Science is Knowledge
The Science Behind Dreaming
New research sheds light on how and why we remember dreams--and what purpose they are likely to serve
- By Sander van der Linden on July 26, 2011
For centuries people have pondered the meaning of dreams. Early civilizations thought of dreams as a medium between our earthly world and that of the gods. In fact, the Greeks and Romans were convinced that dreams had certain prophetic powers. While there has always been a great interest in the interpretation of human dreams, it wasn’t until the end of the nineteenth century that Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung put forth some of the most widely-known modern theories of dreaming. Freud’s theory centred around the notion of repressed longing -- the idea that dreaming allows us to sort through unresolved, repressed wishes. Carl Jung (who studied under Freud) also believed that dreams had psychological importance, but proposed different theories about their meaning.
Since then, technological advancements have allowed for the development of other theories. One prominent neurobiological theory of dreaming is the “activation-synthesis hypothesis,” which states that dreams don’t actually mean anything: they are merely electrical brain impulses that pull random thoughts and imagery from our memories. Humans, the theory goes, construct dream stories after they wake up, in a natural attempt to make sense of it all. Yet, given the vast documentation of realistic aspects to human dreaming as well as indirect experimental evidence that other mammals such as cats also dream, evolutionary psychologists have theorized that dreaming really does serve a purpose. In particular, the “threat simulation theory” suggests that dreaming should be seen as an ancient biological defence mechanism that provided an evolutionary advantage because of its capacity to repeatedly simulate potential threatening events – enhancing the neuro-cognitive mechanisms required for efficient threat perception and avoidance.
So, over the years, numerous theories have been put forth in an attempt to illuminate the mystery behind human dreams, but, until recently, strong tangible evidence has remained largely elusive.
Yet, new research published in the Journal of Neuroscience provides compelling insights into the mechanisms that underlie dreaming and the strong relationship our dreams have with our memories. Cristina Marzano and her colleagues at the University of Rome have succeeded, for the first time, in explaining how humans remember their dreams. The scientists predicted the likelihood of successful dream recall based on a signature pattern of brain waves. In order to do this, the Italian research team invited 65 students to spend two consecutive nights in their research laboratory.
During the first night, the students were left to sleep, allowing them to get used to the sound-proofed and temperature-controlled rooms. During the second night the researchers measured the student’s brain waves while they slept. Our brain experiences four types of electrical brain waves: “delta,” “theta,” “alpha,” and “beta.” Each represents a different speed of oscillating electrical voltages and together they form the electroencephalography (EEG). The Italian research team used this technology to measure the participant’s brain waves during various sleep-stages. (There are five stages of sleep; most dreaming and our most intense dreams occur during the REM stage.) The students were woken at various times and asked to fill out a diary detailing whether or not they dreamt, how often they dreamt and whether they could remember the content of their dreams.
While previous studies have already indicated that people are more likely to remember their dreams when woken directly after REM sleep, the current study explains why. Those participants who exhibited more low frequency theta waves in the frontal lobes were also more likely to remember their dreams.
This finding is interesting because the increased frontal theta activity the researchers observed looks just like the successful encoding and retrieval of autobiographical memories seen while we are awake. That is, it is the same electrical oscillations in the frontal cortex that make the recollection of episodic memories (e.g., things that happened to you) possible. Thus, these findings suggest that the neurophysiological mechanisms that we employ while dreaming (and recalling dreams) are the same as when we construct and retrieve memories while we are awake.
In another recent study conducted by the same research team, the authors used the latest MRI techniques to investigate the relation between dreaming and the role of deep-brain structures. In their study, the researchers found that vivid, bizarre and emotionally intense dreams (the dreams that people usually remember) are linked to parts of the amygdala and hippocampus. While the amygdala plays a primary role in the processing and memory of emotional reactions, the hippocampus has been implicated in important memory functions, such as the consolidation of information from short-term to long-term memory.
