View source for Oneirology

{{Short description|Scientific study of dreams}}
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[[File:REM-søvn.jpg|thumb|right|An artist's imaginary depiction of a dream]]

In the field of [[psychology]], the subfield of '''oneirology''' ({{IPAc-en|ɒ|n|aɪ|ˈ|r|ɒ|l|ə|dʒ|i}}; {{ety|grc|''{{Wikt-lang|grc|ὄνειρον}}'' (oneiron)|dream||''{{Wikt-lang|grc|-λογία}}'' ({{Wikt-lang|en|-logia}})|the study of}}) is the scientific study of [[dream]]s. Research seeks correlations between dreaming and knowledge about the functions of the brain, as well as an understanding of how the brain works during dreaming with respect to memory formation and [[mental disorders]]. The study of oneirology can be distinguished from [[dream interpretation]] in that the aim is to quantitatively study the process of dreams instead of analyzing the meaning behind them.

== History ==
In the 19th century, two advocates of this discipline were the French [[sinologist]]s Marquis d'[[Hervey de Saint Denys]] and [[Alfred Maury]]. The field gained momentum in 1952, when [[Nathaniel Kleitman]] and his student [[Eugene Aserinsky]] discovered regular cycles. A further experiment by Kleitman and [[William C. Dement]], then another medical student, demonstrated the particular period of sleep during which electrical brain activity, as measured by an [[Electroencephalography|electroencephalograph]] (EEG), closely resembled that of waking, in which the eyes dart about actively. This kind of sleep became known as rapid eye movement ([[Rapid eye movement sleep|REM]]) sleep, and Kleitman and Dement's experiment found a [[correlation]] of 0.80 between REM sleep and dreaming.

== Field of work ==
Research into dreams includes exploration of the mechanisms of dreaming, the influences on dreaming, and disorders linked to dreaming. Work in oneirology overlaps with [[neurology]] and can vary from quantifying dreams to analyzing brain waves during dreaming, to studying the effects of drugs and [[neurotransmitter]]s on sleeping or dreaming. Though debate continues about the purpose and origins of dreams, there could be great gains from studying dreams as a function of brain activity. For example, knowledge gained in this area could have implications for the treatment of certain mental illnesses.

== Mechanisms of dreaming ==
{{Further|Cognitive neuroscience of dreams}}
{{Broader|Neuroscience of sleep}}
Dreaming occurs mainly during [[Rapid eye movement sleep|REM sleep]], and [[Neuroimaging|brain scans]] recording brain activity have witnessed heavy activity in the [[limbic system]] and the [[amygdala]] during this period. Though current research has reversed the myth that dreaming occurs only during REM sleep, it has also shown that the dreams reported in non-rapid eye movement ([[Non-rapid eye movement sleep|NREM]]) and REM differ qualitatively and quantitatively, suggesting that the mechanisms that control each are different.<ref name="TAKEUCHI2000">{{cite journal |vauthors=Takeuchi T, Miyasita A, Inugami M, Yamamoto Y |year=2001 |title=Intrinsic dreams are not produced without REM sleep mechanisms: evidence through elicitation of sleep onset REM periods |journal=Journal of Sleep Research |volume=10 |issue=1 |pages=43–52 |doi=10.1046/j.1365-2869.2001.00237.x |doi-access=free |pmid=11285054 |s2cid=44345259}}</ref>

During REM sleep, researchers theorize that the brain goes through a process known as synaptic efficacy refreshment. This is observed as brain waves self-firing during sleep, in slow cycles at a rate of around 14&nbsp;Hz, and is believed to serve the purpose of consolidating recent memories and reinforcing old memories. In this type of brain stimulation, the dreaming that occurs is a by-product of the process.<ref name="Kavanau2000">{{cite journal |vauthors=Kavanau JL |year=2000 |title=Sleep, memory maintenance, and mental disorders |journal=Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences |volume=12 |issue=2 |pages=199–208 |doi=10.1176/jnp.12.2.199 |pmid=11001598 |s2cid=21414730}}</ref>

