Individuals often wonder how frequently they can recall their dreams and sometimes experience waking up with a sense of having dreamed, yet cannot remember the details. Research indicates that the capacity to remember dreams could be influenced by various factors.
In Italy, researchers have dedicated four years to studying "morning dream recall," publishing their findings in the journal Communications Psychology. Their research investigates how certain traits and behaviors could impact an individual’s ability to remember their dreams upon waking. This examination holds significant importance for understanding the broader study of dreaming, an enigmatic brain function that remains largely elusive to scientific analysis.
Giulio Bernardi, a psychologist from the IMT School for Advanced Studies Lucca, noted that their findings suggest dream recall is influenced by personal attitudes, cognitive traits, and sleep dynamics, rather than mere chance. These insights contribute to a deeper understanding of the mechanisms behind dreaming and could have implications for exploring the role of dreams in mental health and human consciousness.
The research team, including Bernardi, conducted a study involving over 200 participants aged 18 to 70. Participants were asked to record their dreams and wear a sleep-monitoring wristwatch for 15 days. Before and after this period, participants completed tests and questionnaires covering personal topics such as their interest in dreams, propensity for distraction, and anxiety levels.
The study revealed a wide range of morning dream recall capabilities among participants, along with various potential influencing factors. For instance, individuals with a positive view of dreams and a tendency to daydream were more likely to remember their dreams. Additionally, seasonal variation was noted, with a higher rate of dream recall observed during the spring compared to winter.
It was also found that individuals who spent more time in light sleep, as well as younger participants, showed a greater likelihood of remembering their dreams. Conversely, older adults frequently experienced waking up with the sensation of having dreamed but unable to recall the content, a phenomenon termed "white dreams." The researchers suggested that white dreams reflect genuine dream experiences with fading memories upon awakening, as stated in their findings.
Valentina Elce, the study’s first author and a PhD student in cognitive, computational, and social neurosciences at the IMT School for Advanced Studies Lucca, emphasized the potential of the collected data to serve as a reference for future comparisons with clinical populations. This could advance research on pathological alterations of dreaming and their possible prognostic and diagnostic significance.
Though the self-reported nature of dreams introduces potential biases, the identification of factors influencing morning dream recall by Bernardi, Elce, and their colleagues offers valuable insights into a mysterious brain function that has intrigued humanity for centuries.