Dreaming: a psychological view
Schweizer Archiv Fur Neurologie Und Psychiatrie December 7, 2005 DOI: 10.4414/sanp.2005.01656 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Review Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Dreaming Lucid dreaming |
| Keywords | Content measure theory Psychoanalysis Interpretation philosophy Psychotherapist |
| Citations | 26 |
| Key findings | The article argues that the continuity hypothesis remains imprecise and proposes a mathematical model incorporating factors such as exponential decrease with time, emotional involvement, type of waking-life experience, personality traits, and time of night. It notes that research on dreams' effects on waking life is scarce, though nightmares affect daytime mood and imagery rehearsal therapy is a promising treatment. |
Abstract
Dreaming has fascinated mankind since the dawn of history. This article focuses on the psychologically oriented research which has three major areas of interest: (1) a description of dreams (What do dreams look like?), (2) factors influencing dream content and (3) the effects of dreams on subsequent waking life. The following definition attempts to cover the consensus of the researchers in the field: dream or dream report is the recollection of mental activity which has occurred during A more detailed differentiation between different types of dreams is based on the underlying physiology, e.g. REM dreams, NREM dreams and sleep-onset dreams or content characteristics such as nightmares and lucid dreaming. Next, methodological issues that form the basis of modern dream research like the process of dream recall, methods of collecting dream reports and dream-content analysis, are discussed. Especially for the basic method of psychological dream research, dream-content analysis, reliability and validity issues are addressed in order to allow a proper interpretation of findings in this area. Whereas there are large numbers of studies on the so-called continuity hypothesis (which postulates that dreams are reflecting waking-life experiences), the hypothesis itself remains very imprecise. In order to stimulate future research, a mathematical model describing factors which affect the incorporation rate of waking-life experiences into dreams is presented. These are exponential decrease with time, emotional involvement, type of waking-life experience, interaction between personality traits and incorporation of waking-life events and time of the night (time interval between sleep onset and dream onset). Some of these factors are already supported by studies investigating the effect of pre-sleep experiences, real stress and trauma on dreams. The research investigating the effects of dreams on subsequent waking life is rather scarce. Most often, participants report that dreams affect their daytime mood, especially negatively toned dreams such as nightmares. Therefore, the imagery rehearsal therapy, an easily applicable tool for treating nightmares, is also briefly outlined. Anecdotal evidence and several surveys indicate that dreams stimulate daytime creativity in artists, scientists and normal samples. Future research will focus on specific models describing the continuity between waking and dreaming, the correspondence between physiological parameters during sleep and dream content and the effect of dreams on waking life. The aim of this kind of paradigm is to approach the question whether dreaming serves a function or works independently from the functions of sleep, especially those formulated for REM sleep.
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 13
- An Ambulatory Polysomnography Study of the Post-traumatic Nightmares of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Sleep November 21, 2017
- Spotlight on dream recall: the ages of dreams Nature and Science of Sleep 2018
- Themes of Continuity International Journal of Dream Research 2011
- Sensational Dreams: The Prevalence of Sensory Experiences in Dreaming Brain Sciences May 24, 2024
- Dreaming in Parasomnias: REM Sleep Behavior Disorder as a Model. Journal of Clinical Medicine October 28, 2022
and 8 more in the library
Cites 13
- Questionnaires and diaries as research instruments in dream research: Methodological issues. Dreaming March 1, 2002
- Factors of home dream recall: a structural equation model Journal of Sleep Research May 12, 2003
- Dream Recall: State or Trait Variable? Part I: Model, Theories, Methodology and Trait Factors Imagination, Cognition and Personality October 1, 1996
- Dream content and personality: Thick vs. Thin boundaries. Dreaming December 1, 1999
- Dream Reports and Autobiographical Memory Imagination, Cognition and Personality March 1, 1990
and 8 more in the library