Introduction
Many children experience a common phenomenon known as the imaginary companion. This usually manifests itself in the creation of an invisible person that they engage in an active relationship with. While many parents are confused about how to approach and relate to their child and their child’s imaginary companion they should be assured that the process is quite normal. Imaginary companions are not a sign of mental illness but a normal healthy part of a child’s development (Taylor, 1999).
Historical View of Imaginary Companions
Early research on imaginary companions was deficit focused in nature Some of the earliest research around the beginning of the 1900’s viewed it as a sign of a psychological disorder (Vostrovsky, 1895). A psychoanalytic perspective was taken in around the 1940’s but imaginary companions were then viewed as defense mechanisms for children who had personality defects (Hoff, 2005). Even the well known and respected Dr. Benjamin Spock felt that a child who spent too much time with an imaginary friend raised the question of whether the child was lacking something in their life. (Simpson). Research done by Marjorie Taylor in Imaginary Companions and the Children who Create Them discredits the idea that imaginary companions are created because of a deficit. Taylor instead says that while some imaginary friends may be created due to a loss of playmates or a birth of a new sibling "for many children creating imaginary others is just a fun thing to do” (1999). Marjorie Taylor also directed attention to the fact that random selection of children for the earlier studies did not occur. Most of the children were selected from hospitals or another medical establishment where there were higher odds of em...
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...esearch Journal, 17(2/3), 167-180. doi:10.1207/s15326934crj1702&3_4
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Lillard, A. S., & Sobel, D. (1999). Lion Kings or puppies: the influence of fantasy on children's understanding of pretense. Developmental Science, 2(1), 75
Taylor, M. 1999. Imaginary companions and the children who create them. New York: Oxford University Press.
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...e (My Virtual Child). Dominic is able to read a few short words, write his name and most of the letters in the alphabet. The results also mentioned that he is at an age appropriate level of phonological awareness and his language development is average in vocabulary and retelling a story (My Virtual Child). Cognitively, Dominic is not interested in little art projects and becomes frustrated when he works with blocks and shapes. Dominic is also behind mathematically when counting, identifying quantitative relationships and classifying objects (My Virtual Child). The parenting questionnaire suggests that we are slightly above average in affection and warmth; and we are in the top 15% concerning control and discipline.
The child, aged 24 months, was able to combine two toys in his pretend play as he poured seasoning on the pizza and used the spoon to spread it. This type of play behavior is within Stage IV of the Westby play scale. Additionally, in his play the child was able to use household objects realistically. For example, he knew to place the pizza in the oven rather than in the refrigerator. The child’s play was comprised of a short sequence of events: put seasoning on the pizza, spread the seasoning, put the pizza in the oven. These two characteristics are indicative of Stage V of Westby’s play scale. With play behaviors between Stages IV and V the child’s play is on level with his age. In terms of the child’s language use he appeared able to provide
Today, some children are neglected; some families just cannot afford the things a child needs, such as clothes and food. Why are children taken away from their homes in the first place? In the memoir, three little words, by Ashley Rhodes-Courter, the author is faced with the removal from her home at a young age. Throughout the memoir, Rhodes-Courter feels extremely abandoned by all who foster her and wants to go home to her mother. Rhodes-Courter’s problem makes her act out in her foster placements and makes her feel lonely when she is removed from the placing days later. Clearly, Rhodes-Courter needs one gift: an imaginary friend. An imaginary friend would provide her with someone to look up to and a friend, so she would not be lonely in
The purpose of this assignment is to answer the three posed questions in regards to my Virtual Child, who I will refer to as Kieran though out my assignment. I will be describing changes in his exploratory or problem solving behaviors as well as analyzing his temperament. I will also summarize his developmental assessment at nineteen months old that may differ from my perception than what was assessed through his developmental examiner.
Brazelton, T. B. & Sparrow, J. D. (2001) Touchpoints: Your Childs’s Emotional and Behavioral Development Perseus Publishing, Cambridge: MA
McLeod (2016), “This relates to attachment to specific models that possess qualities seen as rewarding. Children will have a number of models with whom they identify. These may be people in their immediate world, such as parents or older siblings, or could be fantasy characters or people in the media” (p. 2)
According to Daniel Siegel’s article “If I had bad parents, will I be a bad parent too?” children with non-secure attachments often have a “sense of uncertainty” with others. Her relationships with the other schoolchildren and with Mrs. Honey, demonstrates that Matilda, despite her age, not only is self-confident, but also does not show any sense of anxiety and insecurity. While reading books could have been a mental escape for her to get away from her familial issues, Matilda also doesn’t show signs of separation, as she prepared the adoption papers long before her acquaintance with Mrs. Honey. This supports the idea that a child’s personality and behavior is multifactorial, a combination of genetics, environmental and developmental
As children grow up, they are exposed to the “perfect” fairy tale, portraying the roles of the perfect man and woman, according to Andrea...
Bouldin, Paula. “An Investigation of the Fantasy Predisposition and Fantasy Style of Children With Imaginary Companions”. Journal of Genetic Psychology. 2006. 167(1): 17-29.
Ownership is a symbol of control. As human beings, we tend to put labels on things, believing that everything must belong to someone or something. This issue of ownership does not exclude the world of fairy tales. Fairy tales, much like birds, follow no rules and are free, but can be over ruled by potential superiors. In Donald Haase’s essay entitled, “Yours, Mine, or Ours?” and Lawrence R. Sipe’s case study, “Talking back and taking over: Young children’s expressive engagement during storybook read-alouds”, both scholars claim that children holds the baton of ownership over fairy tales. Although Haase and Sipe lay out an appealing theory and practice for children’s literacy, a story like “The Juniper Tree” by the Grimms brothers suggest skepticism
Research in any given area can yield many different results despite having the same aim. Varying results of separate studies may be due to different circumstances and conditions that surround them. Both Bigelow and La Gaipa and Corsaro differed in their conclusions (Brownlow, 2012). However, both had a similar aim in as much as they wanted to research how children understood friendship. By contrast, how and whether previous studies influenced them differed. The work of Bigelow and La Gaipa was not rooted in any background or tradition of research. They carried out their work in 1975 and at that time most studies about children had centred on attraction. Therefore, the work that they did was among the first of its kind. In addition to being an original piece of research, it also had validity because subsequent individuals carried out similar work. One such person was William Damon with the research he did in 1977 (Brownlow, 2012). Damon was also studying children’s friendships and as a conseq...
James, A. (1998). From the child's point of view: Issues in the social construction of
Piaget stated that children function in a concrete world and therefore are unable to use language in an abstract way until about eleven years old. Consequently language does not afford young children the structure for appropriate self-expression. Piaget believed that children design symbols to communicate their wishes, ideas and emotions. This system of symbols characterises symbolic play (Piaget & Inhelder,
...ary friend when we are younger. Our imaginary friend is very real to us, but as we get older or make the ascent to the world of knowledge, we reject our imaginary friends. We are faced with a different reality where we start to believe that what our eyes show us is the only truth. We forget to question things and don't realize that maybe there is yet another ascent, out of this bigger "cave" of the light.
There is a stereotype of children with imaginary friends (Taylor & Mottweiler, 2008). The stereotype is that the child is shy, withdrawn, has very few friends, and has emotional problems (Taylor & Mottweiler, 2008). Even though some children may make up imaginary friends due to these problems, in most cases children have imaginary friends because they are fun to have (Taylor & Mottweiler, 2008). These imaginary companions usually help the children go through tough situations and hard