The Dream Experience

The Dream Experience: A Systematic Exploration is a comprehensive text about dreaming. It initially guides the reader through a number of basic concepts about dreaming, including the evidence for dreams actually existing, how dreams are recalled, how dreams are measured and collected in the laboratory, and the range of different types of dreams people experience. It then examines more complex ideas about dream function and meaning. On a personal level, I feel that the subject of dreams is one that was neglected in my own undergraduate medical training, and, although we were taught some basic sleep physiology, the area of dreams had always seemed somewhat mysterious and unscientific. This book has certainly done a good job of filling gaps in my knowledge and has helped me to appreciate the extent of scientific evidence already available in the area. It has provided me with a good foundation to be able to consider and discuss dreams more confidently.