People's views on dreaming : Attitudes and subjective ream theories, with regard to age, education, and sex
(2016) In Dreaming 26(2). p.158-168- Abstract
The study investigated subjective theories of dream function (why do we dream)- measured as level of agreement with selected prescientific and contemporary views of science (N = 667) and thus explored differences in dream attitude with respect to age, educational level, and sex. A factor analysis revealed 3 factors. One can be described as seeing dreams as meaningful information processing (memory consolidation, sorting inputs, and solving problems), a 2nd included prescientific dream theory (dreams as messages from outside and/or from deceased, or dreams as prophecies). A 3rd factor included viewing dreams as insignificant products of the brain (random chemical signal interpretation and garbage products of the brain). Factor 1 was... (More)
The study investigated subjective theories of dream function (why do we dream)- measured as level of agreement with selected prescientific and contemporary views of science (N = 667) and thus explored differences in dream attitude with respect to age, educational level, and sex. A factor analysis revealed 3 factors. One can be described as seeing dreams as meaningful information processing (memory consolidation, sorting inputs, and solving problems), a 2nd included prescientific dream theory (dreams as messages from outside and/or from deceased, or dreams as prophecies). A 3rd factor included viewing dreams as insignificant products of the brain (random chemical signal interpretation and garbage products of the brain). Factor 1 was highly related to dream attitude-the more generally approving of dreams and dreaming, the more participants would regard dreams as meaningful information processing. Factor 2 was related to sex (women being more approving) and negatively related to level of education. Factor 3 was negatively related to the dream attitude scale but positively related to dream recall, which seemed counterintuitive. This could be seen as a way of explaining the often irrational content of dreams that participants were then able to recall. Women had a more supportive attitude toward dreams and dreaming.
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- author
- Olsen, Michael Rohde ; Schredl, Michael and Carlsson, Ingegerd LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2016-06-01
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Laymen theory of dream function, People view on dreaming, Sex difference, Subjective theory of dream function
- in
- Dreaming
- volume
- 26
- issue
- 2
- pages
- 11 pages
- publisher
- American Psychological Association (APA)
- external identifiers
-
- wos:000391571900006
- scopus:84962489378
- ISSN
- 1053-0797
- DOI
- 10.1037/drm0000020
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- f93d438d-5f72-4f88-9be9-f7e715430885
- date added to LUP
- 2017-02-01 09:43:51
- date last changed
- 2025-10-14 10:37:54
@article{f93d438d-5f72-4f88-9be9-f7e715430885,
abstract = {{<p>The study investigated subjective theories of dream function (why do we dream)- measured as level of agreement with selected prescientific and contemporary views of science (N = 667) and thus explored differences in dream attitude with respect to age, educational level, and sex. A factor analysis revealed 3 factors. One can be described as seeing dreams as meaningful information processing (memory consolidation, sorting inputs, and solving problems), a 2nd included prescientific dream theory (dreams as messages from outside and/or from deceased, or dreams as prophecies). A 3rd factor included viewing dreams as insignificant products of the brain (random chemical signal interpretation and garbage products of the brain). Factor 1 was highly related to dream attitude-the more generally approving of dreams and dreaming, the more participants would regard dreams as meaningful information processing. Factor 2 was related to sex (women being more approving) and negatively related to level of education. Factor 3 was negatively related to the dream attitude scale but positively related to dream recall, which seemed counterintuitive. This could be seen as a way of explaining the often irrational content of dreams that participants were then able to recall. Women had a more supportive attitude toward dreams and dreaming.</p>}},
author = {{Olsen, Michael Rohde and Schredl, Michael and Carlsson, Ingegerd}},
issn = {{1053-0797}},
keywords = {{Laymen theory of dream function; People view on dreaming; Sex difference; Subjective theory of dream function}},
language = {{eng}},
month = {{06}},
number = {{2}},
pages = {{158--168}},
publisher = {{American Psychological Association (APA)}},
series = {{Dreaming}},
title = {{People's views on dreaming : Attitudes and subjective ream theories, with regard to age, education, and sex}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/drm0000020}},
doi = {{10.1037/drm0000020}},
volume = {{26}},
year = {{2016}},
}