Slow Wave Sleep Dreaming
Corrado Cavallero, Piercarla Cicogna, Vincenzo Natale, Miranda Occhionero, Assunta Zito
Sleep November 1, 1992 DOI: 10.1093/sleep/15.6.562 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational study with counterbalanced within-subject awakenings Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 50 |
| Population | Fifty volunteers sleeping in a sleep laboratory |
| Duration | Two nonconsecutive nights in a sleep laboratory |
| Topics | Dreaming |
| Citations | 173 |
| Key findings | REM dream reports were significantly longer than SWS reports, with only minor content differences between stages, and semantic knowledge was more frequently named as a dream source for REM than SWS reports. The authors interpret this as supporting the hypothesis that dreaming is a continuous process not unique to REM sleep, with differing levels of cognitive engagement accounting for the few SWS-REM differences detected. |
Abstract
Fifty volunteers slept two nonconsecutive nights in a sleep laboratory under electropolygraphic control. They were awakened for one report per night. Awakenings were made, in counterbalanced order, from slow wave sleep (SWS--stage 3-4 and stage 4) and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. Following dream reporting, subjects were asked to identify memory sources of their dream imagery. Two independent judges reliably rated mentation reports for temporal units and for several content and structural dimensions. The same judges also categorized memory sources as autobiographical episodes, abstract self-references, or semantic knowledge. We found that REM reports were significantly longer than SWS reports. Minor content SWS-REM differences were also detected. Moreover, semantic knowledge was more frequently mentioned as a dream source for REM than for SWS dream reports. These findings are interpreted as supporting the hypothesis that dreaming is a continuous process that is not unique to REM sleep. Different levels of engagement of the cognitive system are responsible for the few SWS-REM differences that have been detected.
Comparable studies
Other experimental studies on dreaming, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lucid Dreaming Verified by Volitional Communication during Rem Sleep Selected subjects proficient in lucid dreaming | 1981 | Experimental study | n = 5 |
| Incorporation of concern- and nonconcern-related verbal stimuli into dream content. Seven male subjects studied during sleep Stages 2 and REM | 1981 | Experimental study | n = 7 |
| Lucid Dreaming and Alpha Activity: A Preliminary Report Good dream recallers | 1982 | Experimental study | n = 10 |
| Lucid dreaming during NREM sleep: Two case reports | 2012 | Sleep laboratory study | |
| The Dream Catcher experiment: blinded analyses failed to detect markers of dreaming consciousness in EEG spectral power. Human participants during sleep | 2020 | Experimental study with blinded classification | n = 9 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 58
- Dreaming as mind wandering: evidence from functional neuroimaging and first-person content reports. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 2013
- The cognitive neuroscience of lucid dreaming Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews March 14, 2019
- Dreaming During Non-rapid Eye Movement Sleep in the Absence of Prior Rapid Eye Movement Sleep Sleep December 1, 2004
- What about dreams? State of the art and open questions Journal of Sleep Research April 13, 2022
- Experimental Research on Dreaming: State of the Art and Neuropsychoanalytic Perspectives Frontiers in Psychology 2011
and 53 more in the library