Fantasy Proneness Research Articles

Seeing is believing: Implications of the dreamlike cognitive style for waking spontaneous thought and psychopathology

The intuitive experience of dreaming is that we “see” something with our mind’s eye and react to it. Indeed, dream formation conceptualizations have often focused on the visual image-to-verbal thought direction of causality, inspired by bottom-up models of perception. However, despite being experienced as external to us, the dream environment is internally generated, meaning that dreams are more like imagination than perception. Dream thoughts (experienced with a sense of agency or selfhood) also affect subsequent dream images (experienced as non-agentive or external to one’s self). Thus, oneiric experiences are made up of reciprocal, continuous, moment-to-moment influences between the dream and the dreamer: visual images and verbal, abstract, or otherwise imageless thoughts. During wakefulness, a dreamlike cognitive processing dynamic of ever-changing meaningful image-thought-image momentary associations coupled with reduced agentive control of images may be present to a greater or lesser extent. Non-agentive visual images as a significant driving force in one’s spontaneous mental activity may relate to individual differences in fantasy proneness, suggestibility, dissociative absorption, or imagination tendencies. This feature carries implications for the field of spontaneous thought. Off-task thinking, or mind-wandering, are non-specific labels that may be used to denote internally generated mentation. Considering the tendency for dreamlike associations may represent a specific distinction, which may be relevant for understanding psychopathology. Whereas some individuals may find themselves distracted by abstract or semantic associations (e.g., verbal self-derogatory inner speech), others may find themselves drawn to intrusive—or alluring—visual images, which may interact significantly with their verbal thoughts and associations and even be experienced with decreased sense of agency. This may occur in obsessive-compulsive disorder, dissociative disorders, or maladaptive daydreaming, suggesting that clinicians need to pay attention to their clients’ spontaneous visual imagery. If a picture is worth a thousand words and seeing is believing, psychologists should be curious of how a visual thinking style may impact mental health.

An exploration of Italian laypeople’s belief in how human memory works

ABSTRACT We present the first study to measure the beliefs held by Italian laypeople about how human memory works, using a newly developed tool: the Italian Memory Belief Questionnaire (IMBQ). Research conducted in other countries has demonstrated that beliefs about memory vary widely between different professional and non-professional groups, indicating that limitations exist regarding the dissemination of empirically researched scientific knowledge. To ascertain what Italian people understand about memory-related topics, including eyewitness testimony, repression of traumatic memories and factors influencing memory recall, 301 native Italian participants completed the IMBQ in Study 1. In Study 2, 346 additional participants completed the IMBQ, alongside various additional measures, to examine the construct validity of our new instrument and investigate socio-demographic predictors of memory beliefs. Exploratory factor analysis in Study 1 identified three distinct belief factors that were present in the dataset: eyewitness and memory reliability, trauma and remembering and aspects that improve remembering. Study 2 partially confirmed this factor structure and found IMBQ scores to correlate with existing memory belief questionnaires. Correlations were also found between the IMBQ subscales and measures of fantasy proneness, but not dissociation. In both studies, many Italian laypeople strongly endorsed the notion that controversial topics (i.e., repression) are possible. Contrastingly, Italian laypeople do appear to understand the conceivable inaccuracies of memory in eyewitness settings. Sex, age and education were shown to predict beliefs about memory. Findings are discussed in relation to the importance of addressing misinformation about memory, especially in clinical and forensic settings.

Turkish adaptation of a brief self-report measure of fantasy proneness: The Creative Experiences Questionnaire (CEQ)

