Problems in Dream Content Study With Objective Indicators

Introduction In a paper comparing the content of home and laboratory dreams,4it was noted that the effect of the experimental situation on laboratory dreams is one of the important methodological issues that must be resolved before objective indicators of dreaming can be exploited as a method for collecting a more complete and representative sample of dream narratives. Is the experimental situation more likely to appear in any one rapid eye movement (REM) period during the night? Is it more likely to appear on the first experimental nights? Most important, what is the attitude of the subject as revealed by his dream characterization of the experimental situation, and what are the possible effects of this attitude on laboratory dream content? Whitman et al9have addressed themselves to some of these problems, but their subjects were randomly administered a sedative (phenobarbital, 10 mg),