Imaginary Things Research

On Imaginary Things- Research

 

                Why do people make things up? I’m not talking about lying. I’m talking about things that are imaginary. As a self-proclaimed amateur novelist (heavy on the amateur), I spend a lot of my time making stuff up. So this begs the question, why do people make things up? Is there a specific psychological reason or is it just something we humans do?

                Imaginary friends and imaginary companions are a psychological and social phenomenon where a friendship or other interpersonal relationship takes place in the imagination rather than external physical reality (Wikipedia, this may not be the best source but it’s a start). An article in Scientific American, titled Imaginary Friends: Television programs can fend off loneliness, makes an interesting point about “imaginary friends” in adulthood. When people are lonely or feel unwanted in their everyday lives they seek out other relationships that do not necessarily have to be real. That is why people often feel so connected to television characters. As it turns out imaginary friends are a way to fill some unfilled psychological need. So just as children make up imaginary friends to provide companionship, adults become emotionally attached to imaginary things like television programs. That’s just one reason that people make things up.