This research addresses the construct of fantasy proneness that is unexplored in the context of Turkey by adapting and assessing the psychometric properties of the widely accepted Creative Experiences Questionnaire (CEQ), aiming to fill a significant gap in existing literature and contribute to the understanding of this construct and its correlates in a population aged between 18 and 60 years. The Turkish version of the CEQ demonstrated face validity, aligning participant responses with fantasy, imagination, and dissociation (n = 15). Exploratory Factor Analysis confirmed a single-factor solution based on the scree plot graphic, without item removal (n = 310). Reliability and validity analyses (N = 464) affirmed robustness with adequate internal consistency (Cronbach’s Alpha = 0.78, McDonald’s Omega = 0.77) and test-retest reliability (n = 110, r = .72). Convergent validity was supported by correlations with dissociative experiences (r = .51) and magical ideation (r = .51). Discriminant validity was evident in negative correlations with social desirability (r = -.10, p < .05), notably, impression management (r = -.12, p < .05), indicating unbiased capture of fantasy experiences. Predictive validity was supported by a positive correlation observed between fantasy proneness and interest in creative activities (r = .21). Participants engaged in or aspiring to engage in creative activities professionally scored notably higher, broadening implications for creativity research. Similarities between the original and Turkish versions suggested cultural variations do not significantly affect fantasy proneness in adults. Considering limitations, future research should explore age-related variations of fantasy proneness as well as its association with social desirability. Implications extend to clinical research, emphasizing consideration of fantasy proneness and its correlates in psychopathological and broader psychological health studies in Turkey and globally.

Traits linked to sensory processing sensitivity mediate the relationship between externally oriented thinking and fantasizing.

Alexithymia is characterized by difficulties identifying and describing feelings but expression of externally oriented thinking (EOT) and difficulty fantasizing is more variable. In two studies, we investigated whether links between EOT and fantasizing are mediated by sensory processing sensitivity (SPS). University students completed measures of alexithymia, SPS, and fantasizing. In Study 1 (N = 700) we identified two clusters of SPS traits: a positive facet (sensitivity to subtle stimuli) and a negative facet (sensitivity to uncomfortable stimuli). In the 499 participants who completed the fantasy measure, low EOT scores predicted stronger SPS positive and negative traits, which predicted a stronger tendency to mentally project oneself into the lives of characters in books, movies, and plays. In Study 2 (N = 600), the link between EOT and this same fantasizing tendency was again mediated by features of SPS-in this case fantasy proneness and emotional reactivity. We suggest that, whereas individuals who score high on EOT have an impoverished fantasy life, those who score relatively low on EOT and turn their attention inward are able to maintain stronger representations of imagined events in working memory (enhancing the likelihood that they will be recalled) and react more strongly to these events (enhancing their salience). Stronger expression of these features of SPS, in turn, increases the likelihood that one will develop a cognitive style that involves the application of imagery-based strategies to support deep processing of the thoughts and feelings of characters depicted in narratives.

Meaning through fantasy? Fantasy proneness positively predicts meaning for people high in depression

ABSTRACT Many factors likely impact how people create meaning out of their lives. Certain psychological disorders may affect these processes, necessitating the reliance on atypical meaning-making strategies. Across two studies, we tested the hypothesis that the tendency to engage in mental fantasies would be associated with higher meaning in life for people with elevated symptoms of depression. In Study 1 (N = 455Mturk workers), fantasy proneness positively predicted meaning at high levels of depression, but was unrelated at low levels of depression. We replicated this pattern in Study 2 (N = 367), which was preregistered, using the baseline survey of a multi-wave design. In addition, across six weekly measurements, we observed that depression moderated the relationship between fantasy and meaning at the between-person, but not within-person, level. These findings have implications for understanding idiosyncrasies in meaning-making, the role of depression in meaning-making processes, and the potential positive functions of fantasy.

FANTASY PRONENESS IN ONE’S PSYCHOLOGICAL LIFE AND HEALTH: OBSERVATIONAL STUDY WITH IMPACT ANALYSIS

Fantasy proneness has so far been treated as a trait associated with both pathological and adaptive mechanisms. What also seems to be the case is that both claims are evident and experimentally verified. This is an indicator of the much greater sensitivity with which these traits should be treated. This paper examines the relationship between fantasy proneness with selected indicators of mental health and sociodemographic characteristics with special consideration of the corresponding role of positive and negative affect. Obtained results contribute to detecting the sensitivity traits that seem to categorize fantasy prone individuals into the groups of those under risk for the development of mental health problems and those who are well adapted. This has been done by performing statistical analysis on impact detection methods to achieve significant correlation and determination of fantasy proneness via sociodemographic variables and mental health indicator variables. The results indicate that only marital status is a significant socio-demographic predictor, while all of the mental health indicators have significant direct or indirect impact on fantasy proneness.