The proposed link between our dreams and emotions is also highlighted in another recent study published by Matthew Walker and colleagues at the Sleep and Neuroimaging Lab at UC Berkeley, who found that a reduction in REM sleep (or less “dreaming”) influences our ability to understand complex emotions in daily life – an essential feature of human social functioning. Scientists have also recently identified where dreaming is likely to occur in the brain. A very rare clinical condition known as “Charcot-Wilbrand Syndrome” has been known to cause (among other neurological symptoms) loss of the ability to dream. However, it was not until a few years ago that a patient reported to have lost her ability to dream while having virtually no other permanent neurological symptoms. The patient suffered a lesion in a part of the brain known as the right inferior lingual gyrus (located in the visual cortex). Thus, we know that dreams are generated in, or transmitted through this particular area of the brain, which is associated with visual processing, emotion and visual memories.
Taken together, these recent findings tell an important story about the underlying mechanism and possible purpose of dreaming.
Dreams seem to help us process emotions by encoding and constructing memories of them. What we see and experience in our dreams might not necessarily be real, but the emotions attached to these experiences certainly are. Our dream stories essentially try to strip the emotion out of a certain experience by creating a memory of it. This way, the emotion itself is no longer active. This mechanism fulfils an important role because when we don’t process our emotions, especially negative ones, this increases personal worry and anxiety. In fact, severe REM sleep-deprivation is increasingly correlated to the development of mental disorders. In short, dreams help regulate traffic on that fragile bridge which connects our experiences with our emotions and memories.
Are you a scientist who specializes in neuroscience, cognitive science, or psychology? And have you read a recent peer-reviewed paper that you would like to write about? Please send suggestions to Mind Matters editor Gareth Cook, a Pulitzer prize-winning journalist at the Boston Globe. He can be reached at garethideas AT gmail.com or Twitter @garethideas .
ABOUT THE AUTHOR(S)
Sander van der Linden is a doctoral researcher in social experimental psychology at the London School of Economics and Political Science. His research is concerned with the process of behavioral change and funded by the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment.
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Dr. Dimitriu is the founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry and Sleep Medicine. He is board-certified in psychiatry as well as sleep medicine.
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Dreams are one of the most fascinating and mystifying aspects of sleep. Since Sigmund Freud helped draw attention to the potential importance of dreams in the late 19th century, considerable research has worked to unravel both the neuroscience and psychology of dreams.
Despite this advancing scientific knowledge, there is much that remains unknown about both sleep and dreams. Even the most fundamental question — why do we dream at all? — is still subject to significant debate.
While everyone dreams, the content of those dreams and their effect on sleep can vary dramatically from person to person. Even though there’s no simple explanation for the meaning and purpose of dreams, it’s helpful to understand the basics of dreams, the potential impact of nightmares, and steps that you can take to sleep better with sweet dreams.
What Are Dreams?
Dreams are images, thoughts, or feelings that occur during sleep. Visual imagery is the most common Trusted Source National Library of Medicine, Biotech Information The National Center for Biotechnology Information advances science and health by providing access to biomedical and genomic information. View Source , but dreams can involve all of the senses. Some people dream in color while others dream in black and white Trusted Source National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) NINDS aims to seek fundamental knowledge about the brain and nervous system and to use that knowledge to reduce the burden of neurological disease. View Source , and people who are blind tend to have more dream components related to sound, taste, and smell Trusted Source National Library of Medicine, Biotech Information The National Center for Biotechnology Information advances science and health by providing access to biomedical and genomic information. View Source .
Studies have revealed diverse types of dream content, but some typical characteristics of dreaming include:
- It has a first-person perspective.
- It is involuntary.
- The content may be illogical or even incoherent.
- The content includes other people who interact with the dreamer and one another.
- It provokes strong emotions.
- Elements of waking life are incorporated into content.
Although these features are not universal, they are found at least to some extent in most normal dreams.