=== Stages of sleep ===
During normal [[sleep cycle]]s, humans alternate between normal, NREM sleep and REM sleep. The brain waves characteristic of dreaming that are observed during REM sleep are the most commonly studied in dream research because most dreaming occurs during REM sleep.<ref name="TAKEUCHI2000" />

=== REM sleep ===
{{Main|REM sleep}}
[[File:Sleep EEG REM.png|thumb|right|[[Electroencephalography|EEG]] showing brainwaves during REM sleep]]
In 1952, [[Eugene Aserinsky]] discovered [[Rapid eye movement sleep|REM sleep]] while working in the surgery of his [[PhD]] advisor. Aserinsky noticed that the sleepers' eyes fluttered beneath their closed eyelids, later using a [[polygraph]] machine to record their [[Neural oscillation|brain waves]] during these periods. In one session, he awakened a subject who was wailing and crying out during REM and confirmed his suspicion that dreaming was occurring.<ref>{{cite book |vauthors=Dement WC |author-link1=William C. Dement |year=1996 |title=The Sleepwatchers |publisher=[[Springer-Verlag]] |isbn=978-0-9649338-0-4}}</ref>{{page needed|date=April 2024}} In 1953, Aserinsky and his advisor published the ground-breaking study in [[Science (journal)|''Science'']].<ref name="as-science">{{cite journal |vauthors=Aserinsky E, Kleitman N |author-link1=Eugene Aserinsky |author-link2=Nathaniel Kleitman |year=1953 |title=Regularly occurring periods of eye motility and concomitant phenomena, during sleep |journal=Science |volume=118 |issue=3062 |pages=273–274 |bibcode=1953Sci...118..273A |doi=10.1126/science.118.3062.273 |pmid=13089671 |s2cid=43636051}}</ref>

Accumulated observation shows that dreams are strongly associated with REM sleep, during which an [[Electroencephalography|electroencephalogram]] shows brain activity to be most like wakefulness. While REMS is associated with dreaming, not all REMS periods result in reported dreams, and not all dreams occur during REMS.<ref>J. F. Pagel, “The Persistent Paradox of Rapid Eye Movement Sleep (REMS): Brain Waves and Dreaming,” Brain Sciences (2076-3425) 14, no. 7 (July 2024): 622.</ref> Participant-nonremembered dreams during NREM are normally more mundane in comparison.<ref name="Dement1957">{{cite journal |vauthors=Dement WC, Kleitman N |author-link1=William C. Dement |author-link2=Nathaniel Kleitman |year=1957 |title=The relation of eye movements during sleep to dream activity: an objective method for the study of dreaming |journal=Journal of Experimental Psychology |volume=53 |issue=5 |pages=339–46 |citeseerx=10.1.1.308.6874 |doi=10.1037/h0048189 |pmid=13428941 |s2cid=17299436}}</ref> During a typical lifespan, a human spends a total of about six years dreaming<ref name="HSWDream">{{cite web |year=2006 |title=How Dreams Work |vauthors=Obringer LA |website=How Stuff Works |url=http://science.howstuffworks.com/dream3.htm |access-date=July 26, 2018}}</ref> (which is about two hours each night).<ref>{{cite web |year=2006 |title=Brain Basics: Understanding Sleep |url=http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/brain_basics/understanding_sleep.htm |access-date=2009-11-16 |publisher=[[National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke]] |archive-date=2007-10-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071011011207/http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/brain_basics/understanding_sleep.htm |url-status=dead}}</ref> Most dreams last only 5 to 20 minutes.<ref name="HSWDream" /> It is unknown where in the brain dreams originate, if there is a single origin for dreams, if multiple portions of the brain are involved, or what the purpose of dreaming is for the body or mind.