Individual differences in autobiographical memory predict the tendency to engage in spontaneous thoughts

ABSTRACT Individual differences in autobiographical memory have become a research area of interest, but little is known about its associations with other individual differences dimensions, such as the tendency to engage in spontaneous cognition. We report two studies examining individual differences in autobiographical memory, as measured by the Autobiographical Recollection Test (ART), in relation to eight trait-like measures of spontaneous thought and, in Study 2, also a measure of fantasy proneness. In Study 1, the ART correlated positively and systematically with six out of eight measures of spontaneous thought, even when controlling for age, gender, and trait positive and negative affect. The two exceptions concerned spontaneous thoughts specifically related to attentional deficits. Study 2 replicated these findings and extended them to a measure of fantasy proneness. The findings demonstrate that people who generally consider their autobiographical memories to be vivid, detailed, relevant, and coherent, report a higher tendency to engage in various forms of spontaneous cognition, including positive constructive daydreaming, spontaneous mind wandering, involuntary mental time travel, and vivid and immersive fantasy. We discuss these findings in terms of the role autobiographical memory plays in spontaneous thoughts.

Measuring sport fantasy proneness and deflated reality in sport and performance: Development and validation of two context-specific instruments

Fantasy-prone personalities and generalized states of pessimism and hopelessness have been linked to various behavioural, cognitive, and health related outcomes in the general population. Nevertheless, to date, knowledge of sport-specific fantasy proneness and athletes’ perception of deflated reality in sport is scarce, possibly due to a lack of appropriate psychometric instruments to examine these two important context-specific constructs. In this research, we developed the Sport Fantasy Proneness Scale (SFPS) and the Deflated Reality in Sport Scale (DRSS), first assessing the content validity of items for the instruments following a rigorous process. Through two cross-sectional samples (Study 1: Sample 1 N = 255, Sample 2 N = 260) and one longitudinal sample (Study 2: Sample 3 N = 118) of competitive athletes in the UK, we then examined factorial, convergent, discriminant, and concurrent validity and measurement invariance (Study 1), as well as internal consistency, and test-retest reliability (Study 2) of the two new scales. Results revealed robust construct validity and reliability of scores on the two instruments and suggested very good invariance when implementing the new scales to athletes from different sports and competitive levels and good invariance for cross-gender comparisons. The new scales fill a gap in the sport psychology literature and provide researchers and practitioners with robust psychometric instruments to examine new research questions and tackle issues relevant to athletes’ sport-specific fantasy proneness and perceptions of deflated reality.

Up, Up, and Away: Individual Differences in Imaginative Involvement and Magical Beliefs Relate to Perceiving and Desiring Supernatural Powers

Human beings have relished the idea of possessing supernatural/superhuman powers for millennia. However, do some people desire such powers more than others based on specific individual differences and characteristics? We examined how individual differences in imaginative involvement (fantasy proneness, absorption) and magical beliefs (superstitiousness and religiousness) uniquely related to desire for 12 supernatural powers (final N = 143); participants also rated the supernaturalness of each power and how much they believed humans possess/will possess each power. These individual differences, as predicted, consistently correlated with the desire for supernatural powers and the belief that humans may possess these powers in the future. After controlling for sci-fi and fantasy narrative consumption, only absorption and superstitiousness (chance subscale) uniquely related to desire for supernatural powers; and only absorption uniquely predicted the belief that humans do/would possess these powers. Ultimately, there are important individual differences in desire and perception of supernatural powers.

How folk music induces destination image: A synthesis between sensory marketing and cognitive balance theory

Music is acknowledged as an excellent means of evoking favorable behaviors and brand image, and this research puts auditory sensory input at center stage. By drawing on sensory marketing and cognitive balance theories, it proposes a model leading from music perception to destination image through the mediation of historical nostalgia, mental imagery, and music-induced emotion. The boundary conditions of self–brand congruence and fantasy proneness are examined. Survey results point to the importance of musical sensory inputs in the mental imagery creation of a place, and it is conditioned based upon different levels of self–brand congruence and fantasy personality traits. Moreover, this research enriches the literature on music-related tourism appeal and destination image development. It also informs destination operators to better capitalize on music to provide an effective tool for enhancing destination image.

Personality traits and pattern of beliefs of near-death(-like) experiencers.

