Hemispheric Differentiation and Dream Recall: Subjective Estimates of Sleep and Dreams in Different Handedness Groups
Cristiano Violani, Luigi De Gennaro, Luigi Solano
International Journal of Neuroscience 1988 DOI: 10.3109/00207458808985687 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 78 |
| Population | College students (38 right-handers, 25 left-handers, 15 mixed-handers) |
| Duration | Seven-day sleep and dream diary |
| Topics | Dreaming |
| Citations | 10 |
| Key findings | Females recalled significantly more dreams than males, and right-handers recalled significantly more dreams than mixed-handers and left-handers. The authors tentatively attribute the handedness difference to right-handers' more direct access to dream material structured in the left hemisphere, where their language centers are located. Greater sleep-duration variability in mixed-handers reported in an earlier study was not confirmed. |
Abstract
Previous investigations pointed to a relationship between hemispheric asymmetry and dream recall. Since handedness may reflect the extent to which cerebral organization is lateralized, it was hypothesized that differences in dream recall might exist between different handedness groups. A selected sample of 78 college students (38 right-handers, 25 left-handers, 15 mixed-handers) completed a seven-day sleep and dream diary upon final awakening, at home. Results showed that significantly more dreams are recalled by females compared to males and by right-handers compared to mixed-handers and left-handers. The latter finding is tentatively interpreted as due to a more direct access to aspects of oneiric material structured in the left hemisphere by right-handers, whose language centers are located in the same hemisphere. Unexplained findings of the only other investigation concerning handedness and sleep variables (Hicks, Pellegrini & Hawkins, 1979), which showed greater variability of sleep duration in mixed-handers, were not confirmed by the present study.
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 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 3
- Dream Recall: State or Trait Variable? Part I: Model, Theories, Methodology and Trait Factors Imagination, Cognition and Personality October 1, 1996
- Patterns of Hemispheric Lateralization in Dream Recallers and Non-Dream Recallers International Journal of Neuroscience 1993
- Reduced dream-recall frequency in left-handed adolescents: a replication. Laterality 2014
Cites 4
- Cognitive Asymmetry and Dreaming: Lack of Relationship The American Journal of Psychology 1985
- The laterality of dreaming. Brain and Cognition July 1, 1986
- Dream recall after sleep interruption in brain-injured patients. Sleep December 1985
- Individual differences in dream recall. Journal of Abnormal Psychology February 1, 1966