Why Do We Dream?
Debate continues among sleep experts Trusted Source National Library of Medicine, Biotech Information The National Center for Biotechnology Information advances science and health by providing access to biomedical and genomic information. View Source about why we dream. Different theories Trusted Source Division of Sleep Medicine at Harvard Medical School A production of WGBH Educational Foundation and the Harvard Medical School Division of Sleep Medicine. View Source about the purpose of dreaming Trusted Source National Center for Biotechnology Information The National Center for Biotechnology Information advances science and health by providing access to biomedical and genomic information. View Source include:
- Building memory: Dreaming has been associated with consolidation of memory, which suggests that dreaming may serve an important cognitive function of strengthening memory and informational recall.
- Processing emotion: The ability to engage with and rehearse feelings in different imagined contexts may be part of the brain’s method for managing emotions.
- Mental housekeeping: Periods of dreaming could be the brain’s way of “straightening up,” clearing away partial, erroneous, or unnecessary information.
- Instant replay: Dream content may be a form of distorted instant replay in which recent events are reviewed and analyzed.
- Incidental brain activity: This view holds that dreaming is just a by-product of sleep that has no essential purpose or meaning.
Experts in the fields of neuroscience and psychology continue to conduct experiments to discover what is happening in the brain during sleep, but even with ongoing research, it may be impossible to conclusively prove any theory for why we dream.
When Do We Dream?
On average, most people dream for around two hours per night. Dreaming can happen Trusted Source National Library of Medicine, Biotech Information The National Center for Biotechnology Information advances science and health by providing access to biomedical and genomic information. View Source during any stage of sleep , but dreams are the most prolific and intense during the rapid eye movement (REM) stage.
During the REM sleep stage, brain activity ramps up considerably compared to the non-REM stages, which helps explain the distinct types of dreaming Trusted Source National Library of Medicine, Biotech Information The National Center for Biotechnology Information advances science and health by providing access to biomedical and genomic information. View Source during these stages. Dreams during REM sleep are typically more vivid, fantastical, and/or bizarre even though they may involve elements of waking life. By contrast, non-REM dreams tend to involve more coherent content that involves thoughts or memories grounded to a specific time and place.
REM sleep is not distributed evenly through the night. The majority of REM sleep happens during the second half of a normal sleep period, which means that dreaming tends to be concentrated in the hours before waking up.
Do Dreams Have Meaning?
How to interpret dreams, and whether they have meaning at all, are matters of considerable controversy. While some psychologists have argued that dreams provide insight into a person’s psyche or everyday life, others find their content to be too inconsistent or bewildering to reliably deliver meaning.
Virtually all experts acknowledge that dreams can involve content that ties back to waking experiences although the content may be changed or misrepresented. For example, in describing dreams, people often reference people who they recognize clearly even if their appearance is distorted in the dream Trusted Source National Library of Medicine, Biotech Information The National Center for Biotechnology Information advances science and health by providing access to biomedical and genomic information. View Source .
The meaning of real-life details appearing in dreams, though, is far from settled. The “continuity hypothesis” in dream research holds that dreams and waking life are intertwined with one another and thus involve overlapping themes and content. The “discontinuity hypothesis,” on the other hand, sees thinking during dreams and wakefulness as structurally distinct.
While analysis of dreams may be a component of personal or psychological self-reflection, it’s hard to state, based on the existing evidence, that there is a definitive method for interpreting and understanding the meaning of dreams in waking, everyday life.
What Are Types of Dreams?
Dreams can take on many different forms. Lucid dreams occur when a person is in a dream while being actively aware that they are dreaming. Vivid dreams involve especially realistic or clear dream content. Bad dreams are composed of bothersome or distressing content. Recurring dreams involve the same imagery repeating in multiple dreams over time.
