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When Dreams Are More Than Just Imaginations
Dreams Carry Greater Weight than Conscious Thoughts, According to New Study
Explore the Full Article: Understanding Dreams and Their ImpactPDF-Link-To-The-Article
WASHINTON D.C. – Science may be puzzled by the intricacies of dreams, but people worldwide continue to believe that their nocturnal visions hold profound truths, a recent study reveals.
A team of psychologists surveyed nearly 1,100 individuals on their dream interpretations and found overwhelming evidence suggesting that people fundamentally believe their dreams offer meaningful insights into themselves and their surroundings. The findings were published in the February issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology by the American Psychological Association.
In one survey examining global beliefs about dreams, Carey Morewedge-a Carnegie Mellon University assistant professor-and co-author Michael Norton-a Harvard Business School assistant professor-asked students from the U.S., India, and South Korea to evaluate various theories on dream interpretation. s showed that across these diverse cultures, an overwhelming majority of participants subscribed to the theory that dreams reveal hidden truths about themselves and their environment-a belief also supported by a national sample of American adults.
The researchers then med to explore how dreams influence our waking behaviors. They conducted surveys at a Boston trn station with 182 commuters imagining scenarios from four potential dream or reality-based situations: a heightened national threat level signaling a high risk of terrorism; consciously thinking about a plane crash; dreaming about a plane crash; and experiencing an actual plane crash on their flight route.
The study found that dreaming of a plane crash was more likely to affect travel plans than just thinking about the scenario or being notified by government warning. Similarly, this dream had a comparable level of anxiety to that of an actual crash.
In further experiments, 270 men and women across the United States shared their memories of dreams involving people they knew, leading them to attribute more importance to pleasant dreams about someone they liked compared to someone they did not like. Conversely, participants considered unpleasant dreams more meaningful when it was about a person they disliked.
The researchers concluded that people perceive the meaning of their dreams in line with their existing beliefs and desires, revealing an individual's interpretation process is significantly influenced by such factors.
Carey Morewedge explned: Most people understand that dreams are unlikely to predict the future. However, this doesn't prevent them from finding value and insight within their dreams, whether mundane or bizarre.
Article ## “When Dreaming Is Believing: The Motivated Interpretation of Dreams,” Carey K. Morewedge, PhD; Michael I. Norton, PhD.
Contact for further information:
Carey Morewedge by eml; phone number: 617 308-7033
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This article is reproduced from: https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2009/02/dreaming-behavior
Please indicate when reprinting from: https://www.907h.com/Feng_Shui_Dream/Dreams_Believe_Study_APA.html
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