title: Do imaginary companions die? An exploratory study.
abstract: Adults in this exploratory study usually recalled that their childhood imaginary companions faded away or were dismissed as other options for social interaction became more appealing. However, eight participants reported that their IC had died. Analysis of these deaths offers a glimpse of the child's talent for transitional thought processes that navigate between the emerging constraints of logic and the continuing appeal of fantasy. It is suggested that young children are testing the limits and possibilities of what it means to be "real" at the same time they are trying to puzzle out "alive" and "dead."
authors.affiliation: Arizona State University, USA. robert.kastenbaum@asu.edu
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kastenbaum
authors.forename: Lynn
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Fox
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000739:Anecdotes as Topic; D001294:Attitude to Health; D002648:Child; D003405:Creativity; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007092:Imagination; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D009769:Object Attachment; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires