What links schizophrenia and dreaming? Common phenomenological and neurobiological features of schizophrenia and REM sleep.
Dagna Skrzypińska, Barbara Szmigielska
Archives of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy June 25, 2013 DOI: 10.12740/app/18443 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Review Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Dreaming |
| Citations | 12 |
| Key findings | Argues that schizophrenia and REM sleep share phenomenological features (autism, lack of insight, loss of autonomy over mental content) and neurobiological features (absent central inhibition, intracerebral disconnections, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens dysfunction, disturbed responsiveness, and similar dopamine, acetylcholine, noradrenaline, serotonin, and glutamate activation), suggesting REM sleep could serve as an experimental model of schizophrenia. |
Abstract
Aim. The aim of this theoretical study is to present common phenomenological and neurobiological features of schizophrenia and REM sleep. Results. A review of professional literature was conducted in order to synthesize current findings about associations between schizophrenia and REM sleep. Many researches reveal that both states share some common phenomenological and neurobiological features. Autism, lack of insight and a loss of autonomy in relation to mental content are just some of the characteristics that occur on a phenomenological level in both dreams during REM sleep (lucid dreaming excluded) and schizophrenia. Data from experimental conditions revealed that the waking mentation of patients suffering from schizophrenia has a similar degree of formal cognitive bizarreness as dream narratives obtained from both non-clinical and clinical populations. On the other hand, some common neurobiological features of the REM sleep stage and schizophrenia are: lack of central inhibitory processes, intracerebral disconnections, dysfunction of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex or nucleus accumbens and disturbed responsiveness. Moreover, there is similar activation of dopamine, acetylcholine, noradrenaline, serotonin and glutamate in both states. Conclusions. Common phenomenological and neurobiological characteristics of these two states suggest that data about REM sleep could help introduce a useful experimental model of schizophrenia.
Comparable studies
Other narrative reviews on dreaming, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The cognitive neuroscience of lucid dreaming | 2019 | Review | |
| Sleep and dreaming are for important matters | 2013 | Review | |
| Nightmare Disorder and Isolated Sleep Paralysis | 2020 | Review | |
| My Dream, My Rules: Can Lucid Dreaming Treat Nightmares? | 2019 | Review | |
| Dream Recall: State or Trait Variable? Part I: Model, Theories, Methodology and Trait Factors | 1996 | Review |
Citations in the library
Cited by 5
- My Dream, My Rules: Can Lucid Dreaming Treat Nightmares? Frontiers in Psychology 2019
- Computational models of the "active self" and its disturbances in schizophrenia. Consciousness and Cognition August 1, 2021
- Quantifying auditory impressions in dreams in order to assess the relevance of dreaming as a model for psychosis PLoS One March 12, 2020
- I’m thinking your thoughts while I sleep: Sense of agency and ownership over dream thought. Psychology of Consciousness Theory Research and Practice September 1, 2015
- Examining the triggers of lucid insight. June 30, 2020
Cites 8
- Dreams, Hallucinogenic Drug States, and Schizophrenia: A Psychological and Biological Comparison Schizophrenia Bulletin 1983
- Typical Dreams: Stability and Gender Differences The Journal of Psychology 2004
- The dreaming brain/mind, consciousness and psychosis. Consciousness and Cognition December 2011
- If waking and dreaming consciousness became de-differentiated, would schizophrenia result? Consciousness and Cognition April 16, 2011
- How to integrate dreaming into a general theory of consciousness--a critical review of existing positions and suggestions for future research. Consciousness and Cognition October 8, 2010
and 3 more in the library