Historical aspects of the study of dreams: basic theories

Dream Research

Abstract

Dreams are phenomena of the human psyche that have not yet been fully studied, moreover, their etiology, physiology, characteristics and influence on human behavior, emotions and mental health are one of the mysteries of mankind. The only thing we know for sure about dreams are the images that arise at the moment of active inhibition of mental activity and partially physical activity, that is, in a dream. They are accompanied by bodily sensations, emotional experiences, and appear both in healthy and in people suffering from mental and somatic diseases. Of interest is the presence of dreams in individuals who are in a state not only of natural sleep (diffuse cortical inhibition), but also in people during partial sleep (partial, local inhibition of mental activity in the cerebral cortex) – hypnosis. The purpose of this work was to study and analyze all possible literature, which contains both Russian and foreign experience in the study of dreams over the past 5 years. Using the keywords "dreams", "sleep", "interpretation of dreams", "psychoanalysis", as well as thematic rubricators and codes in a free and indirect search of scientific databases Scopus, Web of Science, RSCI (eLibrary), Google Scholar, PubMed, reliable literary sources were found and studied.

Conclusion: as a result of the analysis of the literature, it is shown that dreams are a complex structure of the human psyche with their own characteristics and secrets that scientists have yet to uncover. It is shown that dreams affect a person's emotions, his mental and physical condition, but the dreamer himself can influence the quality of his dreams by receiving certain emotions, having a certain temperament and observing the schedule of wakefulness and sleep. Aspects of dream interpretation in different schools of psychology are revealed.