A test of two theories of dream forgetting
Seth Robert Segall
Journal of Clinical Psychology July 1, 1980 DOI: 10.1002/1097-4679(198007)36:3<739::aid-jclp2270360323>3.0.co;2-8 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 72 |
| Population | Female undergraduates |
| Intervention | Assertion training |
| Duration | Two 20-day periods |
| Citations | 5 |
| Key findings | Participants who underwent assertion training during the second dream-diary period experienced decreased dream recall and dream pleasantness compared with controls. Changes in dream recall and pleasantness were uncorrelated, and the measure of repression proneness did not significantly account for variance in either. The authors interpret these results as more supportive of interference theory than of Freud's repression theory. |
Abstract
Seventy-two female undergraduates kept home-recall dream diaries for two 20-day periods in a test of predictions generated from Freud's (1900/1965) repression theory and Cohen's (1974) interference theory. One-half of all the Ss participated in an assertion training program during the time they kept the second dream diary. All Ss were assessed for proneness to use repression as a defense against aggressive wishes. It was found that Ss who were undergoing assertion training experienced a decrease in dream recall and dream pleasantness when compared with control Ss. Changes in dream recall and pleasantness were uncorrelated, and the measure of repression did not account significantly for dream recall or pleasantness variance. These findings are interpreted as being more supportive of interference theory than repression theory.
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
- Analyzing Modifications across Dream Reports Perceptual and Motor Skills August 1, 1982
- Is dream recall underestimated by retrospective measures and enhanced by keeping a logbook? A review. Consciousness and Cognition May 1, 2015