Fantasy Proneness And Theory Of Mind In Adulthood Research Paper

Fantasy Proneness and Theory of Mind in Adulthood: The Role of Childhood Imaginary Companions

Name: Jolene Alexa Cox

Student ID: u4892321

Tutor’s Name: Amit Poonath

Laboratory Time: Tuesday 1200 – 1500

Abstract

The role of childhood imaginary companions in relation to fantasy proneness and theory of mind (ToM) in adulthood was examined in a study of 142 second-year psychology students. The participants were assessed of their fantasy proneness, theory of mind, and their imaginary companion (IC) status with a computer-based task, the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (Baron-Cohen, Wheelwright, Hill, Raste & Plumb, 2001), a self-report questionnaire, Creative Experiences Questionnaire (CEQ; Merckelbach, Horselenberg & Muris,
2001) and a survey identifying IC status. The independent variable in this study is the participants IC status, and the dependent variables are the measures of both fantasy proneness and ToM. The aim of the study is to investigate if individual differences (IC status) in behavioural characteristics in childhood extend to adulthood. It is hypothesized that (1) adults who had a childhood IC would score higher on an advanced measure of ToM than adults who did not have one and (2) Adults who had a childhood IC would score higher on a measure of fantasy proneness than adults who did not have one. The IC group scored higher on average than the NIC group on the fantasy proneness, but that the opposite was the case for ToM. However, no significant difference was found between the IC groups and non-IC (NIC) group for ToM. The research supports the idea that there may be a continuance of developmental differences to adulthood.

Fantasy Proneness and Theory of Mind in Adulthood: The Role of Imaginary Companions

Substantial amount of research conducted on children with imaginary companions (ICs) has suggested that there are developmental differences in IQ, theory of mind (ToM), fantasy proneness, creativity amongst many others, to children without imaginary companions (NICs). However, there has been insufficient research into whether these found differences are extended into adulthood. It is essential for more research to be devoted in this research to develop a better understanding of the influences of childhood experiences on cognitive and affective aspects in adulthood. As defined by Svendsen (1934), an imaginary companion is: “an invisible character, named and referred to in conversation with other persons or played with directly for a period of time, at least several months, having an air of reality for the child but no apparent objective basis” (p. 988). Present research has shown that children who have ICs are developmentally different in many aspects including IQ, ToM, fantasy proneness and narrative skills (Bouldin, 2006; Bouldin & Pratt, 2001; Taylor, 1999). For instance, having an IC gave children boundless opportunities for engaging in dialogic self-talk, facilitating higher internalized speech level (David, Meins & Fernyhough, 2013). It has also been suggested that children with ICs have higher IQs, but this has been inconsistently replicated (Taylor, 1999).

Children with and without ICs also show differences in fantasy proneness and ToM. Research suggests that because children’s imagination of their IC was not just limited to their appearance, but extends to their behaviour and their interactions verbally and physically, these children, therefore, engage in higher levels of fantasy play through their interactions with their IC. From a cognitive perspective, fantasy play evolved from the same mental processes as daydreaming and dreaming (Piaget, 1962). Children use fantasy play to understand and interpret their world. Studies found that children with ICs may have increased predisposition to fantasy (Bouldin & Pratt, 2001) and that children with ICs engage more often and more readily in fantasy play (Bouldin, 2006). Thus, one could conclude that having regular engagement with ICs does contribute to fantasy proneness. Additionally, Singer and Singer (1981) have also found that children who engage n extensive play were more imaginative.

Theory of mind refers to the ability of an individual to attribute mental states to oneself or another individual (Premack & Woodruff, 1978) and this ability assists us in explaining and predicting another person’s behaviour. A study performed by Gimenez-Dasi, Pons and Bender (2014) found that children with ICs have a better understanding of emotions than children without ICs. This finding supports Taylor and Carlson’s study (1997), which demonstrated that there is a positive correlation between the presence of an IC and the ability to understand the emotions of others. Hence, one could suggest that having ICs provides opportunities for children to practice their ability to understand mental and emotions states in others. However, a study found that children with ICs are less socially competent than children without (Harter & Chao, 1992), which contradicts studies demonstrating that emotional understanding and theory of mind as the fundamentals in social competency (Dunn & Brown, 1994; Denham, Blaire, DeMulder, Levitas, Sawyer, Auerbach-Major & Queenan, 2003).