Little is known about the potential personality and psychological predictors of near-death experiences (NDEs), and fewer yet those of near-death-like experiences (NDEs-like; similar phenomenology reported after a non-life-threatening context). This study investigated whether personality traits (Openness, Extraversion, Pleasantness, Conscientiousness, and Neuroticism), dissociative experiences, Fantasy proneness, disposition toward auditory hallucinations, absorption trait, and endorsement of paranormal and spiritual beliefs could be associated with the recall of NDEs(-like). To this aim, we invited four groups of people to retrospectively fill in questionnaires assessing the following factors: NDE experiencers (n = 63), NDE(-like) experiencers (n = 31), controls with a life-threatening situation but no NDE(-like) (n = 43), and controls without a life-threatening situation or an NDE(-like) (n = 44). We carried out univariate analyses for each factor and then performed a multiple regression analysis and a discriminant analysis. The multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that the endorsement of spiritual beliefs was associated with the recall of NDEs-like while Openness and Fantasy proneness were associated with the recall of NDEs. The discriminant analysis showed that these variables produce 35% of correct classification. Albeit retrospective, these results pave the way for future research on psychological predictors of NDEs(-like) by highlighting the influence of Spirituality, Openness, and Fantasy proneness on these phenomena.

Playful sport design: A game changer?

The aim of this paper is twofold. First, the concept Playful Sport Design (PSD) is introduced, based on play and proactivity theories. PSD is defined as a proactive cognitive-behavioral orientation that makes athletes incorporate fun and self-oriented challenges into training sessions. Second, we develop and test an instrument to assess PSD. In phase 1 (N = 562), the PSD instrument is tested on its reliability, factorial validity, and construct validity. In phase 2 (N = 131), the test-retest reliability and predictive validity of the PSD instrument is considered. Additionally, the nomological network of PSD is expanded. In phase 3 (N = 212), the predictive validity of PSD is further assessed. As hypothesized, the results of factor analyses show that PSD is best represented by two dimensions: designing fun and designing competition. The psychometric properties of the scale were shown to be satisfactory. Providing evidence for convergent validity, PSD was positively related to playfulness, competitiveness, fantasy proneness, personal initiative, openness to experience, achievement striving, and fun seeking. Specifically, designing fun showed more robust relations with fun-focused personality traits, while designing competition showed stronger relations with competition-focused traits. Providing evidence for divergent validity, PSD did not share variance with negative affect, procrastination, and perfectionism. Finally, in support of predictive validity, athletes who playfully designed their training sessions reported better subjective and objective sports performance. Lay summary: We introduce the concept Playful Sport Design (PSD), which refers to athletes’ proactive addition of play elements to their sports training. We present a scale that reliably and validly measures PSD. Further, we show that PSD is positively associated with immersion in sports training and sports performance. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE Results of this paper could result in more awareness among adult athletes that play during sports training has beneficial sports outcomes. Athletes can use PSD to increase flow experiences during training sessions and enhance sports performance. The results of this paper open the door for practitioners to develop PSD interventions, through which athletes are taught how they can approach their training sessions in a more playful manner.

Sensed Presence, Attenuated Psychosis, and Transliminality: At the Threshold of Consciousness

Introduction: The experience of “sensed presence” or “felt presence” in the absence of “other” has been described as a complex multimodal experience to which meaning is given. Sensed presence (SenP) is a transdiagnostic experience that exists along a continuum that can appear during isolation, spirit quests, exposure to extreme elements, bereavement, anxiety, and psychosis. Given the prevalence and vast heterogeneity of SenP, in addition to a surprising lack of targeted research into this phenomenon, this research examined the interrelationship of SenP, attenuated psychosis symptoms (APS), and transliminality. Transliminality is composed of absorption, fantasy proneness, paranormal belief, mystical experiences, increased creativity, and hyperaesthesia. Methods: A completely anonymous online survey of unusual experiences and mental health was distributed via social media (i.e., Twitter, Facebook, Reddit, and mass emailing lists) to recruit participants. Demographic data were analyzed using χ² tests and one-way ANOVAs. A two-step cluster analysis was conducted to identify distinct sub-categories of transliminality followed by ANOVAs with bootstrapping at 1,000 iterations to compare SenP, increased APS, and transliminality. Pearson’s bivariate correlations were conducted to determine the association between SenP, APS, and transliminality. Results: Together with descriptive findings, we show distinct characteristics between clusters. T1 cluster consisted of individuals with few SenP experiences, low APS, and low transliminality. T2 consisted of individuals with a moderate prevalence of SenP, low APS, moderate transliminality, and increased overall feeling of closeness to G-d. There was no significant difference in APS between T1 and T2 or in the level of distress associated with APS. T3 individuals showed a significantly higher prevalence of SenP in all domains (frequency, distress, vividness, and total score), higher APS, and higher transliminality, compared to T1 and T2. The T3 cluster met criteria for high risk to develop psychosis. Conclusion: Thus, our findings demonstrate a strong association and entanglement of these experiences which suggests that the interrelatedness of transliminality/absorption and APS may serve as a potentially provocative underlying structure in the phenomenology of SenP.

