Dreams Freud Interpretation Psychology 12 Freuds Interpretations Sigmund

Dreams, Freud, & Interpretation Psychology 12

Freud`s Interpretations • Sigmund Freud believed dreams were an important part of our emotional lives ▫ He thought that they contain clues about thoughts and desires that we are afraid to acknowledge or express • Others disagree and argue there is no productive function of dreaming • Many differing opinions

Sigmund Freud • Austrian late 1800 s – 1930 s • Psychoanalysis • Conscious mind is only the tip of the iceberg –Concentration on the unconscious mind –“learn through dream analysis”

What’s The Meaning of Dreams? Depends Who You Ask? • Dreams As Information Processing: Helps consolidate the day’s experiences and memories. • Activation-Synthesis Theory: dreams are result of brain’s attempt to make sense of random neural activity.

• Dreams As Part of Cognitive Development: all mammals experience R. E. M. sleep and many researchers believe it helps facilitate cognitive development. • R. E. M. Rebound: tendency for R. E. M. sleep to increase following deprivation. May illustrate a biological need for it.

• Physiological Function of Dreams: periodic brain activity associated with R. E. M. sleep gives the brain needed activity to make neural connections. Also helps facilitate memory.

Have you ever dreamed of…. . ? • Falling 83% • Being attacked 77% • School, teacher, studying 71% • Sexual experiences 66% • Arriving late 64% • Eating 62% • A loved person dying 57% • Being locked up 56%

Have you ever dreamed of…. . ? • Finding money 56% • Swimming 52% • Snakes 49% • Being inappropriately dressed 46% • Unable to breathe 44% • Being nude 43% • Fire 41% • Failing an Exam 39% • Killing Someone 26%

3 Primary dream theories 1. Freudian analysis 2. Activation synthesis 3. Cognitive processes

Freud • The Id is trying to send a message • The message is disguised in symbols as it is likely a repulsive message • The message is primal • Possibly relates to something in childhood • Possibly makes us aware of something we initially thought was trivial

The Interpretation of Dreams (1900) ▫ Dreams are a form of wish fulfillment ▫ Attempts of the unconscious to resolve a conflict ▫ The discharge of otherwise unacceptable feelings ▫ Paid attention to details in each dream and drew connections between shapes and sexual representations Two aspects of each dream: • Manifest Content: represents remembered story line of a dream. • Latent Content: represents underlying meaning of dreams dealing with wishes and drives.

Activation Synthesis • Dreams are the product of random firing of neuron in the brain • Brain tries to make sense of these random firings by accessing memories • Reflect past memories, fears, hopes and desires, essentially things already in your brain being stimulated (no new information or connections) • Visual cortex among other areas like the Limbic System are active during R. E. M. sleep. • Mind always tries to make sense of stimuli.

Cognitive Processes Theory • Information processing, memory, & problem solving are all activated in waking and dream state • This comes from the concept that many works of art, literature, and inventions are said to have come from dreams ▫ Robert Louis Stevenson`s book Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde ▫ The sewing machine (Elias Howe)

Cognitive Processes Theory • Review and address problems in waking life • Rehearse experiences in order to remember them better • Rehearse hypothetical situations in order to learn from them • Judgement portion of brain is disabled in order to work through uncensored thoughts • Stimulates neural development.

Dream Interpretation Activity • Choose one of the three types of dream interpretation out of the bowl • Turn a piece of paper into a T-chart: kind of like this -> • As we watch the video of the ‘dream’, record details and thoughts that you will then use for interpretation Type/Description: Details Interpretation(s)

“Dream” • Video Games by Lana Del Ray Analyse the dream using both visual and lyrics, using the whole video as an example of a very vivid dream.