Our dreams can be the strangest things; we may dream of winning an award, an upside-down cat driving a car or a cup coming to life. Do these dreams have meanings, and do they reflect how we feel? What could we possibly understand about ourselves when we dream about an upside-down cat driving a car?
Dream analysis is a psychodynamic technique invented to identify and understand our dreams' meaning and what they say about our current psychological state.
- Throughout this topic, we will look at how Freud's dream analysis is used in psychology, starting by learning the dream analysis psychology definition.
- We will look at the components of dream analysis that make it the intervention it is today.
- We will look at dream analysis in action by considering a dream analysis example.
- Finally, we will discuss the technique's evaluation points, highlighting the advantages, the importance of dream analysis and the weaknesses.
What is Dream Analysis Psychology?
Dream analysis psychology is a technique rooted in psychoanalysis but is also used in other forms of psychotherapy. It aims to uncover and interpret the content of dreams (the manifest content), i.e. the hidden and unconscious symbolic meaning and motivations (latent content) of the dreams.
Freud Dream Analysis
Freud, one of the most widely talked about psychoanalysts, came up with the idea of dream analysis after making observations from his clients.
Freud's theory proposed that dreams represent people's desires, drives and thoughts. Society considers these desires unacceptable, so people repress them, which are later manifested in their dreams. And these dreams subconsciously guide our behaviour.
An ex-soldier who has been having violent dreams, such as dreaming about fighting, is more likely to have violent tendencies.
Freud proposed that dreams consist of manifest content and latent content. Let's take a look at what both of these mean:
The manifest content of a dream is what we actually see, and the latent content is the hidden meaning/ messages behind what we see in a dream.
The dream analysis therapist's role is to take the manifest content described by the client and help guide them to understand the latent content of the dreams. This allows the client to understand the root cause of their behaviour and find a way to combat and resolve the issue.
According to Freud's dream analysis approach, therapists should refrain from telling clients what dreams mean. Instead, he asked clients to say whatever came to their minds when discussing their dreams; this is still used in dream analysis interventions today and is known as free association.
Free association is used when a therapist identifies a theme in a dream and tries to uncover the cause of it. The technique works by the therapist saying a random word relevant to the theme, e.g. anger, and asking the client to say whatever the first word comes to their mind.
Dream Analysis: Psychology Definition
Dream analysis is an intervention that is used as part of an intervention for some mental illnesses and other issues, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or people with frequent and chronic nightmares.
The intervention applies psychoanalytic theories to treat dysfunctional behaviour. Dream analysis tries to uncover repressed memories in dreams that may contribute to mental illnesses.
The emphasis on repressed memories causing internal conflict is a crucial principle in the psychoanalytic approach to explaining behaviour.
Figure 1 - According to Freud, dreams are hidden in our unconscious mind and are challenging to become consciously aware of without the help of a psychotherapist.
Changes in the Dream Analysis Psychology Definition
Freud is the founding father of dream analysis. However, since his time, the theory surrounding dream analysis has evolved. Jung, an important neo-Freudian figure in the psychodynamic approach, argued that dreams are caused by thoughts and conflicts that were not expressed when the individual was awake. He proposed humans waking internal thoughts, desires and conflicts are expressed whilst dreaming, showing the 'true' state of mind during sleep.
- More recent theories, such as the self-organisation theory of dreaming, propose that dreams are caused by information processing. Memories can also cause dreams. These occur when memories are encoded or stored in the memory stores during the dreaming stages of sleep.
The theory agrees with Freud that factors such as emotion and how individuals react to stimuli such as anger can manifest into dreams.
- Most of our dreams occur during the REM (rapid eye movement) stage of sleep. These dreams are likely to be personal as the stage is associated with processing emotional memories.
Component of Dream Analysis
According to the traditional Freud dream analysis theory, the technique has three components.
The first is dreams have a wish fulfilment purpose. Dreams are our unconscious mind's way of hiding the id's desires. It allows the individual to have their desires in their dreams because, in real life, these may be unattainable or unacceptable.
