive nominations than children with personified objects. Children with egalitarian relationships received more positive nominations and popularity nominations, but fewer negative nominations and unpopularity nominations than children with hierarchical relationships. Compared with children with hierarchical relationships, teachers rated the children with egalitarian relationships higher in social competence. The results suggest that imaginary companion types and relationship qualities may represent different dimensions of imaginary companions, calling attentions to the different mechanisms underlying imaginary companion types and relationship qualities with respect to social functioning.     

Imaginary companions, fantasy twins, mirror dreams and depersonalization.

Illustrative case material is presented to demonstrate genetic linkages between the presence of imaginary companions or fantasy twins and extensive mirror play in childhood and early adolescence, and the appearance of mirror dreams and depersonalization in later adolescence and adulthood. The defensive splitting of the self-representations observable in these phenomena is viewed as a means of warding off castration anxiety and anxiety about object loss, anxieties which arise because of conflicts primarily centering on intense aggressive drive derivative wishes. Formulations about depersonalization are discussed.     

Parental behaviour and children's creation of imaginary companions: A longitudinal study

This longitudinal study examined whether parenting quality, parental behaviours and children's temperament at 6 months of age predicted children's creations of imaginary companions (ICs) at 44 months of age. At six months, parenting quality and parental behaviours were measured using the Parent-Child Early Relational Assessment, and the frequency of mental-state references made during mother–infant interactions was recorded. Temperament was assessed using the Revised Infant Temperament Questionnaire. Parents then completed questionnaires assessing whether their children had ICs at 44 months of age. The results revealed that only the approach characteristic of temperament marginally predicted children's IC status. Results of the parental measures showed that parents of children with ICs were more likely to attribute mental states to their child and to refrain from intruding in their child's behaviours than parents of children without ICs. The results indicated that parental behaviours are important for children's creation of ICs.     

Pretend companions (imaginary playmates): the emergence of a field

Over the last century, investigation of pretend companions has developed as an emerging field. Although pretend companions are a commonplace childhood phenomenon and perhaps an epitome of children's imagination, that topic received little attention before the end of the 19th century. Only since the last decade has attention to it truly begun to burgeon. Broad developments in the history of thought and research on pretend companions fall into 6 stages: (a) early history, (b) early theory, (c) earliest empirical research, (d) midcentury lull, (e) a renewal of empirical attention, and (f) emergence into a significant field whose investigators are committed to reliable, increasingly sophisticated methods and to the examination of pretend companions within the broader context of pretend play. Following depictions of the field's past and current status, the authors present future directions for its progress.     

The personality correlates of adults who had imaginary companions in childhood

Two studies showed that adults who reported having an imaginary companion as a child differed from adults who did not on certain personality dimensions. The first yielded a higher mean on the Gough Creative Personality Scale for the group who had imaginary companions. Study 2 showed that such adults scored higher on the Achievement and Absorption subscales of Tellegen's Multidimensional Personality Questionnaire. The results suggest that some differences reported in the developmental literature may be observed in adults.     

Self‐knowledge in childhood: Relations with children's imaginary companions and understanding of mind

Relations between interior self‐knowledge and (a) imaginary companion (IC) status and (b) theory of mind (ToM) abilities were investigated in a sample (N= 80) of 4‐ to 7‐year‐olds. Interior self‐knowledge was assessed in terms of the extent to which children acknowledged that they (rather than an adult) were the authority on unobservable aspects of themselves (e.g., dreaming, thinking, hunger). Compared with children without an IC, those who possessed a parentally corroborated IC ascribed less interior self‐knowledge to an adult, with a trend for them to assign more interior self‐knowledge to themselves. Children's interior self‐knowledge judgments were not associated with their ToM performance. IC status was also unrelated to ToM performance. We consider how having an IC may provide children with opportunities to distinguish between knowledge that is inaccessible to an external observer and that which an external observer may glean without being told.     

Imaginary companions of preschool children

The developmental significance of preschool children's imaginary companions was examined. Mothers of 78 children were interviewed about their children's social environments and imaginary companions (if their children had them). Results revealed differences between invisible companions and personified objects (e.g., stuffed animals or dolls) in terms of the pretend friends' stability and ubiquity, identity, and relationship with the child. Relationships with invisible companions were mostly described as sociable and friendly, whereas personified objects were usually nurtured. Mothers reported that personification of objects frequently occurred as a result of acquiring a toy, whereas invisible friends were often viewed as fulfilling a need for a relationship. Compared to children without imaginary companions, children with imaginary companions were more likely to be firstborn and only children.     

Relationship between Chinese children's imaginary companions and their understanding of second-order false beliefs and emotions

We investigated relationship between Chinese children's imaginary companions (ICs) and their understanding of second-order false beliefs and emotions in 180 children, aged 5–6 years old. We examined the potential differences in second-order false belief understanding and emotion understanding between children with and without ICs, children with egalitarian IC relationships and hierarchical IC relationships, as well as children with invisible friends and personified objects. The results revealed that children with ICs had better second-order false belief understanding and emotion understanding than children without ICs. Compared with children with hierarchical relationships, children with egalitarian relationships had better second-order false belief understanding. However, children with invisible friends and personified objects did not differ on their understanding of second-order false beliefs and emotions. The results suggest that compared with IC types, IC status and child-IC relationship qualities may be more relevant to children's theory of mind. It will be interesting for the future researchers to investigate the underlying mechanism of the differences between children with egalitarian IC relationships and hierarchical IC relationships.     

Individual differences in children’s private speech: The role of imaginary companions

Relations between children’s imaginary companion status and their engagement in private speech during free play were investigated in a socially diverse sample of 5-year-olds (N = 148). Controlling for socioeconomic status, receptive verbal ability, total number of utterances, and duration of observation, there was a main effect of imaginary companion status on type of private speech. Children who had imaginary companions were more likely to engage in covert private speech compared with their peers who did not have imaginary companions. These results suggest that the private speech of children with imaginary companions is more internalized than that of their peers who do not have imaginary companions and that social engagement with imaginary beings may fulfill a similar role to social engagement with real-life partners in the developmental progression of private speech.     

An investigation of prospective memory in children with ADHD.

Prospective memory, defined as the ability to follow through on intended behavior, is believed to be subserved by a number of neuroanatomical substrates, but particularly dependent, at least in part, on the frontal lobes. Children with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) traditionally have difficulty on tasks dependent on frontal lobe structures. The present study attempted to determine whether children with ADHD are impaired in prospective memory function. Two studies are described that use a new measure of time-based prospective memory, the CyberCruiser (Kerns, 2000), to compare children with ADHD to a control group consisting of participants who were matched in respect to age, gender, and IQ. The results document prospective memory deficits in ADHD. Prospective memory performance correlated significantly with clinical measures of ADHD as assessed by the Conners' Parent Rating Scale (Conners, 1990) Hyperactivity Index, but was unrelated to intellectual ability. Though psychometric measures of attention correlated with prospective memory performance, they did not account for the differences in prospective memory that were observed between the ADHD and control groups.