Religious identity and imagination in early childhood

The purpose of this study was to explore the imagination scores of young children whose families self-affiliate with one of three Christian religious identities: Evangelical, Protestant, and Catholic. This study used secondary data and included 92 families with children between the ages of three- and 10-years-old. Correlation, MANOVA, and two linear regression analyses were used, yielding statistically significant results for multiple tests. Findings suggest significantly positive relationships between multiple variables in this study, as well as a predictive relationship between parental encouragement of imagination with children’s scores on the Child Imagination Questionnaire (CIQ) (Gilpin, et al., manuscript in preparation). The results of this study have implications for families and religious educators who seek to nurture young children’s spirituality through imaginative thought and play.