Thursday, January 26, 2012

Dreams of Gamers and Games in Dreams

Stickgold, Hobson, Fosse, and Fosse (2001) used the method of presleep videogame play to investigate whether or not episodic memories transitioned from waking to sleep. The video game "Tetris" was used for the study. What would you expect to see from this study in terms of dream imagery?

23 comments:

  1. I this depends on how familiar the participants are with the game. I think that those who have never played the game before will see more images that resemble the shapes seen in tetris in their dreams after they play it. I think this would be because it is a new experience for them so they will continue thinking about the game as they fall asleep and it will need to be sorted through in their memory. On the other hand, I think individuals who have played the game a lot or are very good at the game won't see as many tetris shapes in their dreams because it is not new information to them. Also, in terms of the actual dream imagery, obviously it may not always be so obvious. They may not blatantly dream about tetris blocks, but possibly things similar in shape as well.

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  2. I agree with Megan's comment about the experience the participants previously had with the Tetris game - however, I also believe that their focus and attention to the game during play will greatly influence their dream imagery. That being said, those who are paying much attention to the game and are really into it, may experience more episodic imagery in their dreams influenced from the game, whereas those who are merely playing it and are not as concentrated may not experience any influence of the game in their dream imagery. Therefore, concentration would play an important role in participants' ability to remember and consolidate related information/shapes/images into their dreams.

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  3. I would expect to see that the images from the pre-sleep video game playing would appear in the dreams of the participants in this study. One reason for this is that a game like Tetris involves some thinking and problem solving ability. As we have learned in the previous class, one of the functions that sleep and dreams serves is to consolidate and process information. I would assume that the mind would still be attempting to think about and solve this type of problem and therefore the images and solutions to these kinds of puzzles would appear in the people’s dream imagery. I would also think that these images would be present in the participants’ dreams due to the continuity hypothesis. If the people were playing Tetris and thinking about the puzzles before bed in their waking day, I would assume that there would be a good chance that they would continue to think about this while they were dreaming. I would expect to see puzzles and shapes and problems in the dream imagery of the participants. Also, from my personal experience, I find that whatever my mind is processing before I go to bed often appears in the imagery of my dreams. I strongly think that if I were to engage in an activity like Tetris right before bed, I would most likely dream of Tetris pieces and puzzles in my sleep.

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  4. From the study on videogames, using Tetris, I would expect that participants would expect to see a lot of colours, and shapes (based on some conditions). From this, I believe that it depends on how seriously the participants took the game. I think that individuals who were more invested in the game would dream about the game, maybe being in the game, and having to complete the levels – this comes from the experience of the game, taking form in the individual’s dreams. If they invest a lot of their activities into Tetris, the images will transcend those same experiences and the individual may dream about them. For individuals who do not invest a lot of their time (individuals who are not “serious Tetris players”) may not experience the same amount of vivid imagery as those who are invested in the game. However, I also believe that it involves the personality of the individual who is playing the game. A person may not be invested in the game, but because of stress/excitement of the game, in higher levels, they may dream about the levels. For example; they may picture themselves within the game, having to avoid all of the moving pieces, trying to accomplish the task of beating the level. As the levels become more difficult, the pieces move faster, and therefore the player has to avoid more pieces, more quickly. I also believe (like is mentioned above) that if I played this game spontaneously one night directly before bed, I would more than likely dream about the game.

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  5. I would expect many of the participants to dream about objects that resemble the shapes of the tetris blocks, or even have imagery that contains stacking objects on top of one another. They could also dream of continuing to play the game. I believe that this would occur because we have already learned that people who study a particular image before and throughout sleep will likely dream about content that is similar or related to the stimulus. We have also been introduced to the continuity hypothesis, which states that there is continuity between waking characteristics and dream characteristics. Of course this does not mean that every single person in the study would have dreams containing something related to tetris, it would probably depend on the level of interest in the game as well. If a person continues to think about the game while he or she is relaxing in bed, this would definitely make this person more likely to see dream imagery related to the game. Those who were relatively uninterested in the game would probably not continue to think about the game before bed, and perhaps would not dream about the game either.