With the prevalent differences shown in children with and without ICs, it is of great interest to find out if these differences are sustained into adulthood.
To do so, the differences in fantasy proneness and ToM should also be evaluated in adults. It is the aim of the study to investigate whether developmental differences associated with having a childhood IC extends to adulthood. In this study, an experiment was carried out using a combination of self-report measures and computer-based tasks in efforts to measure fantasy proneness, ToM and an indication of their IC status. It is hypothesized that (1) adults who had a childhood IC would score higher on fantasy proneness than adults with no childhood IC and (2) adults who had a childhood IC would score higher on a measure of ToM than adults who did not have one. The results of this research will contribute to the understanding of the continuity of fantasy proneness and ToM characteristics from childhood to
adulthood.

Method
Participants
Participants comprised of 142 second-year undergraduates from the ANU. Amongst the 142 participants, 104 were females and 38 males. The mean age of the participants is 21.3 years with a range of 18-65 years of age. The study was part of a compulsory laboratory work but participants were allowed to withdraw from the study at any given time.

Design
All participants were requested to complete inventories and computer-based task measuring fantasy proneness, advanced ToM and their IC status. The independent variable in this study is the IC status, which was measured by the Creative Experiences Questionnaire (CEQ; Merckelbach, Horselenberg & Muris, 2001), the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (Baron-Cohen, Wheelwright, Hill, Raste & Plumb, 2001) and an IC status questionnaire. The independent variable in this study was not manipulated due to the quasi-experimental and the between-participants natures. In contrast, the dependent variables included fantasy proneness and ToM, which were measured by CEQ and the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test respectively.

Materials
Participants’ fantasy proneness, ToM and IC status was evaluated by a combination of self-reporting inventories and a computer-based task. The assessments consisted of the CEQ (Merckelbach et al., 2001), the Reading the Mind in the Eyes computer task (Baron-Cohen, et al. 2001) and the IC questionnaire. The CEQ (Merckelbach et al., 2001) measuring fantasy proneness is a 25-item questionnaire with “yes” or “no” responses. The score (out of 25) is subsequently tabulated by summing every “yes” response. Higher scores indicate higher fantasy proneness. The Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (Baron-Cohen, et al. 2001) measures ToM. This computer task automatically generates a score from 0-35. Higher scores indicate a greater ability to infer mind state of others. The IC questionnaire consisted of 11 items, including short answers and “yes” or “no” responses. This measured the IC status of the participants, as well as the collection of participants’ demographic information.

Procedure
The data collection of this study took place in participants’ allocated laboratory sessions. A detailed information sheet was provided to all participants informing them about their participation and the ability to withdraw from the study at any given time. Using the computers present in the laboratory, students measured their ToM using the “Reading the Mind in the Eyes” test, followed by the CEQ (measuring fantasy proneness) and the IC Status. There were no time constraints in performing these tasks however, the participants were demanded not to share the results. After participants had completed all three tasks, they were asked to self-score the questionnaires with the tutor’s assistance. The surveys were then submitted for the collation of data.

Results
Amongst the 142 participants, 43 identified themselves as having had an IC (30 females, 13 males) and 99 identified as not having an IC (NIC; 74 females, 25 males). Advanced ToM was measured using the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (Baron-Cohen et al., 2001) and fantasy proneness was measured by the CEQ (Merckelbach et al., 2001). The descriptive data (see Table 1) showed that the IC group scored higher on average than the NIC group on fantasy proneness, but the opposite can be seen for theory of mind.

Table 1. Descriptive Statistics (M and SD) for IC and NIC scores on the CEQ and Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test.

