Dreams Shared on Social Networks during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Tower of Babel or Noah’s Ark?—A Group-Analytic Perspective
Shulamit Geller, Gal van den Brink, Yehoshua Akerman, Sigal Levy, Tuli Shazar, Gil Goldzweig
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health February 17, 2023 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph20043534 (opens in new tab) via OpenAlex
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractDuring the first COVID-19 lockdown, dreams shared on social network sites (SNS) reflected collective trauma and coping. A qualitative analysis of 30 dreams identified three themes: threats (enemy, danger, COVID-19), emotional fusion (confusion and despair alongside recovery and hope), and group processes oscillating between being alone and being together. Dreamtelling on SNS helped individuals process social reality and build hope through creative social relationships, demonstrating transformative potential for coping during collective disasters.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Qualitative study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 30 |
| Population | Dreams shared on social network sites during the first COVID-19 lockdown |
| Keywords | Transformative learning Dream Coping psychology Social psychology Tower of babel |
| Citations | 2 |
| Key finding | Dreams shared on SNS during the first COVID-19 lockdown revealed three themes: dominant threats, emotional fusion of despair and hope, and group processes of isolation and connection, supporting dreamtelling's role in coping and building hope. |
Abstract
Dream sharing is a universal practice, and various incentives have been identified, including emotional processing, emotional relief, and demands for containment. Shared dreams can contribute to an individual's understanding of social reality during traumatic and stressful events. The present study examined dreams shared on social network sites (SNS) during the first COVID-19 lockdown, applying a group-analytic approach. A qualitative dream content analysis conducted by a group of researchers analyzed 30 dreams shared on SNS, focusing on their contents, dominant emotions, and unique group processes. The dream content analysis yielded three meaningful and coherent themes: (1) dominant threats: enemy, danger, and COVID-19; (2) emotional fusion: confusion and despair alongside recovery and hope; and (3) group processes characterized by movement between being alone and being together. The results deepen our understanding of both unique social and psychological group processes and of people's main experiences and key psychological coping mechanisms in times of collective trauma and natural disasters. They also demonstrate the transformative potential of dreamtelling for individuals' coping experiences and building hope through the creative social relationships formed within SNS groups.