Dream recall frequency is associated with attention rather than with working memory abilities
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Several factors influencing dream recall frequency (DRF) have been identified, but some remain poorly understood. One way to study DRF is to compare cognitive processes in low and high dream recallers (LR and HR). According to the arousal-retrieval model, long-term memory encoding of a dream requires wakefulness while its multisensory short-term memory is still alive. Previous studies showed contradictory results concerning short-term memory differences between LR and HR. It has also been found that extreme DRFs are associated with different electrophysiological traits related to attentional processes. However, to date, there is no evidence for attentional differences between LR and HR at the behavioural level. To further investigate attention and working memory in HR and LR, we used a newly-developed challenging paradigm called "MEMAT" (for MEMory and ATtention), which allows the study of selective attention and working memory interaction during memory encoding of non-verbal auditory stimuli. We manipulated the difficulties of the distractor to ignore and of the memory task. The performance of the two groups were not differentially impacted by working memory load. However, HR were slower and less accurate in the presence of a hard rather than easy to-ignore distractor, while LR were much less impacted by the distractor difficulty. Therefore, we show behavioural evidence towards less resistance to hard-to-ignore distractors in HR. Using a challenging task, we show for the fir…
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Interventional studies showing decreases in experience with recall cannot conclusively prove that experience generation is suppressed, as interventions may hinder dream encoding or retrieval.
“Furthermore, interventional studies showing decreases in experience with recall cannot conclusively prove that experience generation is suppressed,160 as interventions may hinder dream encoding or retrieval.81,161”
From We are the Sensors of Consciousness! A Review and Analysis on How Awakenings During Sleep Influence Dream Recall (2025) · cites this paper as [81]
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- Authors
- Blain, S., de la Chapelle, A., Caclin, A., Bidet‐Caulet, A., & Ruby, P.
- Affiliations
- Lyon 1 Université (FR)
- Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, CNRS, UMR5292, INSERM, U1028 Lyon France
- Corresponding author
- Ruby, Perrine
- Venue
- Journal of Sleep Research
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2022-01-31
- Volume
- 31
- Issue
- 5
- Pages
- e13557-e13557
- ISSN
- 0962-1105 (ISSN-L)
- 1365-2869
- OpenAlex
- W4210460979
- Cited by
- 9
- References
- 66
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 6 · 2023: 2
- FWCI
- 1.03
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- hal.science
- Licence
- Locations
- Journal of Sleep Research (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- HAL (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Funders
- Centre Lyonnais d'Acoustique, Université de Lyon (ANR‐10‐LABX‐0060)
- Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR‐11‐IDEX‐0007)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Sleep and Wakefulness Research
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Sleep and related disorders
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Memory Processes and Influences
- Keywords
- dream recall frequency, selective attention, working memory, auditory attention
- MeSH terms
- Attention, Humans, Memory, Short-Term, Mental Recall, Wakefulness
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