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Dreaming in agenesis of the corpus callosum: laboratory and home assessment of four cases

Tore Nielsen, Jacques Montplaisir, Maryse Lassonde

Journal of Sleep Research June 1, 1993 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2869.1993.tb00066.x (opens in new tab)

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Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Case-control study Peer reviewed
Sample size 8
Population Four subjects with agenesis of the corpus callosum and four control subjects matched for age, gender, and handedness
Topics Dreaming
Citations 5
Key findings Acallosal subjects recalled fewer dreams in the laboratory than controls but the same number at home, and reported more contentless dreams in both situations. Their dreams were described in fewer words, with few differences in content categories and emotional content except more reported distress. The authors propose that the corpus callosum may be implicated in dream production and dream recall.

Abstract

Laboratory and home dream recall was studied in four subjects with agenesis of the corpus callosum and in four control subjects who were matched for age, gender, and handedness. In addition, the structural and emotional content of home dreams was compared for these two groups. Results indicate that acallosal subjects recalled fewer dreams in the laboratory than did control subjects, but recalled the same number of dreams at home. They also reported more contentless dreams in both situations. Furthermore, although acallosal subjects used fewer words to describe their dream content in both contexts, the number of content categories they reported differed little from the number reported by control subjects. However, some trends were found for acallosal's home dreams to differ from those of controls, i.e. more dreams with known characters and fewer dreams with unknown characters, animals, and colours. Differences in emotional contents were few; acallosals reported more distress than controls. The shorter length of acallosals' dreams might be explained, in part, by their lower verbal IQs. Other characteristics of dream content (e.g. more distress, fewer dreams with unknown and animal characters) may reflect limited social experiences in this group. However, the greater frequency of contentless dreams and the lower frequency of dreams with colour are trends consistent with the possibility that the corpus callosum may be implicated in processes of dream production and dream recall.

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
The prevalence of nightmares and their independence from anxiety. Undergraduates 1990 Observational study using daily dream logs n = 220

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