Kluwer Academic/Human Sciences Press, Inc., New York City

Dreaming Volume 9, Number  2/3, June 1999 

Guest Editor: G. William Domhoff, Ph. D.

CONTENTS
Special Issue : New Directions in the Study of Dream Content

New Directions in the Study of Dream Content Using the Hall and Van de Castle Coding System
G. William Domhoff
Page 115

Much Ado About Very Little: The Small Effect Sizes When Home and Laboratory Collected Dreams Are Compared
G. William Domhoff and Adam Schneider
Page 139

The Home Dreams and Waking Fantasies of Boys and Girls Between Ages 9 and 15: A Longitudinal Study
Inge Strauch and Sibylle Lederbogen
Page 153

The Most Recent Dreams of 12-13 Year-Old Boys and Girls: A Methodological Contribution to the Study of Dream Content in Teenagers
Deborah Avila-White, Adam Schneider, and G. William Domhoff
Page 163

The Most Recent Dreams of Children Ages 8-11
Sharon Saline
Page 173

The Dreams of Blind Men and Women: A Replication and Extension of Previous Findings
Craig S. Hurovitz, Sarah Dunn, G. William Domhoff, and  Harry Fiss
Page 183

Medication and Dreams: Changes in Dream Content After Drug Treatment
Nili T. Kirschner
Page 195

Drawing Theoretical Implications from Descriptive Empirical Findings on Dream Content
G. William Domhoff
Page 201

G. William Domhoff
New Directions in the Study of Dream Content Using the Hall and Van de Castle Coding System
Dreaming: Journal of the Association for the Study of Dreams. Vol 9(2/3) 115-137, Jun 1999.
  

Abstract:

Both methodological and statistical innovations add to the usefulness of the Hall and Van de Castle system for the content analysis of dream reports. In addition, there are weaknesses in most rating scales for the study of dream content and numerous methodological and statistical problems call into question many past studies of dream content. In an introduction to this special issue, these possibilities and problems are discussed and then demonstrated through a critique of the literature on gender and dream content.

Key Words: dream content; gender; methods; content analysis; adolescents.

  G. William Domhoff and Adam Schneider
Much Ado About Very Little: The Small Effect Sizes When Home and Laboratory Collected Dreams Are Compared
Dreaming: Journal of the Association for the Study of Dreams. Vol 9(2/3) 139-151, Jun 1999.
  

Abstract

We report a reanalysis of the original codings of dream reports collected at home and in the sleep laboratory from the same participants studied by Hall and Van de Castle in 1964. We used Cohen’s h statistic for effect sizes to argue that, even when statistically significant, most of the differences between the two samples are small to medium in magnitude. This finding suggests that past arguments over the relative usefulness of the two types of samples might not have occurred if the magnitude of effect sizes had been taken into account. The one exception concerns aggressions of various kinds, which also show the greatest variability with age, gender, and culture. It is concluded that useful dream samples for studies using the Hall and Van de Castle coding system can be collected in the laboratory or from normal recall at home and that effect sizes should be calculated in all dream content studies.

Key Words: dream content; content analysis; effect size; aggression.

Inge Strauch and Sibylle Lederbogen
The Home Dreams and Waking Fantasies of Boys and Girls Between Ages 9-15: A Longitudinal Study
Dreaming: Journal of the Association for the Study of Dreams. Vol 9(2/3) 153-161, Jun 1999.

Abstract:

In this longitudinal developmental study, 12 boys and 12 girls provided home dreams and waking fantasies at 3 age levels: 9-11, 11-13, and 13-15. A total of 299 dreams and 286 fantasies were coded by 2 independent raters using Hall and Van de Castle (1966) content categories. In addition, word counts and bizarreness ratings were completed. There were very few changes in the dreams or waking fantasies of either boys or girls, but dream reports were longer at ages 13-15, the aggression/friendliness percent increased over the course of the study, joint-sex peer groups became more frequent, and girls showed a decline in animal percent. The tendency in a wide range of societies for men to dream mostly about other men and for women to dream equally of women and men was found in both the dreams and waking fantasies. Dreams and fantasies differed markedly, with dreams containing more outdoor and unfamiliar settings, and more bizarreness. In dreams the children tended to portray themselves as victims of aggression and recipients of friendliness, but in fantasies they took a more active role as aggressors and befrienders. It is suggested that the children in this study portrayed themselves in their dreams as they conceived of themselves in everyday life, while in their waking fantasies they imagined themselves as they would have liked to be.

Key Words: dream content; waking fantasies; adolescence; longitudinal studies.

  Deborah Avila-White, Adam Schneider, and G. William Domhoff
The Most Recent Dreams of 12-13 Year-Old Boys and Girls: A Methodological Contribution to the Study of Dream Content in Teenagers
Dreaming: Journal of the Association for the Study of Dreams. Vol 9(2/3) 163-171, Jun 1999.