If a bully is mean to someone, they might not do something about it because they may fear the bully retaliating. Instead, the individual may dream about having influential power where others can't bully them.
The second component is dreams have a symbolic nature. According to Freud, dreams aren't ransom. They have meaning behind them, the latent meaning. The therapist's role is to uncover these hidden meanings and help guide the client to deal with the issues that may be causing the internal conflict.
And the final component of dream analysis is dreamwork.
Dreamwork is the process of a therapist helping a client become consciously aware of the latent meaning of dreams safely, allowing the client-therapist to work together to try and combat issues that may be causing dysfunctional behaviour or symptoms of mental illnesses.
Dream Analysis Example: How Does it Work?
Some of the steps that may be used when using dream analysis are:
- Uncovering the manifest content - the client and therapist speak, and the client discusses the memories of their dreams - subject and content-wise.
- Dreamwork - the manifest content is transformed or reimagined as latent content to discover underlying meanings.
- Condensation - details of dreams are put together to get the "whole picture".
Let's take a look at an example now:
During the intervention, the client may be asked to keep a detailed record, such as a diary, to record information about dreams.
Free association is typically used to uncover repressed dreams and their meaning.
The therapist and client work collaboratively to experience and understand feelings and conflicts experienced in dreams, such as using metaphors that compare dreams to clients' real-life experiences.
An ex-soldier with post-traumatic stress disorder may have repetitive dreams of being angry at someone who had not harmed them due to repressed anger due to time and feelings experienced in combat.
Evaluation of Dream Analysis
Let's discuss the benefits and drawbacks of dream analysis as an intervention.
Dream Analysis: Strengths
The components of dream analysis have been applied to other psychological treatments (cognitive behavioural therapy; CBT); this intervention is called image rehearsal therapy (IRT). Its purpose is to change the content of nightmares to positive. It has been found to have a positive effect on reducing nightmares. CBT is readily available and is one of the most common interventions.
Matt and Navarro (1997) reviewed 63 meta-analyses of psychotherapy and its effectiveness when dream analysis is utilised. They found that around 75% of the clients who received dream analysis showed some improvement.
The Importance of Dream Analysis
Dream analysis attempts to get to the root of an individual's problems that may be causing dysfunctional behaviour or mental illnesses. The intervention does this by identifying potential causes of the behaviour, and with the therapist, the client can then try to figure out how to combat this. Other interventions, such as drug therapy, do not take this approach. Instead, they try to get rid of the problem solely.
Dream Analysis: Weaknesses
There is no standardised method to carry out dream analysis. It takes an individualistic approach. The direction of the intervention depends on how each client responds; this means the therapist needs to be extensively trained and prepare a tailed intervention for every client. This can be time-consuming and expensive.
It is not usually used as an independent intervention to combat mental health issues; it is often applied in conjunction with other methods. This may be the case because the intervention is reductionist as it does not consider biological or environmental factors contributing to mental health. Suggesting the intervention over-simplifies complex behaviour or fails to acknowledge it to a sufficient level.
It has limited application and is not a method commonly used.
Dream analysis cannot be used to treat autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or sensory or memory deficits.
There are also controversies about whether dreams play a significant role in mental health and how this can be scientifically tested.
Hobson and McCarley (1977) argue that dreams are a product of specific brain areas. They suggest a pre-programmed neural basis for dreams and the imagery, thoughts, and emotions they create during sleep.
And they argue dreams are a product of sporadic activation of brain circuits, which produce different thoughts and images depending on which brain is active. For example, we may dream of running if there is high activity in the motor cortex.
Dream Analysis - Key takeaways
- Dream analysis is an intervention used to uncover dreams' meaning to determine unconscious memories, conflicts and desires.
- According to psychodynamic psychologists, dreams manifest due to internal conflict.
- Freud proposed that dreams consist of manifest and latent content. Dream analysis involves a client and therapist working collaboratively to identify the latent content within the manifested content.
- A vital dream analysis component is free association analysis which is used to uncover repressed feelings that may be hidden in dreams.
- There are various advantages and disadvantages to using dream analysis.
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