Dreaming

Video game play as nightmare protection: A preliminary inquiry with military gamers.
Soldiers who play video games to varying degrees were solicited to fill out a survey on dreams and gaming. A prescreening filtered out those who were not soldiers, who did not game, and who were suffering from various psychological problems in the last six months. The remaining soldiers filled out these inventories: general and military demographics, history of video game play, Emotional Reactivity and Numbing Scale (ERNS), and a Trauma Inventory. They were then asked to provide two dreams, one recent and one that was impactful from their military service. Following the military dream they filled out Impactful Dreams Questionnaire (IDQ) about that dream only. Dream content analysis was conducted using threat simulation, war content, and lucid/control/gaming content. High- and low-end frequency gamer groups were identified and compared on these dream content scales. Because the nightmare literature shows that affect load and distress are predictors of nightmare suffering, ERNS and Trauma history were covariates in the ANCOVA's on gamer group × dream type. It was found that the high-end gaming group exhibited less threat and war content in their military dreams than the low-end group. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)
Applying the problem solving paradigm to dream content analysis: A case study of 130 succeeding dream reports in a psychotherapy.
Over time, the problem solving paradigm has been widely used in different disciplines, as logic, methodology, economics, and psychology. Most of its applications referred to one's ability in dealing with an external situation. In dreams, the whole representation is generally used to trace inner emotional and relational meanings. Besides, the dream content develops into a narrative plot, in which the dreamer faces all kind of events. Applying the problem solving theory to the analysis of the dream content means to read it as a “drama” in order to assess how a central issue is brought to a solution. A specific grid has been used to study “Oneiric Problem Solving” in all dreams reported by a patient during three years of psychotherapy. Results are presented. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)
Content and discovery in the dreams of Canadian male university students: A pilot study.
This study extended previous research by exploring Canadian male university students because only the dreams of females had been previously assessed. Dream content and discovery passages were scored using the Hall and Van de Castle (1966) content analysis guidelines. Discovery was assessed via The Storytelling Method of dream interpretation. Thirty-nine male students provided one dream each. Content categories, discovery categories, and content and discovery categories together were analyzed for significant relationships. Regression analyses predicting discovery categories from dream content were also conducted. Findings were representative of the sample of male students, with a mean age of 23.67 (SD = 5.36), support the continuity hypothesis, and were consistent with previous research on the dreams of males and students with some notable exceptions. The predictive value of dreams is evident from the results of the regression analyses, which show significant relations between specific content categories and discovery categories. Significant correlations were found among content and discovery categories and the predictions. For examples, anger in dream content significantly predicts learning something about anger in waking day. Limitations and directions for future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)
Review of Dream life: An experimental memoir.
Reviews the book, Dream Life: An Experimental Memoir by J. Allan Hobson (2011). This book is not an autobiography written in a typical way; it is a mixture of private stories, facts about the author’s professional life, and theories that Allan developed over the years. This review focuses mostly on Allan’s scientific career and the implications of his theories in neurophysiology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)

Dreaming - Vol 21, Iss 4