Even within normal dreams, there are certain types of content that are especially identifiable. Among the most recognizable and common themes Trusted Source National Library of Medicine, Biotech Information The National Center for Biotechnology Information advances science and health by providing access to biomedical and genomic information. View Source in dreams are things like flying, falling, being chased, or being unable to find a bathroom.
What Are Nightmares?
In sleep medicine, a nightmare is a bad dream that causes a person to wake up from sleep Trusted Source National Library of Medicine, Biotech Information The National Center for Biotechnology Information advances science and health by providing access to biomedical and genomic information. View Source . This definition is distinct from common usage that may refer to any threatening, scary, or bothersome dream as a nightmare. While bad dreams are normal and usually benign, frequent nightmares may interfere with a person’s sleep and cause impaired thinking and mood Trusted Source American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM)|National Library of Medicine, Biotech Information View Source during the daytime.
Do Dreams Affect Sleep?
In most cases, dreams don’t affect sleep. Dreaming is part of healthy sleep and is generally considered to be completely normal and without any negative effects on sleep.
Nightmares are the exception. Because nightmares involve awakenings, they can become problematic if they occur frequently. Distressing dreams may cause a person to avoid sleep, leading to insufficient sleep. When they do sleep, the prior sleep deprivation can induce a REM sleep rebound that actually worsens nightmares. This negative cycle can cause some people with frequent nightmares to experience insomnia as a chronic sleep problem.
For this reason, people who have nightmares more than once a week, have fragmented sleep, or have daytime sleepiness or changes to their thinking or mood should talk with a doctor Trusted Source Medline Plus MedlinePlus is an online health information resource for patients and their families and friends. View Source . A doctor can review these symptoms to identify the potential causes and treatments of their sleeping problem.
Call the Help Me Sleep Hotline for a set of tips, meditations, and bedtime stories to help you get a good night’s rest.
How Can You Remember Dreams?
For people who want to document or interpret dreams, remembering them is a key first step. The ability to recall dreams can be different for every person and may vary based on age Trusted Source National Library of Medicine, Biotech Information The National Center for Biotechnology Information advances science and health by providing access to biomedical and genomic information. View Source . While there’s no guaranteed way to improve dream recall, experts recommend certain tips Trusted Source American Psychological Association (APA) APA is the leading scientific and professional organization representing psychology in the United States, with more than 121,000 researchers, educators, clinicians, consultants and students as its members. View Source :
- Think about your dreams as soon as you wake up. Dreams can be forgotten in the blink of an eye, so you want to make remembering them the first thing you do when you wake up. Before sitting up or even saying good morning to your bed partner, close your eyes and try to replay your dreams in your mind.
- Have a journal or app on-hand to keep track of your dream content. It’s important to have a method to quickly record dream details before you can forget them, including if you wake up from a dream in the night. For most people, a pen and paper on their nightstand works well, but there are also smartphone apps that help you create an organized and searchable dream journal.
- Try to wake up peacefully in the morning. An abrupt awakening, such as from an alarm clock, may cause you to quickly snap awake and out of a dream, making it harder to remember the dream’s details.
- Remind yourself that dream recall is a priority. In the lead-up to bedtime, tell yourself that you will remember your dreams, and repeat this mantra before going to sleep. While this alone can’t ensure that you will recall your dreams, it can encourage you to remember to take the time to reflect on dreams before starting your day.
How Can You Stop Nightmares?
People with frequent nightmares that disturb sleep should talk with a doctor who can determine if they have nightmare disorder or any other condition affecting their sleep quality. Treatment for nightmare disorder often includes talk therapy that attempts to counteract negative thinking, stress, and anxiety that can worsen nightmares.
Many types of talk therapy attempt to reduce worries or fears, including those that can arise in nightmares. This type of exposure or desensitization therapy helps many patients reframe their emotional reaction to negative imagery since trying to simply suppress negative thoughts may exacerbate nightmares Trusted Source National Library of Medicine, Biotech Information The National Center for Biotechnology Information advances science and health by providing access to biomedical and genomic information. View Source .