During REM sleep, the release of certain neurotransmitters is completely suppressed. As a result, [[motor neuron]]s are not stimulated, a condition known as [[REM atonia]]. This prevents dreams from resulting in dangerous [[Sleepwalking|movements of the body]].<ref name="Mayo Clinic">{{cite web |url=http://www.mayoclinic.org/rem-sleep-behavior-disorder/ |title=REM Sleep Behavior Disorder |website=[[Mayo Clinic]] |access-date=2010-01-02}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |vauthors=Schutte-Rodin S |title=REM Sleep Behavior Disorder |url=http://yoursleep.aasmnet.org/disorder.aspx?id=29 |work=yoursleep.aasmnet.org |publisher=American Academy of Sleep Medicine |access-date=1 October 2011 |archive-date=19 November 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141119233029/http://yoursleep.aasmnet.org/Disorder.aspx?id=29 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Animals have complex dreams and are able to retain and recall long sequences of events while they are asleep.<ref name="animals have complex">{{cite news |url=https://news.mit.edu/2001/dreaming |title=Animals have complex dreams, MIT researcher proves |author=News Office |website=MIT News |publisher=Massachusetts Institute of Technology |date=January 24, 2001 |access-date=April 27, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Louie K, Wilson MA |year=2001 |title=Temporally Structured Replay of Awake Hippocampal Ensemble Activity during Rapid Eye Movement Sleep |journal=Neuron |volume=29 |issue=1 |pages=145–156 |doi=10.1016/S0896-6273(01)00186-6 |doi-access=free |pmid=11182087 |s2cid=10951037}}</ref> Studies show that various species of mammals and birds experience REM during sleep,<ref>{{cite magazine |vauthors=Wilkerson RC |year=2003 |title=The Evolution of REM Dreaming: New Research Includes All Mammals |magazine=Electric Dreams |volume=10 |issue=1 |url=https://www.improverse.com/ed-articles/richard_wilkerson_2003_jan_evolution.htm |via=improverse.com |access-date=April 27, 2024}}</ref> and follow the same series of sleeping states as humans.<ref name="animals have complex" />

The discovery that dreams take place primarily during a distinctive electrophysiological state of sleep (REM), which can be identified by objective criteria, led to rebirth of interest in this phenomenon. When REM sleep episodes were timed for their duration and subjects awakened to make reports before major editing or forgetting could take place, it was determined that subjects accurately matched the length of time they judged the dream narrative to occupy with the length of REM sleep that preceded the awakening. This close correlation of REM sleep and dream experience was the basis of the first series of reports describing the nature of dreaming: that it is a regular nightly occurrence, rather than an occasional phenomenon, and that it is a high-frequency activity within each sleep period occurring at predictable intervals of approximately every 60–90 minutes in all humans throughout the life span.{{citation needed|date=March 2012}}

REM sleep episodes and the dreams that accompany them lengthen progressively across the night, with the first episode the shortest, of approximately 10–12 minutes duration, and the second and third episodes increasing to 15–20 minutes. Dreams at the end of the night may last typically 15 minutes, although these may be experienced as several distinct stories due to momentary arousals interrupting sleep as the night ends.{{citation needed|date=March 2012}}

Dream reports can normally be made 50% of the time when an awakening occurs prior to the end of the first REM period. This rate of retrieval is increased to about 99% when awakenings occur during the last REM period of the night. This increase in the ability to recall appears to be related to intensification across the night in the vividness of dream imagery, colors and emotions. The dream story itself in the last REM period is farthest from reality, containing more bizarre elements, and it is these properties, coupled with the increased likelihood of morning waking review to take place, that heighten the chance of recall of the last dream.{{citation needed|date=March 2012}}

