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‘No Man is an Island’: Effects of social seclusion on social dream content and REM sleep

Jarno Tuominen, Henri Olkoniemi, Antti Revonsuo, Katja Valli

British Journal of Psychology June 9, 2021 DOI: 10.1111/bjop.12515 (opens in new tab)

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Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Observational study Peer reviewed
Sample size 18
Population Participants in a voluntary social seclusion retreat
Topics Dreaming
Citations 12
Key findings The Compensation Hypothesis was not supported: dreams showed fewer social interactions during social seclusion. The Strengthening Hypothesis was supported, with more familiar characters in seclusion dreams. The Sociality Bias between dream and wake interactions was maintained, and REM sleep increased during seclusion, which the authors say tentatively supports an attachment function for social REM sleep.

Abstract

Based on the Social Simulation Theory of dreaming (SST), we studied the effects of voluntary social seclusion on dream content and sleep structure. Specifically, we studied the Compensation Hypothesis, which predicts social dream contents to increase during social seclusion, the Sociality Bias - a ratio between dream and wake interactions - and the Strengthening Hypothesis, which predicts an increase in familiar dream characters during seclusion. Additionally, we assessed changes in the proportion of REM sleep. Sleep data and dream reports from 18 participants were collected preceding (n = 94), during (n = 90) and after (n = 119) a seclusion retreat. Data were analysed using linear mixed-effects models. We failed to support the Compensation Hypothesis, with dreams evidencing fewer social interactions during seclusion. The Strengthening Hypothesis was supported, with more familiar characters present in seclusion dreams. Dream social interactions maintained the Sociality Bias even under seclusion. Additionally, REM sleep increased during seclusion, coinciding with previous literature and tentatively supporting the proposed attachment function for social REM sleep.

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

Citations in the library

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