Another step in trying to reduce nightmares is to improve sleep hygiene , which includes both sleep-related habits and the bedroom environment . Healthy sleep hygiene can make your nightly sleep more predictable and may help you sleep soundly through the night even if you have bad dreams. Examples of healthy sleep tips include:
- Follow a stable sleep schedule: Keep a steady schedule every day, including on weekends or other days when you don’t have to wake up at a certain time.
- Choose pre-bed content carefully: Avoid scary, distressing, or stimulating content in the hours before bed since it may provoke negative thoughts during sleep.
- Wind down each night: Exercising during the day Trusted Source Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) As the nation’s health protection agency, CDC saves lives and protects people from health threats. View Source can help you sleep better at night. In the evening, try to allow your mind and body to calmly relax before bed such as with light stretching, deep breathing, or other relaxation techniques.
- Limit alcohol and caffeine: Drinking alcohol can cause more concentrated REM sleep later in the night, heightening the risk of nightmares. Caffeine is a stimulant that can throw off your sleep schedule and keep your brain wired when you want to doze off.
- Block out bedroom distractions: Try to foster a sleeping environment that is dark, quiet, smells nice, and has a comfortable temperature. A supportive mattress and pillow can make your bed more inviting and cozy. All of these factors make it easier to feel calm and to prevent unwanted awakenings that can trigger irregular sleep patterns.
- Low Level of Lucid and COVID-19-Specific Dreams Found During the Pandemic February 17, 2023 – Rapid eye movement (REM) sleep was thought to intensify in order to consolidate emotions, based on a study of the impact of COVID-19 lockdowns in Germany.
- Recommendations Given to Support End-of-Life Dreams and Visions January 5, 2023 – Guidelines for meaningful clinical engagement are presented for dying patients’ end-of-life dreams and visions about deceased loved ones.
- COVID-Related Anxiety Tied to Nightmare Frequency and Severity
Listed news articles do not represent the opinion of Sleep Foundation and are provided for informational purposes only.
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References 17 sources.
Ruby, P. M. (2011). Experimental research on dreaming: State of the art and neuropsychoanalytic perspectives. Frontiers in Psychology, 2.
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Meaidi, A., Jennum, P., Ptito, M., & Kupers, R. (2014). The sensory construction of dreams and nightmare frequency in congenitally blind and late blind individuals. Sleep medicine, 15(5), 586–595.
Scarpelli, S., Bartolacci, C., D’Atri, A., Gorgoni, M., & De Gennaro, L. (2019). Mental sleep activity and disturbing dreams in the lifespan. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16(19), 3658.
Division of Sleep Medicine at Harvard Medical School. (2007, December 18). The Characteristics of Sleep., Retrieved October 14, 2020, from
Purves, D., Augustine, G. J., & Fitzpatrick, D. et al. (Eds.). (2001). The Possible Functions of REM Sleep and Dreaming. In Neuroscience (2nd Edition)., Retrieved from
Pagel, J. F. (2000). Nightmares and disorders of dreaming. American Family Physician, 61(7), 2037–2042, 2044.
Payne, J. D., & Nadel, L. (2004). Sleep, dreams, and memory consolidation: the role of the stress hormone cortisol. Learning & memory (Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y.), 11(6), 671–678.
Kahn, D., Stickgold, R., Pace-Schott, E. F., & Hobson, J. A. (2000). Dreaming and waking consciousness: A character recognition study. Journal of Sleep Research, 9(4), 317–325.
Schredl, M., Ciric, P., Götz, S., & Wittmann, L. (2004). Typical dreams: stability and gender differences. The Journal of psychology, 138(6), 485–494.
Paul, F., Schredl, M., & Alpers, G. W. (2015). Nightmares affect the experience of sleep quality but not sleep architecture: an ambulatory polysomnographic study. Borderline personality disorder and emotion dysregulation, 2, 3.