== Definition of a dream ==
The definition of dream used in quantitative research is defined through four base components:
# a form of thinking that occurs under minimal brain direction, external stimuli are blocked, and the part of the brain that recognizes self shuts down
# a form of experience that we believed we experience through our senses
# something memorable
# have some interpretation of experience by self
In summary, a dream, as defined by [[G. William Domhoff]] and Adam Schneider, is "a report of a memory of a cognitive experience that happens under the kinds of conditions that are most frequently produced in a state called 'sleep.{{'"}}<ref name="The Quantitative Study of Dreams">{{cite web |year=2009 |title=The Quantitative Study of Dreams |vauthors=Schneider A |publisher=[[University of California, Santa Cruz]] |url=http://psych.ucsc.edu/dreams/ |access-date=August 12, 2017 |archive-date=August 20, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110820205306/http://psych.ucsc.edu/dreams/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

=== Authentic dreaming ===
Authentic dreams are defined by their tendency to occur "within the realm of experience"<ref name="Kavanau2000" /> and reflect actual memories or experiences the dreamer can relate to. Authentic dreams are believed to be the side effect of synaptic efficacy refreshment that occurs without errors.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Antrobus J |year=1991 |title=Dreaming: cognitive processes during cortical activation and high afferent thresholds |journal=Psychological Review |volume=98 |issue=1 |pages=96–120 |doi=10.1037/0033-295x.98.1.96 |pmid=2006234 |s2cid=28316430}}</ref> Research suggests that the brain stimulation that occurs during dreaming authentic dreams is significant in reinforcing neurological pathways, serving as a method for the mind to "[[Memory rehearsal|rehearse]]" certain things during sleep.

=== Illusory dreaming ===
Illusory dreams are defined as dreams that contain impossible, incongruent, or bizarre content and are hypothesized to stem from memory circuits accumulating efficacy errors. In theory, old memories having undergone synaptic efficacy refreshment multiple times throughout one's lifetime result in accumulating [[Memory error|errors]] that manifest as illusory dreams when stimulated. Qualities of illusory dreaming have been linked to delusions observed in mental disorders.<ref name="Kavanau2000" /> Illusory dreams are believed to most likely stem from older memories that experience this accumulation of errors in contrast to authentic dreams that stem from more recent experiences.

== Influences on dreaming ==
One aspect of dreaming studied is the capability to externally influence the contents of dreams with various stimuli. One such successful connection was made to the [[olfactory system]], influencing the emotions of dreams through a smell stimulus. Their research has shown that the introduction of a positive smelling stimulus (roses) induced positive dreams while negative smelling stimulus (rotten eggs) induced negative dreams.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Schredl M, Atanasova D, Hormann K, Maurer JT, Hummel T, Stuck BA |year=2009 |title=Information processing during sleep: the effect of olfactory stimuli on dream content and dream emotions |journal=Journal of Sleep Research |volume=18 |issue=3 |pages=285–290 |doi=10.1111/j.1365-2869.2009.00737.x |pmid=19552703 |s2cid=19625857}}</ref>

=== Memories and experience ===
{{Further|Sleep and memory}}
Though there is much debate within the field about the purpose of dreaming, a leading theory involves the [[Memory consolidation|consolidation of memories]] and experiences that occurs during REM sleep. The electric involuntary stimulus the brain undergoes during sleep is believed to be a basis for a majority of dreaming. Research suggests that dreams, especially during REM sleep, help consolidate memories by integrating new information with existing memories. This process may prioritize emotionally significant or unresolved experiences.<ref>Carlo Cipolli, “Sleep, Dreams and Memory: An Overview,” Journal of Sleep Research 4, no. 1 (1995): 2–9.</ref>

The link between memory, sleep, and dreams becomes more significant in studies analyzing memory consolidation during sleep. Research has shown that NREM sleep is responsible for the consolidation of facts and episodes in contrast to REM sleep that consolidates more [[Emotion and memory|emotionally related aspects]] of memory.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Wagner U, Born J |year=2008 |title=Memory consolidation during sleep: Interactive effects of sleep stages and HPA regulation |journal=Stress |volume=11 |issue=1 |pages=28–41 |doi=10.1080/10253890701408822 |pmid=17853075 |s2cid=2124331}}</ref> The correlation between REM and emotional consolidation could be interpreted as the reason why dreams are of such an emotional nature and produce strong reactions from humans.

