Friends & Companions in Children Term Paper

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Gleason, Sebanc, and Hartrup review the findings of previous studies, including that more than half of all imaginary friends have no identifiable trigger. Additionally, children are usually not able to explain the physical appearance of their imaginary companions. Some parents have reported that children base their imaginary friends on real people or characters from movies and stories. Imaginary companions most often appear human, but can also include animals or fantastical beings such as aliens or monsters. There is not conclusive evidence as to whether it is more common for imaginary friends to appear singly or in groups, but both are common.

Bouldin and Pratt (1999) conducted a study that took this age factor into account and examined the characteristics of preschool and school-age children with imaginary companions. They distributed questionnaires to the parents of 900 children in preschools and elementary schools and obtained a sample that included participants from 2- to 9- years of age. The study revealed significant differences between children with imaginary companions (ICs) and children without imaginary companions (NICs) regarding their birth order, level of imaginativeness, and predisposition to engage in fantasy.

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A significantly larger percentage (29%) of ICs than NICs (14%) were reported to be firstborn children (Bouldin, 1999). There was also a significant difference between the two groups regarding how often and how well ICs and NICs played with other children. In the NIC group, 91% of the children were reported to play often and well with other children, compared with 82% of the children in the IC group (Bouldin, 1999). Bouldin and Pratt concluded that the significant difference in the number of reported firstborns in the IC and NIC groups substantiates the view that one function of the imaginary companion may be to subdue the loneliness of a child who does not have any siblings close in age. This….....

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