Meanings : Adler - Activation Synthesis - Freud - Jung - Perls
The Activation-Synthesis Theory of DreamsThe activation synthesis model of dreaming was first proposed in 1977 by Hobson and McCarley . It answers all the questions about the meaning of dreams by the simple expedient of declaring them meaningless.
A Physiological Basis For Dreams?According to the activation-synthesis theory, dreams are merely the brain's reaction to random biological processes that occur during sleep.Various parts of the brain - in particular the pons, part of the brain stem - continue to function and produce stimuli during sleep and REM sleep in particular. The brain then takes these internal stimuli and attempts to make some sort of sense of them. To do this it uses other random stimuli and memories, especially those easily accessible in the short-term memory.
Random BrainwavesFor example, the randomly produced stimuli might resemble those produced when running. The sleeper's mind could then interpret those stimuli as a dream of running. If, in addition, they had earlier that day been startled by a cat then the brain might latch on to that memory and produce a dream of being chased by a lion. Thus cortical attempts to explain random signals from the lower brain produce a random dream with no deep or hidden meanings or purpose.As the pons continues to fire random stimuli at the forebrain, the latter constantly attempts to interpret them. This is why dreams sometimes shift so suddenly in content. The forebrain is attempting to respond to totally new random stimuli and needs to build a completely new situational model to incorporate them. The activation-synthesis hypothesis has the advantage that it renders dreams meaningless and removes any need to understand or interpret them. Some would argue that this is also its biggest disadvantage. IMPORTANT: Dream analysis can be traumatic. This is not a medical site. If you suspect you have a medical problem or serious emotional disturbance you should consult your doctor.
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