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ABSTRACT
The Dreaming of Truck Drivers
Arthur T. Funkhouser, PhD,
Bern, Switzerland
E-mail: atf@alum.mit.edu
Michael Schredl
Central Institute of Mental Health
Mannheim, Germany
Art Funkhouser earned his PhD in digital picture processing
(Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, 1979) and his diploma as a Jungian
psychotherapist in 1981. Besides seeing clients in his private practice,
he leads a dream group in Bern, Switzerland.
Summary of Presentation
Swiss truck drivers filled out questionnaires concerning dreams and
dreaming. Of interest is how often and under what circumstances they dream of
driving (in accord with the continuity hypothesis of dreaming) or of scenes
which compensate for their somewhat monotone daily lives. This paper presents
an overview of the results.
Learning Objectives.
A.1. To investigate the effects of extended truck driving on
dreaming.
A.2. To measure the extent of continuity in their dreams.
A.3. To measure the extent of compensation in their dreams.
Evaluation questions:
B.1. What is the dreaming experience of Swiss and German truck
drivers?
B.2. How is dreaming affected by extended driving?
B.3. How much dream-life is explained by the continuity hypothesis
and how much by the compensation theory of Jung?
Abstract
The Dreaming of Truck Drivers
Swiss truck drivers were surveyed about their dreaming using a 21 item
questionnaire which has questions concerning the driver's age, sex,
professional experience, and dreaming. Of particular interest is the
question about how often such individuals dream about driving. Are there
thresholds (of daily driving time) above which dreams of driving increase
or decrease? How much of the dreaming of truck drivers can be explained
using the continuity hypothesis, how much with Jung's idea of
compensation, and how much by neither of these theories (other
possibilities might be Freud's wish fulfillments and Jung's prospective
dreams)? The answers to these and other questions arising in this
connection will be presented based on the results of this survey.
References:
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Jung CG (1948/1972) General aspects of dream psychology. In: The
Structure and Dynamics of the Psyche. The Collected Works of C. G.
Jung, Vol. 8, par. 483 - 491.
Jung CG (1931/1966) The practical use of dream analysis. In: The
Practice of Psychotherapy. The Collected Works of C. G. Jung, Vol. 16,
par. 330 - 336.
Schredl, M. (1999). Die nächtliche Traumwelt: Eine Einführung in
die psychologische Traumforschung [The Nocturnal World of Dreams: An
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