Interpreting Your Dreams

Television, movies, and other popular media often portray dreams as highly significant and easily interpreted. However scientists are deeply divided about the meaning of dreams and their relative importance. These differences in scientific opinion provide an excellent opportunity for you to practice the critical thinking skill of tolerance for ambiguity. To improve your tolerance for ambiguity (and learn a little more about your own dreams) begin by briefly jotting down one of your most recent and vivid dreams. Your description of your dream should be at least two paragraphs in length.

Next analyze your dream using the following perspectives:

1.) According to the psychoanalytic/psychodynamic view, what might be the forbidden, unconscious fears, drives, or desires represented by your dream? Can you identify the manifest content versus the latent content?

2.) How would the biological view, the activation-synthesis hypothesis, explain your dream? Can you identify a specific thought that might have been stimulated and led to this particular dream?

3.) Psychologists from the cognitive perspective believe dreams provide important information, help us make needed changes in our life and even suggest solutions to real-life problems. Do you agree or disagree? Does your dream provide an insight that increases your self-understanding?

This assignment should be at least 2 pages in length. The assignment is worth up to 50 total points.