Aurora, R. N., Zak, R. S., Auerbach, S. H., Casey, K. R., Chowdhuri, S., Karippot, A., Maganti, R. K., Ramar, K., Kristo, D. A., Bista, S. R., Lamm, C. I., Morgenthaler, T. I., Standards of Practice Committee, & American Academy of Sleep Medicine (2010). Best practice guide for the treatment of nightmare disorder in adults. Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, 6(4), 389–401.
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Dreams Research Paper Writing & Exciting Research Questions about Dreams
People have dreams every night. Dreams are different – sweet dreams and nightmares, colored and colorless. However, every psychologist knows that people need to sleep. Why? Well, let us give you the right to answer this question in your research paper on dreams.
A research paper on dreams is a serious research project. That is why you cannot simply write how dreams can be interpreted or describe your dreams in the research paper on dreams. Research papers on dreams require more serious topics and approach.
Below you will find several possible ideas for research papers on dreams.
Dreams as a result of the thinking process
Psychologists are sure that dreams are the result of what we wish or think about when we are awake. For example, Freud, a famous psychologist, considered that if a man did not have sexual relations for a long time, he would dream about them. If you think about someone, you may also dream about him/her. This is what you may write about in the research paper on dreams if you want to consider this aspect.
Nightmares can also be a very interesting issue to discuss in research papers on dreams. Psychologists relate nightmares to the field of “unconscious”. Very often, people forget about the stressful situations they once had. However, those situations are reflected in their minds and they can appear in dreams. You may also find other points of view on nightmares and discuss them in your research paper on dreams.
Interesting facts about dreams:
Do you want to make your research paper on dreams interesting? Then, include a couple of facts into your research paper on dreams:
- Blind people dream;
- You forget 90% of your dreams;
- Dreams prevent psychosis;
- Not everyone sees colorful dreams;
- When you are snoring, you are not dreaming.
Who knows, maybe you will manage to interpret one of these facts from the psychological point of view in your research paper on dreams.
On our blog, useful information on how to write a good research paper and make a cover page for research papers can also be found.
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Psychologywriting review: free essay samples for students of all levels.
A Brief History of Dream Research
How the discovery of rem sleep jump-started the science of dreaming..
Posted June 30, 2016 | Reviewed by Devon Frye
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The study of dreams in scientific research laboratories began with the discovery of REM sleep by Aserinsky and Kleitman (1953). They are credited with having the first sleep research laboratory that discovered the “rapid, jerky, binocularly symmetrical movements” characteristic of REM sleep. They further associated dreams with these eye movements, finding that 74.1 percent of participants recalled dreams from REM sleep, whereas only 17.4 percent recalled dreams from NREM sleep.
Around the same time, Calvin Hall was working on a new cognitive theory of dreaming, and in 1966, Hall and Van de Castle created and published a thorough content scoring system for dreams (Hall & van de Castle, 1966). Together, these papers stimulated the acceleration of dream research publications and allowed for a systematic method of studying dreams.
Since then, researchers have found the correlation of dream recall and REM sleep to be consistently high (around 80 percent on average). However, there has been an increase in the percentage of NREM dream recall found in studies over time, though this data remains inconsistent (Nielsen, 2011). These inconsistencies could be due to the varying definitions of dreaming used by experimenters. Some used a more inclusive dreaming definition, such as "sleep mentation," which is characterized by any cognitive activity, whereas the original concept of dreaming was more qualified as hallucinatory imagery.
Further, the questions used by an experimenter can alter a participant’s interpretation of dreaming. For example, the question, “What was going through your mind just before I called you?” will encourage more frequent dream reports than, “What were you dreaming about?” This is still a major problem in dream research, since varying methods of collection largely influence the frequency and length of dream reports.
