Reinforcement sensitivity driven biobehavioural traits predict the intensity of dreams

Abstract

Sentinel function theory suggests that dreaming relates to the fight-or-flight response, protoconsciousness theory suggests that dreams prepare a person for behaviour upon waking, and threat simulation theory suggests that dreams prepare a person to deal with threat upon waking. Revised reinforcement sensitivity theory (rRST) includes three bio-behavioural systems. A behavioural approach system (BAS) is active when reward is anticipated, received, or pursued. A fight-flight-freeze system (FFFS) is active when avoidance of threat, and/or responses to threat, are required. A behavioural inhibition system (BIS) detects risk, and is implicated in the experience of anxiety. Participants (N = 279; mean age 36.5) completed an online survey that measured self-reported reinforcement sensitivity and four self-reported dream intensity constructs. Elevated BIS sensitivity was related to increases in self-reported dream quantity, dream vividness, diffusion, and altered dream episodes in zero-order and multiple regression analyses. There were no zero-order relationships between FFFS sensitivity and the four dream intensity constructs. Thus, FFFS and BIS sensitivity were differentiable within an analysis of dream intensity. BAS sensitivity was positively related to dream vividness, diffusion, and altered dream episodes in the zero-order analysis, and to diffusion, altered dream episodes (and less reliably to dream vividness) in the multiple regression analyses. There is considerable overlap between the neurobiology described in rRST and the neurobiology implicated in dream genesis. Our data suggests that rRST might be an interesting way to examine how personality is related to the intensity of dreams.