Childhood imaginary companion and schizotypy in adolescents and adults

Background: Previous studies have reported associations between childhood imaginary companion (CIC) and creativity, inclination toward fantasy, and hallucination-like experiences. However, these relations have not been examined systematically within a personality construct. The aim of this study was to investigate the association of CIC status and schizotypy levels of adolescents and adults within the framework of the Hierarchical Taxonomy Of Psychopathology (HiTOP). Design: Participants were 255 Iranian adolescents and adults (15 to 67 years old) responding mostly via e-questionnaires on a website (156 females). They were grouped based on their childhood IC status. Schizotypy dimensions (based on a fully dimensional conceptualization of schizotypy; Claridge’s model) were compared between these two groups. Two subscales of the Achenbach System of Empirically-Based Assessment-Youth Self-Report (ASEBA-YSR) corresponding to thought disorder and detachment spectra of the HiTOP model were correlated with the unusual experiences (UnEx) and introvertive anhedonia (IntAn) dimensions of the short scale of Oxford-Liverpool Inventory of Feelings and Experiences (sO-LIFE) among adolescents. Additionally, subscales of the ASEBA-YSR were compared between CIC and non-IC groups among adolescents. In adults, correlations of ‘Big Five’ domains of the NEO-Five Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) with schizotypy dimensions were evaluated. Results: The UnEx, and ImpNon dimensions and overall sO-LIFE scores of the CIC group were higher than the non-IC group. There was positive correlation between the UnEx dimension and the Thought Problems subscale among adolescents. Neuroticism domain of the NEO-FFI was strongly correlated with overall schizotypy and the cognitive disorganization (CogDis) dimension of sO-LIFE. Additionally, it was the only domain of the NEO-FFI in which adults in the CIC group scored higher than their peers. Conclusions: Report of CIC in adolescents and adults is associated with a set of schizotypy dimensions in line with the concept of “happy schizotype”. Keywords: positive schizotypy, imaginary friend, psychosis superspectrum