Theories on Why We Dream

Theories on Why We Dream

From LoveToKnow Sleep

The theories on why we dream range from concepts that dreams are the results of our subconscious thoughts to the more simplistic concepts that dreams are simply random "noise" in the brain's neurons.

There are many theories on why people dream.

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Theories on Why We Dream

Through the years there have been many theories on why we dream. This somewhat mysterious subject has always been on the forefront of speculation. Many researchers and scientists have grappled with finding the actual reason for dreams, as well as the specific meanings of certain types of dreams. Sigmund Freud was one of the early publishers of a theory about dreaming. Several of his contemporaries reflected on his theory, often adding their own concepts.
Dream research continues to fine tune the previous theories as scientists uncover more and more about the brain's functions during REM sleep and as scientific measuring equipment improves.

Sigmund Freud

Sigmund Freud (1856 to 1939) is considered the father of psychoanalysis. His dream theory reflected his opinion that dreams are a person's outlet for their subconscious thoughts and "hidden desires." He felt that everything in a dream was the result of the dreamer's instincts and experiences. He believed that nothing was done by chance and that everything was motivated by the unconscious - what a dreamer does in their dreams was the way to act on those impulses and urges. He felt that the reason a dreamer cannot remember their dreams is because of the super ego's goal to protect the conscious mind from the thoughts and desires of the unconscious mind.

Carl Jung

Carl Jung (1875 to 1960) was a student of Sigmund Freud but they did not agree on the cause of dreams. Carl Jung saw the unconscious mind as more spiritual. He believed that dreams were a window to the dreamer's unconscious and a way for the dreamer to solve problems they were facing in their waking life.

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Alfred Adler

Alfred Adler (1870 to 1937) believed that dreams were problem solving devices, a way to gain control over thoughts from an individual's waking life. He was a major proponent of dream interpretation since he felt that bringing dreams to light would help the dreamer solve their problems. He did not believe that the conscious and subconscious functioned in opposing ways and that, in fact, dreams were a way to see how we truly felt since we think the same way when we are asleep as we do when we are awake. All the actions taken in a dream could compensate for actions that the dreamer would not feel comfortable taking when they were awake.

Frederick Perls

Frederick Perls (1893 to 1970) was the founder of Gestalt therapy which seeks to fill emotional voids. Perls believed that dreams were reflecting the rejected, disowned parts of the dreamer. The more the dreamer could understand the dream, the more they could fill their emotional voids. He believed in reenacting the dream so that the dreamer could role play each of the characters in the dream as a way to understand how everyone felt about each other.

Perception Theory

The "Perception" theory of dreams is that a dream is a combination of an individual's perception, combined with their imagination. For example, one person may look at a rose and think of its sweet fragrance while another person may look at the same rose and only consider the pain of getting pricked by one of the rose's thorns. According to the "Perception" dream theory, these two people could have very different dreams about the same rose.

Random Noise Theory

Francis Crick and Graeme Mitchison, two former researchers at the Salk Institute in California proposed that the purpose of dreaming is to remove undesirable interactions in the networks in the brain cells. Their theory is that throughout the day the brain's cells are likely to be disturbed either by the growth of the brain itself or by the modifications produced in the brain based on an individual's daily experiences. A dream lets the brain of the dreamer "unlearn" the changes from the day, providing a clearer channel in which the brain can function.