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You are what you dream: The dark tetrad and dream content.

Tom A. Jenkins, Margaret Martin

Dreaming August 3, 2023 DOI: 10.1037/drm0000252 (opens in new tab)

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Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Observational study Peer reviewed
Sample size 137
Population Adults who completed questionnaires on dark tetrad traits and dream content
Topics Dreaming
Key findings All dark tetrad traits were positively correlated with fighting, sexual, and grandiosity dream themes. Psychopathy and gender predicted fighting dreams, while sadism uniquely predicted sexual and grandiosity dreams, suggesting waking-life dark tetrad traits are reflected in dream content.

Abstract

Previous research has found behaviors associated with personality traits can be found in the dreams of those who possess them, suggesting a continuum between dreaming and waking life. The present study sought to investigate the association between dark tetrad traits (psychopathy, narcissism, Machiavellianism, and sadism) and dream content. One hundred thirty-seven participants completed questionnaires measuring dark tetrad traits and fighting, sexual, and grandiosity themes of dream content. Correlation analyses revealed significant positive relationships between all dark tetrad traits and fighting, sexual and grandiosity dreams. Regression analyses revealed that psychopathy and gender predicted fighting dreams, and sadism uniquely predicted sexual and grandiosity dreams. The results suggest that waking life dark tetrad personality traits are reflected in dream content. The continuity hypothesis, which posits a continuity between waking life and dreaming, may in part explain the results.

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Study Year Design Participants
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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
Dreaming in NREM Sleep: A High-Density EEG Study of Slow Waves and Spindles Healthy human subjects 2018 Observational cohort n = 14

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