The Multifunctionality of Dreaming and the Oblivious Avatar

Sleep and dreaming serve multiple biological functions, including memory consolidation and integration, emotion regulation, creativity and problem solving, and preparation for waking life. Dreaming can be understood as a virtual reality in which the dreamer interacts with a simulated environment and simulated avatars. Among these functions, threat simulation and social simulation uniquely explain a striking feature of dream phenomenology: the dreamer's obliviousness to their true state of mind.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Sleep and dreaming do not serve a single biological function, but are multifunctional. Their functions include memory consolidation and integration, emotion regulation, creativity and problem solving, and preparation for waking life. One promising level of description is that of dreaming as a virtual reality: The dreamer interacts with a simulated environment including other simulated avatars. While dreaming can be considered a multifunctional general reality simulator, the threat simulation and social simulation functions of dreaming are unique among other dream functions in their ability to explain a striking feature of dream phenomenology: obliviousness towards the true state of mind. EM