Sleep and Hypnosis: A Journal of Clinical Neuroscience and Psychopathology Volume 5, Number 1, Year 2003
Michael Scherdl Ph.D
The so-called continuity hypothesis of dreaming states that waking experiences are reflected in dreams. The formulation of the continuity hypothesis is very broad and vague, however, so that it seems necessary to investigate factors which might affect the incorporation rate of waking-life experiences. A review of the different research paradigms, e. g. assessing temporal references of dream elements, studying the effects of the pre-sleep situation on dreams, will be presented. Various methodological issues which limit the generalizability of the findings in this area will also be addressed. After this overview, several factors such as (a) the time interval between waking-life experience and dream occurrence, (b) emotional involvement, (c) the type of waking-life experience, (d) personality traits and (e) the time of the night (time interval between sleep onset and dream onset) for which empirical data indicates an influence on incorporation rates of waking-life experiences will be listed. A mathematical model is proposed which should enable researchers to identify influencing factors and their interactions making a more precise formulation of the continuity hypothesis possible. (Sleep and Hypnosis 2003;5(1):26-39)
Keywords: continuity hypothesis, dream content, dreaming, laboratory references, mathematical model