IC
NIC
Measure
M (SD)
M (SD)
Fantasy Proneness
13.37 (3.95)
8.48 (3.77)
Advanced ToM
27.51 (4.55)
28.42 (3.27)
Notes: M= Mean, SD= Standard Deviation

To determine if the differences are due to chance variation, where the differences are non-significant, or whether they represent a true difference between two groups, whereby the differences between the means are greater than that expected by chance variation and therefore significant, one must perform two independent t-test was used. One test examined if the difference between the groups on Fantasy Proneness is significant and the other to test on the significance of the differences seen in the groups on Advanced ToM. Statistically significant difference can be seen between groups in relation to fantasy proneness t(140) = 6.99, p = < .001, with the IC group scoring significantly higher on the CEQ (M= 13.37) than the NIC (M= 8.48). However, Advanced ToM showed no statistically significant difference between the two groups t(140) = 1.36, P = .24 (IC M= 27.51 and NIC M= 28.42).

Discussion
The aim of the study is to investigate whether developmental differences associated with having a childhood IC extends to adulthood. It was hypothesized that adults who had a childhood IC would score higher on fantasy proneness and ToM than adults who did not have a childhood IC.
According to the main findings of the current experiment, it was found that only one of two hypotheses was supported, while the other was falsified. The experiment demonstrated that adults who had a childhood IC scored higher on fantasy proneness than adults who did not have IC. On the other hand, the findings reject the hypothesis that adults who had a childhood IC would score higher on a measure of ToM than adults without IC. However, no statistically significant difference was found between IC and NIC. The results of this study provide support for research conducted by Kidd, Rogers & Rogers (2010), who found that these developmental differences present in childhood does extend and maintain in adulthood.
The findings from the fantasy proneness experiment are consistent with the results found in Bouldin (2006), Bouldin and Pratt (2001) and Taylor, Cartwright and Carlson (1993) studies, which also demonstrated that individuals who had childhood ICs are more prone to fantasy play. However, the rejection of the ToM hypothesis could be attributed to the experiment’s sample size. A larger sample size would allow…..
It is also reasonable to suggest that the differences found are due to the large age range… bla bla..

It is also important to note that the use of self-reporting measures may be a limitation in this study. Future research should focus on the recruitment of a larger sample size with a greater variability in age group to address age discrepancies in the self-reporting tasks. (???)

In conclusion, the present research provides evidence for adults who had ICs having higher fantasy than adults with no childhood IC. References

Baron-Cohen, S., Wheelwright, S., Hill, J., Raste, Y. & Plumb, I. (2001). The “Reading the Mind in the Eyes” test revised version: A study with normal adults, and adults with Asperger Syndrome or High-functioning Autism. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 42(2), pp. 241-251.

Bouldin, P.
(2006). An investigation of the fantasy predisposition and fantasy style of children with imaginary companions. The Journal of Genetic Psychology, 167(1), pp. 17-29.

Bouldin, P. & Pratt, C. (2002). The ability of children with imaginary companions to differentiate between fantasy and reality. British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 29, pp. 99-114.

Davis, P.E., Meins, E. & Fernyhough, C. (2013). Individual difference in children’s private speech: The role of imaginary companions. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 116, pp. 561-571.

Denham, S.A., Blair, K.A., DeMulder, E., Levitas, J., Sawyer, K.S., Auerbach-Major, S.T. & Queenan, P. (2003). Preschoolers’ emotional competence: Pathway to social competence?. Child Development, 74(3), pp. 238-256.

Dunn, J. & Brown, J. (1994). Affect expression in the family, children’s understanding of emotions and their interactions with others. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 40, pp. 120-137.

Gimenez-Dasi, M., Pons, F. & Bender, P.K. (2014). Imaginary companions, theory of mind and emotion understanding in young children. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, pp. 1-12, doi:
10.1080/1350293X.2014.919778.

Harter, S. & Chao, C. (1992). The role of competence in children’s creation of imaginary friends. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 38(3), pp. 350-363.

Merckelbach, H., Horselenberg, R. & Muris, P. (2001). The Creative Experiences Questionnaire (CEQ): A brief self-report measure of fantasy proneness. Personality and Individual Differences, 31, pp. 987-995.

Svendsen, M. (1934). Children’s imaginary companions. Archives of Neurology and Psychiatry, 2, pp. 985-999.

Taylor, M. (1999). Imaginary companions and the children who create them. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.