Dreaming Is Believing
When Dreaming is Believing
According to an article entitled “When Dreaming is Believing,” by Carey K. Morewedge, PhD, dreams affect people’s judgment and behavior. It is the belief of the researcher s of this article that dreams can carry more weight than conscious thoughts. Participants in this experiment conducted six different studies, surveying nearly 1,100 people about their dreams. In one study that surveyed general beliefs about dreams, 149 university students were asked to rate different theories about dreams. Cumulatively, an overwhelming majority of the students endorsed the theory that dreams reveal hidden truths about themselves and the world around them. In another study noted in the article, researchers explored the influence dreams had on people’s waking behavior by surveying 182 commuters at a Boston train station. The subjects were asked to imagine possible catastrophic scenarios correspondent to their future travel plans, such as a plane crash. Once the individual thought about the possible scenario, then dreamed about it, researchers found that the participants were more likely to change their travel plans. The dream of a plane crashing had more impact on them than a government warning or a conscious thought. Additionally, in an attempt to determine if people perceive all dreams as equally meaningful or whether interpretations were influenced by waking beliefs and desires, another study was conducted. Participants were asked to recall dreams about someone they knew, God, etc. Some had pleasant dreams about people they liked, as well as unpleasant dreams about people they liked; however, specific meaning was applied to the pleasant dreams about people they liked. In comparison, dreams in which unpleasant things happened to people they did not like were considered more meaningful, as well. Dreams in which individuals dreamed about God speaking to them were counted as important for those that believed in God, and counted as
According to an article entitled “When Dreaming is Believing,” by Carey K. Morewedge, PhD, dreams affect people’s judgment and behavior. It is the belief of the researcher s of this article that dreams can carry more weight than conscious thoughts. Participants in this experiment conducted six different studies, surveying nearly 1,100 people about their dreams. In one study that surveyed general beliefs about dreams, 149 university students were asked to rate different theories about dreams. Cumulatively, an overwhelming majority of the students endorsed the theory that dreams reveal hidden truths about themselves and the world around them. In another study noted in the article, researchers explored the influence dreams had on people’s waking behavior by surveying 182 commuters at a Boston train station. The subjects were asked to imagine possible catastrophic scenarios correspondent to their future travel plans, such as a plane crash. Once the individual thought about the possible scenario, then dreamed about it, researchers found that the participants were more likely to change their travel plans. The dream of a plane crashing had more impact on them than a government warning or a conscious thought. Additionally, in an attempt to determine if people perceive all dreams as equally meaningful or whether interpretations were influenced by waking beliefs and desires, another study was conducted. Participants were asked to recall dreams about someone they knew, God, etc. Some had pleasant dreams about people they liked, as well as unpleasant dreams about people they liked; however, specific meaning was applied to the pleasant dreams about people they liked. In comparison, dreams in which unpleasant things happened to people they did not like were considered more meaningful, as well. Dreams in which individuals dreamed about God speaking to them were counted as important for those that believed in God, and counted as
Cited: “When Dreaming is Believing: Dreams Affect People’s Judgment, Behavior, According to New Study.” http://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2009/02/dreaming. Carey K. Morewedge, 17 Feb. 2009. Web. 17 Mar. 2010.