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  6. I think that depending on how much attention each participant devoted to tetris different types of imagery would show in their dreams. Someone who didn't pay much attention to the game might have simple imagery such as literally playing a game of tetris in their dream. It would be a more casual manifestation of the days events. Someone that was more focused on the game might have more elaborate manifestation. When we dream we tend to incorporate metaphors as symbols of the days events. I assume that the more focused participant would be dreaming of something like trying to arrange furniture in a room so they fit as much of it as they can. The participants that were more focused on tetris would probably have more anxiety in their dreams considering video games are not a relaxing thing to do before sleep. Your mind would be more restless.

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  7. I believe that people who play tetris before sleeping would have dreams about tetris. They may have dreams about playing tetris, perhaps being in tetris, or maybe seeing tetris colours or tetris blocks in your surroundings. Also, the amount and intensification of tetris imagery in ones dreams is likely to change according to how much tetris was played. Perhaps the more tetris played would result in larger numbers of tetris imagery as well as increased intensification.

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  8. Good question!
    I suppose the Compensatory and Continuity hypotheses would come to play.
    Continuity: dream images of blocks, shapes, colours, spinning, problem-solving, count-down/ time running out, fast moving fingers, high heart-rate, etc.
    Compensatory: "filling in the blanks" in some life situation, "spinning" into or out of control, etc.
    It's also possible that the context of the game could enter dream images, i.e. friends playing, room, tv/ computer, etc.
    Or possibly, no influence on dream images, but a calming or stimulating effect, depending on how gaming impacts the individual.
    Chris Morris

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  9. When someone plays a video game for a sufficient amount of time it may start to overshadow that person's thoughts, images and their dreams. Since tetris is a thinking game and involves logically placing the pieces together, it may be reflected in dreams as being very shape orientated. They also may be thinking of a way they would fit the "pieces" of their life together.

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  10. I believe that some individuals' dreams would be related to Tetris if played for a while before sleeping. It has been proven that video games can affect dreaming if both occur within a short time period. I do think that individuals would potentially dreams about the game itself, or maybe certain aspects of the game. For example, box shaped objects could be found in ones dream. By having dreams that relate to Tetris, the meaning would be different for each person. One individual may dream about the actual game whereas someone else could be dreaming about how they see their life similar to a puzzle. Although, this does not mean that everyone will experience "Tetris dreams" after playing the game.

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  11. I would expect that the epidodic dreams will be similar to their waking day life. If one plays Tetris over a certain period of time then they are more likely to dream about it than if they were to only play it once. If the game is new to the participant, playing the game might trigger the unconscious to bring up past memories of playing a particularly challenging game that the participant could not complete or did complete. If the participant had no relation to gaming before the study they are probably less likely to dream about the game they played a couple of times for a study they participated in.
    There may also be confounding variables at play. A participant could play tetris for 30 minutes everyday for two weeks but if their grandmother died their dreams will probably reflect their grief over a video game.
    Tara-Lee Upshall

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  12. For this particular study, I would assume that the game `Tetris` would have a strong impact on an individuals dream imagery. More specifically, I believe that an individual who played `Tetris` before going to sleep may have various forms of problem solving imagery in their dreams, or they might dream of moving things around. For example, they may dream of rearranging their furniture at home.

    In addition, they may have a lot of bright shapes/colours in their dream. I think this imagery would be more likely to occur if the individual was able to get into the game. Whether they (the gamer) really enjoyed playing the game, or felt challenged in some way, I think these emotions would carry on into the dream. It`s possible that their dream imagery might even be more animated, or cartoon-ish, and less realistic than usual.

