Recording of bizarre elements in dreams
Henriette Haas, Hayim Guitar-Amsterdamer, Inge Strauch
Zurich Open Repository and Archive (University of Zurich) 1989 DOI: 10.5167/uzh-96917 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 6 |
| Population | 6 subjects providing 39 REM-dream reports and 12 presleep waking fantasies across 12 experimental nights |
| Duration | 12 experimental nights |
| Measures | 15-category nominal bizarreness scale, global bizarreness rating (0-5), Cohen's kappa |
| Key findings | The 15-category bizarreness scale showed pairwise interrater reliability of 61-100% per category, with Cohen's kappa of 0.06-0.56 after correction for low frequencies. Category frequencies correlated 0.82-0.86 with a global 0-5 bizarreness rating, indicating the scale captures bizarreness in a way consistent with global judgment. |
Abstract
A nominal scale with 15 descriptive categories ordered in three general classes was designed. Being more complete than previous scales it captures systematically formal and content aspects of bizarreness. The data consisted of 39 REM-dream reports and 12 presleep waking fantasies (triggered by a stimulus scene) collected from 6 subjects in 12 experimental nights. The reports were rated by 4 independent judges according to the scale and for comparison according to a global (0-5) rating in bizarreness. Interrater-reliability pairwise for each category was: 61-100%. Corrected bias for low frequencies: Cohen's kappa was 0.06-0.56. Category frequencies correlated 0.82-0.86 validly with the global judgement (0-5).