=== Interpersonal attachment ===
In addition to the conscious role people are aware of memory and experience playing in dreaming, unconscious effects such as health of relationships factor into the types of dreams the brain produces. Of the people analyzed, those suffering from "[[insecure attachment]]s" were found to dream with more frequency and more vividly than those who were evaluated to have "[[secure attachment]]s".<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=McNamara P, Andresen J, Clark J, Zborowski M, Duffy CA |year=2001 |title=Impact of attachment styles on dream recall and dream content: a test of the attachment hypothesis of REM sleep |journal=Journal of Sleep Research |volume=10 |issue=2 |pages=117–127 |doi=10.1046/j.1365-2869.2001.00244.x |doi-access=free |pmid=11422726 |s2cid=25618302}}</ref>

=== Drugs affecting dreaming ===
Correlations between the usage of drugs and dreaming have been documented, particularly the use of drugs, such as [[sedative]]s, and the suppression of dreaming because of drugging effects on the cycles and stages of sleep while not allowing the user to reach REM. [[Stimulant|Drugs used for their stimulating properties]] ([[cocaine]], [[methamphetamine]], and [[MDMA|ecstasy]]) have been shown to also decrease the restorative properties of REM sleep and its duration.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Schierenbeck T, Riemann D, Berger M, Hornyak M |year=2008 |title=Effect of illicit recreational drugs upon sleep: Cocaine, ecstasy and methamphetamine |journal=Sleep Medicine Reviews |volume=12 |issue=5 |pages=381–389 |doi=10.1016/j.smrv.2007.12.004 |pmid=18313952 |s2cid=11788659}}</ref>

== Dreaming disorders ==
Dreaming disorders are difficult to quantify due to the ambiguous nature of dreaming. However, dreaming disorders can be linked to psychological disorders such as [[post-traumatic stress disorder]] expressed as [[nightmare]]s. Research into dreaming also suggests similarity and links in illusory dreaming and [[delusion]]s.<ref name="Kavanau2000" />

=== Post-traumatic stress disorder ===
Diagnostic symptoms include re-experiencing original [[Psychological trauma|trauma]](s), by means of [[Flashback (psychology)|flashbacks]] or nightmares; avoidance of stimuli associated with the trauma; and increased [[arousal]], such as difficulty falling or staying asleep, anger, and [[hypervigilance]].

Links to [[post-traumatic stress disorder]] (PTSD) and dreaming have been made in studying the flashbacks or nightmares the victims would suffer. Measurement of the [[Neural oscillation|brain waves]] exhibited by the subjects experiencing these episodes showed great similarity between those of dreaming. The drugs used to treat those suffering from these symptoms of flashbacks and nightmares would suppress not only these traumatic episodes but also any other sort of dreaming function.<ref name="Kavanau2000" />

=== Schizophrenia ===
The symptoms of [[schizophrenia]] involve abnormalities in the perception or expression of reality primarily focused on delusions and [[hallucination]]s.

The delusions experienced by those with schizophrenia have been likened to the experience of illusory dreams that have come to be interpreted by the subject as actual experiences.<ref name="Kavanau2000" /> Additional research into medication to suppress symptoms of schizophrenia have also shown to influence the [[Rapid eye movement sleep|REM cycle]] of those taking the medication and as a result influence the patterns of sleep and dreaming in the subjects.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Lusignan F, Zadra A, Dubuc MJ, Daoust AM, Mottard JP, Godbout R |year=2009 |title=Dream content in chronically-treated persons with schizophrenia |journal=Schizophrenia Research |volume=112 |issue=2 |pages=164–173 |doi=10.1016/j.schres.2009.03.032 |pmid=19409757 |s2cid=7240632}}</ref>