    Consequently, I would predict that problem solving, or rearranging of some form, bright colours and shapes, and animated features would most likely be the dream imagery of the person who played Tetris before going to sleep. However, I believe the predicted imagery would be more likely to occur if the gamer put some thought or effort into playing the game.

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  13. I have had personal experience with this exact type of study. When I procrastinate I find a game I really like and usually play it no stop while I avoid doing the work I am supposed to be doing. Last year my game of choice was Tetris, I became so obsessed with the game I was thinking of potential plays during class and while riding the bus (anytime I could not play the game). The game also showed up in my dreams. It would always be the backdrop in whatever I was doing. If I was outside instead of the sky it would be a huge Tetris game that I was somehow controlling. I was always very distracted in these dreams. So from this study as well as some personal experience I would expect that since the participants played the game right before sleep that they would dream about the shapes and even playing the game. I think this would go either way whether the person has played it before or not, if the person has played before and enjoys playing I think it would be fresh in their memory and their brain would want to keep working on the puzzles. I also think and agree with most of the people above that if this was the persons first time they would be thinking about it a lot because yes it is a new experience to them. I also think that whether the experience was a good one (they caught on right away) or it was a bad one (they got frustrated and didn’t like it) they would still dream about it their brain would still be turned on to solving the puzzles. I had never thought of it before but I like that the compensatory was mentioned in how dreaming of Tetris could have a deeper meaning about your life other than you were just dreaming about it. Overall I feel that this study would strengthen the theory that what you think of before you go to sleep is what you will dream of as you sleep.

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  14. I would expect to see that episodic dreams do transition from waking to sleep, and this would be shown by the images viewed in Tetris appearing in dream imagery. As people have previously stated, even if the images are more abstract, such that the dream imagery is very straight, very horizontal or vertical. There could be lots of trees in forests, all very straight and vertical or a hwy scene, where the roads are all horizontal and straight rather than curvy.
    Do to the fact that the subjects are playing right before they sleep, I don’t think it matters ‘as much’ if they are truly paying attention or not because I would expect the recency effect to take course. Also, because Tetris is a game where you must fit shapes together, this information learnt while playing I imagine will be consolidated while sleeping, which in turn will most likely lead to these episodic memories being transitioned into sleep and recognized in dream imagery.

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  15. I believe and would expect that the colours and shapes from "Tetris" would appear in the dreams of the individuals. I believe this because if it is being played prior to sleep "presleep" then it is the last thing on the individual's mind and therefore would most likely occur within their dreams.

    I know from a personal level when I partake in an activity prior to going to sleep I dream about it, for instance when I read before bed my dreams relate to the book I was reading prior to sleeping or if I play a video game before bed to relax or fall asleep watching TV, my dreams relate or resemble the televison show or game.

    I don't believe that it depends how seriously the individual takes the game that it will affect whether or not it appears in their dream. It occurred in their waking life and so close to the time they went to sleep, I believe the characteristics of the game will appear somewhere in the individual's dream, as it is fresh in their minds.

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  16. I believe that their dreams would have some Tetris imagery. One reason I say this is because I have had it happen to me before, I went through a stage where the last thing I did before bed was play Tetris, and one night my dream was just a long game.

    Since this is right before they go to bed, there is a good chance this would be the last thing that they thing of. If present in the dream, this would be evidence to support continuity in dreams from waking life.

    I also agree with what has been said about the dream imagery having more bright colours then in previous dreams, as well as more defined shapes.

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  17. I agree with my fellow classmates in regards to experience. I actually think that the more experienced Tetris players would have more imagery relating to the game then the inexperienced players. Someone who is very competitive with the game and makes it a central part of their life may have more Tetris related imagery in their dream. This would be because they would be thinking about the game during the day and probably trying to think of new strategies to gain a higher score. I believe the dream imagery may consist of very clean lines, abstract shapes, and be full of primary colours. They may also dream about things falling or flying objects. The participants may even dream about playing video games and solving problems. This would be an example of the continuity hypothesis.

