Nightmare Proneness and Neuroticism: Related but Empirically Distinguishable Predictors of Nightmares
Individual Differences Research May 22, 2026 DOI: 10.65030/idr.24005 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational cohort Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 774 |
| Population | University students |
| Topics | Dreaming |
| Key findings | Nightmare proneness and neuroticism are distinguishable but correlated factors. Nightmare proneness was more strongly associated with nightmares and predicted incremental variance beyond neuroticism. |
Abstract
Nightmare proneness and neuroticism are strongly related constructs which differentially predict variance in nightmares, yet their empirical distinctiveness remains unclear. The current study examined relationships among nightmare proneness, neuroticism, and nightmares in 774 university students. Principal axis exploratory factor analysis indicated that nightmare proneness and neuroticism items formed distinguishable but correlated factors. Neuroticism items loaded strongly on one factor, whereas nightmare proneness items loaded on a separate factor. The heterotrait-monotrait ratio supported adequate construct differentiation despite a substantial zero-order correlation. Nightmare proneness and neuroticism were both associated with nightmares, although consistent with previous research, nightmare proneness demonstrated stronger relationships and predicted incremental variance in nightmares beyond neuroticism. Overall, the results suggest that nightmare proneness is intertwined with neuroticism yet includes separable elements potentially relevant to nightmare production mechanisms.
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on dreaming, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lucid Dreaming: a State of Consciousness with Features of Both Waking and Non-Lucid Dreaming Student volunteers trained to become lucid and signal lucidity with horizontal eye... | 2009 | Observational study | n = 6 |
| Nightmare Prevalence, Nightmare Distress, and Self-Reported Psychological Disturbance Young adults with a mean age of 20 years | 2002 | Prospective observational study | n = 116 |
| Long-term effects of extreme situational stress on sleep and dreaming Survivors of traumatic events who complained of sleep disturbances, compared with... | 1987 | Case-control study | n = 11 |
| The relationship of nightmare frequency and nightmare distress to well‐being Adults who reported dreams | 2004 | Observational cohort | n = 147 |
| Dreaming in NREM Sleep: A High-Density EEG Study of Slow Waves and Spindles Healthy human subjects | 2018 | Observational cohort | n = 14 |