Personal Impression about Dreams - Article Example

Despite the difficulties associated with understanding and interpreting dreams, many psychologists have performed several studies to determine the reasons why people dream and to determine the meaning of such dreams through dream analysis.

In his book, Hobson (1) attempts to answer the obvious questions regarding the causes of dreams, the reasons why dreams appear so strange, and why we tend to forget most of our dreams upon waking up. He observes that most of the historical studies and interpretations about dreams had focused on the content rather than their inherent forms. Based on the formal analysis, he defines dreaming as a mental activity that occurs while an individual is asleep. He holds the opinion that brain activation during sleep reflects our concerns regarding our previous experiences and uncertainties in the future (9). In attempting to explain why we tend to forget most of our dreams upon waking up, Hobson argues that our cognition changes due to the release of chemicals in the brain and selecting deactivation of the brain during sleep and upon waking up (10).

According to Hobson(15), psychoanalysis of dream content as proposed by psychologists such as Freud was biased and failed because it was subjective in nature. This kind of analysis could not provide a clear interpretation of dreams because it involved an exploration of dreams on the assumption of disguised symbolism, censorship, and metaphors. An objective view to explain the working of dreams according to Hobson is to explore the activation of the brain in sleep (32). This analysis would enable us to derive associations, make connections with our past and be able to predict our future