A systems approach to self‐organization in the dreaming brain
Kybernetes December 1, 2002 DOI: 10.1108/03684920210443653 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Dreaming |
| Citations | 7 |
| Key points | Proposes that dreaming emerges from the brain's self-organizing dynamics, where subtle internal signals are amplified via stochastic resonance and chaotic sensitivity, alongside specific REM and slow wave sleep neurophysiology, to generate dream content. |
Abstract
This systems model of dreaming consciousness examines the self‐organizing properties of the sleeping brain, offering a step towards reconciling brain‐based and content‐based attempts to understand the nature of dreaming. The brain can be understood as a complex self‐organizing system that, in dreaming, responds to subtle influences such as residual feelings and memories. The hyper‐responsiveness of the brain during dreaming is viewed in terms of the tendency of complex chaotic‐like systems to respond to small variations in initial conditions and to the amplification of subtle emotional and cognitive signals through the mechanism of stochastic resonance, all in combination with psychophysiological changes in the brain during both slow wave and rapid eye movement (REM) dreaming. These changes include the active inhibition of extroceptive stimulation and, especially in REM sleep, alterations in the brain's dominant neuromodulatory systems, bombardment of the visual cortex with bursts of PGO activity, increases in limbic system activity, and a reduction of activity in the prefrontal regions.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on dreaming, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dreaming: a conceptual framework for philosophy of mind and empirical research | 2016 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Metaphor and hyperassociativity: the imagination mechanisms behind emotion assimilation in sleep and dreaming | 2015 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Varieties of Lucid Dreaming Experience | 2000 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Experimental Research on Dreaming: State of the Art and Neuropsychoanalytic Perspectives | 2011 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| The Neurobiology of Consciousness: Lucid Dreaming Wakes Up | 2009 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
Citations in the library
Cited by 3
- Preliminary description of a self-similarity phenomenon in the connection patterns of dreams. Dreaming June 1, 2010
- Creativity and Chaos in Waking and Dreaming States June 1, 2012
- If waking and dreaming consciousness became de-differentiated, would schizophrenia result? Consciousness and Cognition April 16, 2011