New strategies for the cognitive science of dreaming.
Remington Mallett, Karen R Konkoly, Tore Nielsen, Michelle Carr, Ken A Paller
Trends in Cognitive Sciences December 1, 2024 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2024.10.004 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Review Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Dreaming |
| Keywords | Dreams Memory Natural language processing Sleep |
| Key findings | Recent interdisciplinary advances in neural decoding, targeted stimulation, and computational analysis enable systematic observation, engineering, and analysis of dreams, overcoming historical methodological barriers. |
Abstract
Dreams have long captivated human curiosity, but empirical research in this area has faced significant methodological challenges. Recent interdisciplinary advances have now opened up new opportunities for studying dreams. This review synthesizes these advances into three methodological frameworks and describes how they overcome historical barriers in dream research. First, with observable dreaming, neural decoding and real-time reporting offer more direct measures of dream content. Second, with dream engineering, targeted stimulation and lucidity provide routes to experimentally manipulate dream content. Third, with computational dream analysis, the generation and exploration of large dream-report databases offer powerful avenues to identify patterns in dream content. By enabling researchers to systematically observe, engineer, and analyze dreams, these innovations herald a new era in dream science.
Comparable studies
Other narrative reviews on dreaming, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The cognitive neuroscience of lucid dreaming | 2019 | Review | |
| Sleep and dreaming are for important matters | 2013 | Review | |
| Nightmare Disorder and Isolated Sleep Paralysis | 2020 | Review | |
| My Dream, My Rules: Can Lucid Dreaming Treat Nightmares? | 2019 | Review | |
| Dream Recall: State or Trait Variable? Part I: Model, Theories, Methodology and Trait Factors | 1996 | Review |
Citations in the library
Cited by 7
- Using Real-time Reporting to Investigate Visual Experiences in Dreams Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience September 30, 2025
- Targeted dream incubation at sleep onset can influence later dream content in REM sleep: a pilot study Frontiers in Sleep June 24, 2026
- Individual traits and experiences predict the content of dreams Communications Psychology April 28, 2026
- Dreaming during anaesthesia: a scoping review. British Journal of Anaesthesia August 1, 2026
- Creative problem-solving after experimentally provoking dreams of unsolved puzzles during REM sleep. Neuroscience of Consciousness 2026
and 2 more in the library
Cites 66
- Dreaming as mind wandering: evidence from functional neuroimaging and first-person content reports. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 2013
- The cognitive neuroscience of lucid dreaming Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews March 14, 2019
- Assessing sleep consciousness within subjects using a serial awakening paradigm Frontiers in Psychology 2013
- Graph analysis of dream reports is especially informative about psychosis Scientific Reports January 15, 2014
- Real-time dialogue between experimenters and dreamers during REM sleep. Current Biology April 12, 2021
and 61 more in the library