Evaluating Theory-Based Correlates of Dissociation: A Nomological Network Study

Informed by the transtheoretical/transdiagnostic model (TTM) of dissociation, we tested the nomological network of dissociation by evaluating the unique relations among dissociation and its facets (i.e., depersonalization, amnesia, absorption, taxon) with variables pertinent to competing dissociation theories (e.g., posttraumatic stress disorder [PTSD] symptoms, resilience, fantasy proneness, cognitive failures, sleep) while controlling for neuroticism, affect, and social desirability. Self-report measures were administered online to undergraduate students ( N = 352). We found robust relations among dissociation and sociocognitive variables (i.e., fantasy proneness, cognitive failures, thought control) and correlations among dissociation and trauma-related variables (e.g., PTSD symptoms, resilience). Variables relevant to different dissociation theories uniquely related to distinct dimensions of dissociation. We observed significant indirect effects on dissociation for sleep, cognitive failures, and fantasy proneness. Results support the sociocognitive and posttraumatic models of dissociation, thereby highlighting nuances in dissociation's nomological network and confirming the value of the TTM as an integrative model.

Openness to Experience Mediates the Relation Between Fantasy Proneness and Creative Thinking

Fantasy proneness has recently been related to creative thinking. To try and explain this link, we examined whether the relation was mediated by Openness to Experience (openness) because fantasy proneness and openness involve an imaginative thinking style. Study 1 assessed fantasy proneness (Creative Experiences Questionnaire), openness, and creative (divergent) thinking in 87 undergraduates (77% women, mean age 21 years). Study 2 replicated the method with museum visitors of similar age (58% women, mean age 23 years). Our hypotheses received partial support: although fantasy proneness did not directly predict creativity in either study, bivariate correlations in both studies revealed that fantasy proneness positively predicted openness, and openness positively predicted creativity. In addition, openness mediated the relation between fantasy proneness and creativity, but only in Study 2. These findings reveal potentially useful relations between fantasy proneness, openness, and creativity, and show that findings from student populations are not necessarily generalizable.

Personal characteristics of World War Two survivor offspring related to the presence of indirect intrusions

ABSTRACT Background: A substantial proportion of clinical World War Two survivor offspring reports intrusions about war events they did not experience themselves. Objective: To help identify factors that contribute to the development of such indirect intrusions (i.e. intrusions about non-self-experienced traumatic events), we examined the personal characteristics of survivor offspring that were related to the presence of indirect intrusions. To explore the specificity of these relationships, we compared characteristics related to the presence of indirect and direct intrusions (i.e. intrusions about self-experienced traumatic events). Methods: Participants (N = 98) were post-war offspring of World War Two survivors in treatment in one of two clinics specialized in mental health services for war victims. We assessed the presence of indirect and direct intrusions as well as the following personal characteristics: gender, education level, trait dissociation, affect intensity, attentional control, mental imagery, fantasy proneness, and current psychopathology. Results: Reports of indirect intrusions were more frequent in individuals high in fantasy proneness, trait dissociation, and current psychopathology. Reports of direct intrusions were more frequent in women, individuals scoring high on trait dissociation, affect intensity, and current psychopathology. Fantasy proneness was a unique correlate of indirect intrusions. Conclusions: These findings are consistent with the idea that intrusions are the result of (re)constructive processes affected by several factors including personal characteristics. HIGHLIGHTS Offspring of World War Two survivors often experience indirect intrusions. We examined personal characteristics related to indirect and direct intrusions. Fantasy proneness was the best predictor of indirect intrusions. Gender was the best predictor of direct intrusions.

