Smooth tracking of visual targets distinguishes lucid REM sleep dreaming and waking perception from imagination.
Stephen LaBerge, Benjamin Baird, Philip G. Zimbardo
Nature Communications August 17, 2018 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-05547-0 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Dreaming Lucid dreaming |
| Key findings | Smooth pursuit eye movements during lucid REM sleep dreaming are highly similar to those during waking perception, unlike the saccadic tracking of imagination. |
Abstract
Humans are typically unable to engage in sustained smooth pursuit for imagined objects. However, it is unknown to what extent smooth tracking occurs for visual imagery during REM sleep dreaming. Here we examine smooth pursuit eye movements during tracking of a slow-moving visual target during lucid dreams in REM sleep. Highly similar smooth pursuit tracking was observed during both waking perception and lucid REM sleep dreaming, in contrast to the characteristically saccadic tracking observed during visuomotor imagination. Our findings suggest that, in this respect, the visual imagery that occurs during REM sleep is more similar to perception than imagination. The data also show that the neural circuitry of smooth pursuit can be driven by a visual percept in the absence of retinal stimulation and that specific voluntary shifts in the direction of experienced gaze within REM sleep dreams are accompanied by corresponding rotations of the physical eyes.
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on dreaming, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lucid Dreaming: a State of Consciousness with Features of Both Waking and Non-Lucid Dreaming Student volunteers trained to become lucid and signal lucidity with horizontal eye... | 2009 | Observational study | n = 6 |
| Nightmare Prevalence, Nightmare Distress, and Self-Reported Psychological Disturbance Young adults with a mean age of 20 years | 2002 | Prospective observational study | n = 116 |
| Long-term effects of extreme situational stress on sleep and dreaming Survivors of traumatic events who complained of sleep disturbances, compared with... | 1987 | Case-control study | n = 11 |
| The relationship of nightmare frequency and nightmare distress to well‐being Adults who reported dreams | 2004 | Observational cohort | n = 147 |
| Dreaming in NREM Sleep: A High-Density EEG Study of Slow Waves and Spindles Healthy human subjects | 2018 | Observational cohort | n = 14 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 39
- The cognitive neuroscience of lucid dreaming Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews March 14, 2019
- Real-time dialogue between experimenters and dreamers during REM sleep. Current Biology April 12, 2021
- Frequent lucid dreaming associated with increased functional connectivity between frontopolar cortex and temporoparietal association areas Scientific Reports December 6, 2018
- What is sleep exactly? Global and local modulations of sleep oscillations all around the clock. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews December 1, 2023
- Lucid dreaming occurs in activated rapid eye movement sleep, not a mixture of sleep and wakefulness. Sleep April 11, 2022
and 34 more in the library
Cites 7
- Neural Correlates of Dream Lucidity Obtained from Contrasting Lucid versus Non-Lucid REM Sleep: A Combined EEG/fMRI Case Study Sleep June 29, 2012
- Lucid Dreaming Verified by Volitional Communication during Rem Sleep Perceptual and Motor Skills June 1, 1981
- REM sleep respiratory behaviours mental content in narcoleptic lucid dreamers. Scientific Reports February 8, 2018
- The neural correlates of dreaming. Nature Neuroscience April 10, 2017
- Do the eyes scan dream images during rapid eye movement sleep? Evidence from the rapid eye movement sleep behaviour disorder model. Brain June 1, 2010
and 2 more in the library