What Makes Dreams Positive or Negative: Relations to Fundamental Dimensions of Positive and Negative Mood

The present study examined the general emotional content of dreams reported by individuals who typically experience “positive” versus “negative” dreams. Self-reports of the 153 participants indicated that positive versus negative dreamers ( ns = 42 and 24, respectively) generally experienced more positive emotions, e.g., joviality, self-assurance, and fewer negative emotions, e.g., fear, sadness. No differences were found in the self-reports of the participants in the experience of surprise, guilt, fatigue, and shyness between the groups, hence, positive and negative dreams do not appear to reflect simply more positive and fewer negative emotions, respectively.