A historical loop of one hundred years: Similarities between 19th century and contemporary dream research.

Contemporary cognitive and neuropsychological dream research shares key methodological and conceptual similarities with 19th-century scientific dream literature, particularly the use of introspective dream reports and emphasis on dream phenomenology—practices that were suppressed in the early 20th century by behaviorism and psychoanalysis. Three common axioms unite both periods: dream experience results from cognitive syntheses without external constraints; dream narrative involves mental associative mechanisms; and dream bizarreness arises from a cerebral state of functional dissociation. These axioms suggest that distinct cognitive processes can function autonomously and dissociated, making dreaming a unique model for studying such processes.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Contemporary cognitive and neuropsychological approaches to dreaming show striking methodological and conceptual similarities with the scientific dream literature of the last century. The use of introspective dream reports and the emphasis on dream phenomenology are characteristic of both periods but were bannished during the first half of this century, the former by behaviorism, the latter by psychoanalysis. Three main common axioms of 19th century and contemporary dream research are described: (a) dream experience results from cognitive syntheses realized in the absence of external constraints; (b) dream narrative or dream coherency involves mental associative mechanisms; (c) dream bizarreness emerges from a cerebral state characterized by functional dissociation. According to these three axioms, the observation of dream phenomena reveals that distinct cognitive processes might function in a partly autonomous, automatic, and dissociated way, making dreaming a unique model of these cognitive processes.