Further inconsistencies in estimates of dream recall can be attributed to participant/experimenter expectancies. Herman et al. (1978) experimentally influenced the collection of dreams by giving a placebo pill to participants who were then told, along with the experimenter, that the placebo would increase dream recall. This created high expectations in both the participant and the experimenter, and in turn, higher dream recall was observed when compared to a control group (Herman et al., 1978).
To further complicate the picture, dream recall can vary even within a particular sleep state. For example, analyzing dream recollection as a function of the amount of time elapsed within NREM or REM sleep before awakening reveals a cyclical pattern. There is an increase in dream recall up to 45 minutes into REM sleep, followed by a decrease. The opposite effect is found in NREM sleep, with a longer time in NREM correlated with less dream recall, up until a slight increase that occurs just before the transition into REM sleep (Stickgold et al., 1994).
In another example, in one experiment using an ultra-short sleep/wake protocol, participants took 20-minute naps every hour for 78 hours, reporting and rating dreams after each nap. The researchers found that NREM dream intensity peaked in the morning hours, despite NREM sleep stage duration being minimal at this time (Suzuki et al., 2004). Rather, REM related processes, which peak in the morning appeared to be influencing the NREM dreams' intensity in a "covert" manner (Nielsen, 2000).
Relationships between REM sleep neurophysiology and dreaming have been demonstrated with a number of other methods. Herman et al. (1984) found that the rapid eye movements participants produced just prior to waking up matched their visual descriptions of dream imagery. For instance, an eye movement "up and to the left" was associated with dream imagery with looking "up and to the left." This evidence supports the scanning hypothesis of dreaming, which posits that eye movements in REM sleep are a result of scanning the dreamscape, although not all studies support the scanning hypothesis (Ogawa, Nittono, & Hori, 2002).
In another example, neuroimaging of lucid dreams produced neural correlates of dream activity that were similar to activity that would be found in wake. For instance, fMRI BOLD responses were observed in the same sensorimotor cortical regions for both wakefulness and lucid dreaming , though activation during dreaming was weaker and more localized (Dresler et al., 2011). Further, in patients with REM sleep behavior disorder, dreamed behaviors are physically enacted during sleep, reinforcing the notion that motor activity in the dreaming brain is similar to that of waking actions (Valli et al., 2015).
Sleep Essential Reads
Altogether, the study of dreams has evolved substantially since the discovery of REM sleep. REM sleep has been consistently associated with higher dream recall than NREM sleep, although variations in methodology, time of night, and participant expectations can influence or increase the frequency of dream recall from NREM sleep.
Michelle Carr, Ph.D., works at the University of Rochester Sleep and Neurophysiology Laboratory. She has a Ph.D. in Biomedical Science from the University of Montreal, where she conducted research at the Dream and Nightmare Lab.
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Yet, new research published in the Journal of Neuroscience provides compelling insights into the mechanisms that underlie dreaming and the strong relationship our dreams have with our memories....
Dreams are one of the most fascinating and mystifying aspects of sleep. Since Sigmund Freud helped draw attention to the potential importance of dreams in the late 19th century, considerable research has worked to unravel both the neuroscience and psychology of dreams.
About the Journal. The scope of the journal is to publish peer-reviewed papers in the field of dream research including topics like dream recall, dream content, nightmares, lucid dreaming, dreaming in children and psychological aspects of sleep in general. In addition to empirical papers, comprehensive reviews and book/media reviews are also ...
Research papers on dreams require more serious topics and approach. Below you will find several possible ideas for research papers on dreams. Dreams as a result of the thinking process We’ll deliver a custom paper tailored to your requirements. We'll even cut 15% OFF your first order! Use discount
Dreams typically involve elements from waking life, such as known people or familiar locations, but they also often have a fantastical feel. In dreams, people may live out scenarios that would...
The study of dreams in scientific research laboratories began with the discovery of REM sleep by Aserinsky and Kleitman (1953). They are credited with having the first sleep research...