Dream Analysis

• The unconscious mind - Freud believed the mind is like an iceberg, where the conscious mind is logical. Whereas the unconscious mind is illogical, ruled by pleasure seeking, and only accessible through dreams. It also uses ego defence mechanisms like repression (pushing trauma into the unconscious) and regression (reverting back to a younger state).
• The aim of dream analysis is to make the unconscious conscious to become aware of unconscious influences in order to uncover conflict in the unconscious mind.
• Freud believed dream analysis was achieved via regia (the royal road) and believed dreams represent underlying conflict and dream analysis is used to to find an underlying meaning to unlock the unconscious.
• Dream analysis linked to assumptions - childhood experiences: any traumatic events that occur in childhood that are repressed may manifest in dreams. To uncover repressed memories, therapist offers interpretations in real life context.
• Dream analysis - links to assumptions: Tripartite personality is when a person is dreaming the id is given free rein the suppressed ego. Dreams can represent unconscious motives, wishes and desires that are socially unacceptable.
• Steps to dream analysis:

  1. Dreamer recalls manifest content of the dream to therapist
  2. Dreamwork is applied to understand the latent content of the dream
  3. Therapist considers clients life context and applies a variety of interpretations
• Displacement:

  • Significant latent content can be insignificant manifest content so the dream is very different from its meaning
  • Emotion linked with one experience can detach and attach to another
• Condensation:

  • Many elements that make up latent content are represented by just 1 image
• Representation:

  • An abstract thought is represented by a visual image
• Symbolism:

  • Significant features represented by a symbol e.g sword/penis
• Secondary elaboration:

  • Unconscious collects images for a storyline so the dream makes sense
  • Further disguising the latent content
• Evaluating Dream Analysis (strengths):

  • Supports link between dreaming and primary process thinking
  • Solms (2000) used PET scans to highlight active regions of the brain during dreaming. Rational part of the brain is inactive during REM sleep, memory and motivation are active (Freud, id is given free reign)
• Evaluating dream analysis (weaknesses):

  • interpreting and reporting the dream is subjective, so it’s unreliable
  • Lacks ecological validity as conducted in a lab, making sleep deprivation and impairing biological functions as confounding variables
• Evaluating dream analysis (ethical considerations):

  • false memory syndrome - identity and relationships affected by fake memories of traumatic experiences
  • emotional harm - therapists implant false memories for financial gain Toon (1996)
  • power imbalance - client has an over reliance on the therapist