Longitudinal outcomes of young high-risk adolescents with imaginary companions.

Abstract

The creation and cultivation of an imaginary companion is considered to be a healthy form of pretend play in early childhood, but there tends to be a less positive view of older children who have them. To test the extent that having an imaginary companion in middle school is associated with positive or negative outcomes, an ethnically diverse sample of 152 middle school children at high risk for developing problem behaviors were interviewed about imaginary companions, coping styles, and problem behaviors. Although having a current imaginary companion (n =13) was associated with using more positive coping strategies, peer nomination data indicated that these children had low social preference with peers. In addition, our data indicated that these children were perceived by their parents as having more problem behaviors compared with young adolescents who never had imaginary companions (n = 108) or children who had imaginary companions in the past (n = 31). However, a longitudinal follow-up at the end of high school indicated that the children who had imaginary companions in middle school showed greater positive adjustment on a multiple-indicator adjustment construct.

Play on: Retrospective Reports of the Persistence of Pretend Play Into Middle Childhood

“…Had it come before, participants might have mentioned their imaginary companions more often. In sum, although we replicated the gender difference often reported in the imaginary companion literature, the current study is not informative with regard to when children are most likely to have an imaginary companion (see Taylor et al, 2004;Taylor, Cartwright, & Carlson, 1993;Taylor et al, 2010).…”

“…Notably, a recent study demonstrated that high-risk children who had imaginary companions in middle school, when compared with similar peers who had imaginary companions earlier in childhood or never had them, were significantly more likely to demonstrate positive outcomes following high school (Taylor et al, 2010). Researchers might follow Taylor et al's (2010) lead and further attempt to consider the purpose of pretense in light of the activity's continuation into middle childhood.…”

“…Indeed, several studies focusing on imaginary companions suggest that some children still pretend in middle childhood. For example, Hoff (2005b) found that 15 out of 26 fourth graders reported having an imaginary companion, and in another study, 13 of 152 sixth graders still had an imaginary companion (Taylor, Hulette, & Dishion, 2010). In fact, 33% of male adolescents and 60% of female adolescents reported writing to an imaginary companion in their diaries (Seiffge-Krenke, 1997).…”

Reliability, Validity, and Factor Structure of the Imaginative Capability Scale

“…Previous research explored human imagination using diverse approaches, such as philosophical inquiry (Emig, 1983;Warnock, 1976), visual imagery (Gordon, 1949;Richardson, 1969), mental imagery (Marks, 1973(Marks, , 1995, spatial concept (Thurstone & Thurstone, 1965), and imagery companions (Taylor, 1999;Taylor, Hulette, & Dishion, 2010), but few studies have empirically examined imaginative capabilities, let alone developed an evaluation tool for assessing these capabilities. Taking these concerns into account, this study developed the imaginative capability scale (ICS), and then aimed at establishing the reliability, validity, and factor structure of this newly constructed scale.…”

The Mental Protection System for Protective Behaviors: The Social Brain and the Mental Immune System

“…Comforter can be also as imaginary comforter (fantasy). Imaginary comforter as imaginary companion often occurs during childhood [28] to overcome hardship [29].…”