Nightmares, Neurophenomenology and the Cultural Logic of Trauma

Abstract

The papers in this special section of CMP explore new terrain in the cultural shaping of traumatic experience. The authors describe nightmares occurring in association with trauma across diverse settings. The innovative ethnographic work presented in these papers circles around basic questions about dreams and nightmares. What kind of experiences are nightmares? To what extent does their function, form and content follow from the neurobiology of dreaming? Put another way, what accounts for the admixture of biology, personal experience and cultural content in dreams? More specifically, in the case of nightmares related to trauma, how much of their content follows from the neurophenomenology of dreaming, how much reflects specific trauma memories and experiences and how much is a result of the dreamer’s imagination and interpretation operating either during the dream experience itself or on later recollection and recounting to others? Answers to these questions are crucial for any understanding of the potential links between dreams and trauma exposure and have clinical relevance for those seeking to understand and assist patients suffering from recurrent nightmares.