Flying dreams stimulated by an immersive virtual reality task.
Claudia Picard-Deland, Maude Pastor, Elizaveta Solomonova, Tyna Paquette, Tore Nielsen
Consciousness and Cognition August 1, 2020 DOI: 10.1016/j.concog.2020.102958 (opens in new tab) via PubMed
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractFlying dreams, though common, rarely occur. In a study with 137 participants, a virtual reality flying task followed by a morning nap increased reports of flying dreams during the nap and the following morning, compared to baseline rates and a control group. These dreams also showed greater lucid control and emotional intensity. Prior dream-flying experience and the level of VR sensory immersion influenced induction. The results support a vection-based explanation of dream-flying and could aid in developing dream flight-induction technologies.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Experimental study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 137 |
| Population | Participants who underwent VR-flying and a morning nap |
| Intervention | custom-built virtual reality (VR) flying task |
| Duration | 5 days before and 10 days after VR exposure for home dream journals; laboratory nap immediately after VR |
| Topics | Dreaming Lucid dreaming |
| Keywords | Flight simulation Gravity imagery Immersion Sense of presence |
| Citations | 25 |
| Key finding | VR-flying increased the reporting of flying dreams and changed their quality, with higher lucid-control and emotional intensity, modulated by prior dream-flying experience and VR immersion. |
Abstract
Despite a high prevalence and broad interest in flying dreams, these exceptional experiences remain infrequent. Our study aimed to (1) induce flying dreams using a custom-built virtual reality (VR) flying task, (2) examine their phenomenological correlates and (3) investigate their relations to participant state and trait factors. 137 participants underwent VR-flying followed by a morning nap. They also completed home dream journals for 5 days before and 10 days after the VR exposure. VR-flying successfully increased the reporting of flying dreams during the laboratory nap and on the following morning compared to both baseline frequencies and a control cohort. Flying dreams were also changed qualitatively, exhibiting higher levels of Lucid-control and emotional intensity, after VR exposure. Factors such as prior dream-flying experiences and level of VR sensory immersion modulated flying dream induction. Findings are consistent with a new vection-based explanation of dream-flying and may facilitate development of dream flight-induction technologies.