Associations between mood, gender and the prevalence of nightmares and bad dreams

This study investigates the associations between mood, gender and the prevalence of nightmares and bad dreams. Several types of research have displayed some connections between emotions and nightmares, but there is still not a robust and unilateral agreement on this connection. Since previous literature has not given a homogeneous framework regarding the link between dreaming and emotional processes, and there are many unanswered questions within the field of dreaming, it is important to apply some more research and obtain robust data to the field. Eighty-seven participants filled out an online dream diary questionnaire for a four-week period with information about their demographical variables, experienced dreaming and mood during this period. The result showed a significant negative correlation between mood before bedtime and total nightmares and bad dreams. The hierarchal regression analysis showed that age, gender and mood before bedtime could explain 22% of the variance in total nightmares and bad dreams, with mood before bedtime as the only significant predictor. There were no significant gender differences in the mood before bedtime and the total nightmares and bad dreams. The results demonstrate that more longitudinal research is needed on this area, with a substantially larger sample size to strengthen the results and contribute to a greater amount of data within the area of dreaming. Through enhanced knowledge within the domain, one can contribute to more homogeneous theories, and for people to gain more knowledge about a big part of their life and what it might mean for their psychological state. Keywords: dreams, nightmares, bad dreams, mood, continuity hypothesis, emotion-dream interaction, gender difference