Characterizing vulnerable and grandiose narcissism, Machiavellianism and psychopathy in community-dwelling adult women: The role of cognitive styles, dispositional aggression and deviance, and personality traits

To evaluate how selected cognitive styles (i.e., ideas of reference and fantasy proneness), dispositional aggression and social deviance, and personality traits could help understanding similarities and differences among vulnerable narcissism (VN), grandiose narcissism (GN), Machiavellianism, and psychopathy in women, 986 Italian community-dwelling participants were administered the Italian translations of the Revised Green et al., Paranoid Thoughts Scale Part A (R-GPTS-A), Creative Experience Questionnaire (CEQ), Aggression Questionnaire (AQ), Self-Report Delinquency Scale (SRDS), and Big Five Inventory (BFI). Participants received also the Five Factor Narcissism Inventory-Short Form (FFNI-SF), MACH-IV, and Expanded-Levenson Self-Report Psychopathy Scale (E-LSRP) to assess VN and GN, Machiavellianism, and psychopathy, respectively. Multiple regression analyses showed that R-GPTS-A, CEQ, AQ, SRDS, and BFI trait scale scores explained a substantial amount of variance in the FFNI-SF VN (R2 = 0.62) and GN (R2 = 0.49) scale scores, MACH-IV scores (R2 = 0.29), and E-LSRP scores (R2 = 0.51). Dispositional aggression (i.e., AQ total score) represented a feature common to VN, GN, Machiavellianism, and psychopathy, whereas ideas of reference, fantasy proneness, social deviance, and personality traits yielded differential relationships with the dependent variables.

Exploring the development of high-level contributions to body representation using the rubber hand illusion and the monkey hand illusion

During development our body undergoes significant changes, yet we are able to maintain a coherent experience of our body and sense of self. Bodily experience is thought to comprise integration of multisensory signals (vision, touch, and proprioception) constrained by top-down knowledge of body appearance. Evidence from developmental studies suggests that low-level multisensory integration develops throughout childhood, reaching adult levels by 10 years of age. However, how high-level cognitive knowledge changes during childhood to constrain our multisensory body experience is unknown. This study describes four experiments examining high-level contributions to the bodily experience in children compared with adults using the rubber hand illusion and a monkey hand illusion. We found that children (5–17 years of age) exhibited more flexible body representations, showing stronger illusions for small and fantastical (monkey) fake hands compared with adults. Conversely, using a task indirectly capturing changes in hand size, we found that children and adults demonstrated statistically equivalent increases and decreases in hand size following illusions over large and small hands, respectively. Interestingly, at baseline children showed a bias in reporting larger hand size judgments that decreased with age. Finally, we did not find a relationship between individual differences in fantasy proneness and illusion strength for a fantastical (monkey) hand for children or adults, suggesting that developmental changes of top-down constraints are not purely driven by more diffuse boundaries between imagination and reality. These data suggest that high-level constraints acting on our multisensory body experience change during development, allowing children a more flexible bodily experience compared with adults.

God Locus of Health Control, Paranormal Beliefs, and Hypnotizability

ABSTRACT Belief in the paranormal (e.g., spirits, extrasensory perception, fortune telling, extraterrestrials) is common. Extraordinary and magical beliefs have been linked with hypnotizability. A total of 167 undergraduates completed measures of paranormal and magical beliefs, locus of control, absorption, fantasy proneness, expectancy about being hypnotized, and the God Locus of Health Control scale (GLHC) and were hypnotized with the HGSHS:A. High and medium hypnotizable participants more strongly agreed with statements reflecting paranormal and magical beliefs and the assertion that God directly controls their health, relative to those less responsive to hypnosis. Using stepwise regression, we found that expectations about hypnosis along with scores on the GLHC scale accounted for 26% and 30% of the variance in behavioral and subjective scores on the HGSHS:A, respectively. The authors discuss paranormal beliefs and the link between the GLHC and hypnotizability.

Empirical research on fantasy proneness and its correlates 2000–2018: A meta-analysis.

Empirical research on fantasy proneness and its correlates 2000–2018: A meta-analysis.