    Alisha Cunning

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  18. I believe that if people were playing the video game “Tetris” frequently the episodic dreams would transfer from waking to sleep. Images that are viewed in the game “Tetris” would appear in people’s dream imagery. Since Tetris is a game that requires players to really think I believe this would make the game transfer to people’s dreams. Through dreams players could be thinking of new strategies for the game as well. Any imagery from people’s waking day life can be transferred to sleep imagery. Since people often game for long periods of time this may contribute to why they are dreaming about the game.

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  19. I agree with the comments that have been stated previously. I think that those who play games such as tetris right before going to sleep will dream of many colours in their dreams as the game contains several different colours. I also believe that these individuals will have pieces or objects in their dreams that may be turning and trying to find a correct place. As someone else has said, these may be literal pieces if someone is unfamiliar with the game but for someone who may play it alot, the dream content could include life situations in which individuls are trying to 'piece together' their lives. ultimately I think that it comes down to personal experience with the particular game and everyone's dream content will still be very different becuase things will be interpreted differently by everyone.

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  20. I would expect dream imagery from a study such as this to be composed of bright colours, high contrast and geometric shapes, as those are prominent in Tetris.

    As mentioned by other commenters, I think gaming experience would have a lot of impact on the sort of imagery a dreamer would experience within their dream. For example, if the individual is an experienced a gamer who usually plays a particular video game, it may be associated with playing Tetris within their dreams and they would be likely to see imagery from that other video game as well. An individual who doesn't usually play video games would not likely have video game imagery other than that of Tetris in their dreams.

    -Carey-Ann Bette

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  21. I believe that the dream imagery would be very different depending on the person. Someone who is familiar with the game tetris, or games similar to it would have more tetris like imagery and building block components. Also, depending on if the game is in black and white or in techno-colour, the dreams would reflect that. Vivid game colour would replay into their dreams in more vivid dream colour. People not familiar with the game would have less tetris imagery, but they might have more problem-solving/puzzle type dreams which reflect the game in general.

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  22. Considering the continuity theory, in which dream imagery reflects waking life, I would expect the study to show that the gamers playing Tetris before sleep onset would experience elements of the game in their dreams. The episodic memory of playing Tetris would result in dream imagery such as Tetris shapes in combination with other elements of waking day life, or the gamer could even dream of playing Tetris again (or re-experience a moment or feeling they had while playing the game, such as frustration in matching shapes or the fear and disappointment of getting a ‘game over’).

    Of course, varying factors could play a role in how successful the episodic memory of the game actually transitions from the waking mind to the sleeping mind. In this way, we need to consider the magnitude in which the game stimulates the waking mind (how much brain activity is occurring as a result of playing the game). Here are 3 factors that play into this: 1) uniqueness of experience – how new and different playing this game is to anything else the gamer has done before (if the experience is unique and different compared to what else the gamer has experienced, the brain could be stimulated more, resulting in more neuron connections created, and thus the memory could stand out more); 2) involvement in the game – the more concentrated or focused the gamer is on the game, the greater the impact of stimulation the game will have on the brain (the more the gamer thinks about and gets involved into the game, the more neuron connections will be created that involve memories of the game), and I would also suspect that the nature of the game, as in how much thought process is required to play it (logic and problem solving skills) would also result in greater involvement from the player and thus increased brain activity; 3) length of time – the more time spent playing the game, the more likely playing the game is going to stick in the gamer’s episodic memory and possibly show up as dream imagery (I know from personal experience that whenever I spend a really long period of time playing a video game just before sleeping, I tend to have a dream that night that involves the game in some way).

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  23. A major component I would expect to see is the emotions associated with playing the game. For someone who plays the game regularly, or is competative while playing, you would expect similar emotions to appear in your dreams. Someone who is new to Tetris, or may find it confusing will have similar emotions appear in their dreams. The more frequent the game is played, and the amount of time played is also likely to affect the dream results.
    Grace Williamson

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