Daydreams incorporate recent waking life concerns but do not show delayed ('dream-lag') incorporations.
Elaine Van Rijn, Alexander M Reid, Christopher L Edwards, Josie E Malinowski, Perrine Ruby, Jean-Baptiste Eichenlaub, Mark Blagrove
Consciousness and Cognition February 1, 2018 DOI: 10.1016/j.concog.2017.10.011 (opens in new tab) via PubMed
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractDaydreams more often incorporate major concerns from the previous two days than from earlier days, supporting a role for daydreams in processing current personal issues. However, personally significant events do not show this day-residue effect in daydreams, and there is no delayed incorporation from 5 to 7 days earlier, unlike what has been found for REM dreams. The study also failed to replicate the previously observed dream-lag effect for REM dreams, possibly due to methodological differences.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Observational cohort Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 31 |
| Population | Participants keeping a diary for 10 days |
| Duration | 10-day diary period followed by sleep laboratory sessions |
| Topics | Dreaming |
| Keywords | Day-residue Daydreaming Dream-lag Functions of dreaming Functions of sleep |
| Key finding | Daydreams show a day-residue effect for major concerns but not for major daily activities or personally significant events, and no dream-lag effect. |
Abstract
This study investigates the time course of incorporation of waking life experiences into daydreams. Thirty-one participants kept a diary for 10 days, reporting major daily activities (MDAs), personally significant events (PSEs) and major concerns (MCs). They were then cued for daydream, Rapid Eye Movement (REM) and N2 dream reports in the sleep laboratory. There was a higher incorporation into daydreams of MCs from the previous two days (day-residue effect), but no day-residue effect for MDAs or PSEs, supporting a function for daydreams of processing current concerns. A day-residue effect for PSEs and the delayed incorporation of PSEs from 5 to 7 days before the dream (the dream-lag effect) have previously been found for REM dreams. Delayed incorporation was not found in this study for daydreams. Daydreams might thus differ in function from REM sleep dreams. However, the REM dream-lag effect was not replicated here, possibly due to design differences from previous studies.