== See also ==
* ''[[The Lathe of Heaven]]''
* [[Carl Jung]]
* [[Sigmund Freud]]
* [[Dream]]
* [[Dreamwork]]
* [[Dreams in analytical psychology]]
* [[Dreaming (journal)|''Dreaming'' (journal)]]
* [[Embodied imagination]]
* [[Lucid dreaming]]
* [[Oneiromancy]]
* [[Oneironautics]]
* [[Unconscious mind]]
* [[International Association for the Study of Dreams]] (IASD)

== References ==
{{Reflist|2}}

== Further reading ==
{{Wikiquote}}
* {{cite journal |vauthors=Aserinsky E, Kleitman N |author-link1=Eugene Aserinsky |author-link2=Nathaniel Kleitman |year=1953 |title=Regularly Occurring Periods of Eye Motility and Concomitant Phenomena during Sleep |journal=Science |volume=118 |issue=3062 |pages=273–274 |bibcode=1953Sci...118..273A |doi=10.1126/science.118.3062.273 |pmid=13089671 |s2cid=43636051}}
* {{cite book |vauthors=Blagrove M, Lockheart J |author-link1=Mark Blagrove |author-link2=Julia Lockheart |year=2023 |title=The Science and Art of Dreaming |location=Abingdon-on-Thames |publisher=Routledge}}
* {{cite journal |vauthors=Dement WC, Kleitman N |author-link1=William C. Dement |author-link2=Nathaniel Kleitman |year=1957 |title=The relation of eye movements during sleep to dream activity: an objective method for the study of dreaming |journal=Journal of Experimental Psychology |volume=53 |issue=5 |pages=339–46 |citeseerx=10.1.1.308.6874 |doi=10.1037/h0048189 |pmid=13428941 |s2cid=17299436}}
* {{cite book |vauthors=Domhoff GW |author-link1=G. William Domhoff |year=2003 |title=The Scientific Study of Dreams: Neural Networks, Cognitive Development, and Content Analysis |location=Washington, DC |publisher=American Psychological Association}}
* {{cite book |veditors=Gackenbach J, LaBerge S |editor1-link=Jayne Gackenbach |editor2-link=Stephen LaBerge |year=1988 |title=Conscious Mind, Sleeping Brain |location=New York |publisher=Plenum Press}}
* {{cite book |vauthors=Hadfield JA |author-link1=J. A. Hadfield |year=1969 |title=Dreams and Nightmares |location=Middlesex, England |publisher=Penguin Books}}
* {{cite book |vauthors=Hobson JA |author-link1=Allan Hobson |title=The Dreaming Brain |location=New York |publisher=Basic Books, Inc., Publishers}}
* {{cite book |veditors=Kramer M |title=Dream Psychology and the New Biology of Dreaming |location=Springfield, Illinois |publisher=Thomas Books}}
* {{cite book |vauthors=LaBerge S |author-link1=Stephen LaBerge |year=1985 |title=Lucid Dreaming |location=New York |publisher=Jeremy P. Tarcher Inc}}
* {{cite book |vauthors=Oswald I |author1-link=Ian Oswald |year=1972 |title=Sleep |location=Middlesex, England |publisher=Penguin Books}}
* {{cite book |vauthors=Van de Castle RL |title=Our Dreaming Mind |location=New York |publisher=Ballantine Books}}

{{Dreaming}}
{{Analytical psychology}}
{{Carl Jung}}
{{Sigmund Freud}}

[[Category:Oneirology| ]]
[[Category:Carl Jung]]
[[Category:Sigmund Freud]]
[[Category:Dream]]
[[Category:Lucid dreams]]
[[Category:Analytical psychology]]
[[Category:Psychoanalytic theory]]
[[Category:Symbols]]
[[Category:Sleep physiology]]