New perspectives for the study of lucid dreaming: From brain stimulation to philosophical theories of self-consciousness
Valdas Noreika, Jennifer Windt, Bigna Lenggenhager, Ahmed A. Karim
heiDOK (Heidelberg University) 2010 DOI: 10.11588/ijodr.2010.1.586 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Lucid dreaming Meditation Dreaming Philosophy of mind |
| Keywords | Consciousness Embodied cognition Cognitive science Transcranial direct-current stimulation Brain stimulation Cognitive psychology Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex Electroencephalography Artificial intelligence |
| Citations | 54 |
| Key points | Proposes that causal stimulation methods and the study of ordinary dreams should complement correlative brain imaging to advance understanding of lucid dreaming's neural mechanisms. |
Abstract
The neural mechanisms underlying lucid dreaming have recently been investigated using brain imaging techniques such as electroencephalography and functional magnetic resonance imaging, which produce insightful but merely correlative results. We propose that research on the neurophysiology of lucid dreaming, for instance concerning the exact relationship between the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and metacognitive insight into the fact that one is dreaming, should be complemented by methods allowing direct causal interference with neural functioning during sleep. To achieve this aim, several stimulation methods are proposed, i.e. transcranial magnetic stimulation, transcranial direct current stimulation, and galvanic vestibular stimulation. Given the broad range of cognitive and metacognitive processing in dreams, which support a continuous view of lucid and nonlucid dreaming, we further propose that certain aspects of dream lucidity and its neural mechanisms can be investigated in so-called ordinary, nonlucid dreams. This would allow for phenomenologically more comprehensive and practically more efficient experiments in this field of dream research. Such experiments would also provide a solid ground for understanding self-consciousness in lucid and non-lucid dreams, as well as for integrating dream research into more general neurophilosophical theories of consciousness and the self.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on lucid dreaming, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Varieties of Lucid Dreaming Experience | 2000 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| The Neurobiology of Consciousness: Lucid Dreaming Wakes Up | 2009 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| What I make up when I wake up: anti-experience views and narrative fabrication of dreams | 2013 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Lucid dreaming: Evidence and methodology | 2000 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Neurobiology and clinical implications of lucid dreaming | 2013 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
Citations in the library
Cited by 30
- The cognitive neuroscience of lucid dreaming Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews March 14, 2019
- The myth of cognitive agency: subpersonal thinking as a cyclically recurring loss of mental autonomy. Frontiers in Psychology 2013
- Lucid dreaming incidence: A quality effects meta-analysis of 50 years of research Consciousness and Cognition June 20, 2016
- Metacognitive Mechanisms Underlying Lucid Dreaming Journal of Neuroscience January 21, 2015
- Testing the involvement of the prefrontal cortex in lucid dreaming: A tDCS study Consciousness and Cognition September 8, 2013
and 25 more in the library
Cites 11
- Breakdown of Cortical Effective Connectivity During Sleep Science September 29, 2005
- Out‐of‐body experience and autoscopy of neurological origin Brain January 15, 2004
- Lucid Dreaming: a State of Consciousness with Features of Both Waking and Non-Lucid Dreaming Sleep September 1, 2009
- Neural correlates of consciousness Scholarpedia 2007
- Do REM (lucid) dreamed and executed actions share the same neural substrate? heiDOK (Heidelberg University) 2008
and 6 more in the library