Abstract:

The present study shows that the Most Recent Dream Method developed for the efficient and economical collection of dream reports from adults can be extended to suburban Caucasian 12-13 year-old boys and girls. A content analysis of 162 Most Recent Dreams from girls and 110 Most Recent Dreams from boys using the Hall and Van de Castle (1996) coding system revealed the same general pattern of gender similarities and differences found in the dream content of young adults. A comparison of the present results with those from participants between the ages of 11-13 and with a similar social background in two longitudinal studies showed several similarities in dream content. The overall findings thus suggest that the Most Recent Dream Method may provide a reasonably representative sample of dream reports from teenagers if at least 100 to 125 Most Recent Dreams are collected for each age group, making cross-sectional developmental studies of teenagers’ dreams feasible if the cooperation of a school system can be enlisted. Suggestions for other kinds of studies using Most Recent Dreams from teenagers are also discussed.

Key Words: dream content; content analysis; adolescence.

Sharon Saline
The Most Recent Dreams of Children Ages 8-11
Dreaming: Journal of the Association for the Study of Dreams. Vol 9(2/3) 173-181, Jun 1999.
  
Abstract

The present study examined whether the Most Recent Dream Method is a feasible choice for dream collection from children as young as 8 years old. A quantitative analysis of 30 Most Recent Dreams from 8-11 year-old girls and 32 Most Recent Dreams from 8-11 year-old boys reveals that the method seems feasible as indicated by children’s ability to respond. The basic findings for recency, length, types of characters, and other content categories show the same overall pattern of gender similarities and differences by age 10-11 as found with 12-13 year-olds and young adults. Girls’ dream reports especially begin to resemble those of older girls and young women by age 10-11. These results, if confirmed by follow-up studies with larger numbers of children, suggest that reasonably representative samples of the dreams of girls from age 10 onward can be collected using the Most Recent Dream method.

Key Words: dream content; content analysis; children; gender.

 
Craig S. Hurovitz, Sarah Dunn, G. William Domhoff, Harry Fiss
The Dreams of Blind Men and Women: A Replication and Extension of Previous Findings
Dreaming: Journal of the Association for the Study of Dreams. Vol 9(2/3) 183-193, Jun 1999.
  

Abstract:

Drawing on a sample of 372 dreams from 15 blind adults, we present two separate analyses that replicate and extend findings from previous studies. The first analysis employed DreamSearch, a software program designed for use with dream narratives, to examine the appearance of the five sensory modalities. It revealed that those blind since birth or very early childhood had (1) no visual imagery and (2) a very high percentage of gustatory, olfactory, and tactual sensory references. The second analysis found that both male and female participants differed from their sighted counterparts in the same ways on several Hall and Van de Castle (1966) coding categories, including a high percentage of locomotion/transportation dreams that contained at least one dreamer-involved misfortune. The findings on sensory references and dreamer-involved misfortunes in locomotion/transportation dreams are interpreted as evidence for the continuity between dream content and waking cognition.

Key Words: dream content, blindness, content analysis

 Nili T. Kirschner
  Medication and Dreams: Changes in Dream Content After Drug Treatment
Dreaming: Journal of the Association for the Study of Dreams. Vol 9(2/3) 195-200. Jun 1999.
  
Abstract:

This case study examines the effects of sertraline (Zoloft™) on the dream content of a young woman with generalized anxiety disorder and panic attacks. The study used the major categories of Hall and Van de Castle’s (1966) system of content analysis to compare dream reports before and after drug treatment. Prior to diagnosis and treatment, the dreamer had high levels of aggression and low levels of friendliness in her dreams. The post-medication dreams more closely approximate the female norms. This pilot study suggests a new direction for research on the effects of medication in dream content.

Key Words: dream content; drug effects; serotonin; sertraline; anxiety disorder.

 
G. William Domhoff
Drawing Theoretical Implications from Descriptive Empirical Findings on Dream Content
Dreaming: Journal of the Association for the Study of Dreams. Vol 9(2/3) 201-210, Jun 1999.
  

Abstract:

The theoretical implications of four firmly established descriptive empirical findings concerning dream content are spelled out. The four established findings are: (1) the undeveloped nature of dream content in very young children; (2) the several similarities between dreaming and waking cognition; (3) the continuity of dream content with waking emotional concerns; and (4) the consistency of dream content over years and even decades in adults. It is concluded that these descriptive empirical findings contradict aspects of the Freudian, Jungian, and activation-synthesis theories, but that all of them are compatible with the cognitive theory of dreams formulated by Hall (1953b) and Foulkes (1985, 1999).

Key Words: dream content; Freud; Jung; cognition; activation-synthesis.