Do women have more nightmares?

• Tuesday, 23 December 2008
• Ella Taylor
• 0 Comments

Women have significantly more nightmares and intense dreams than men, that leave a lasting impression on them after waking, new research has found.

A study of 170 volunteers at the University of the West of England found that, when asked to record their most recent dream, women reported having nightmares more often than men.

"In terms of processing emotional information, women may be more prone to taking unresolved concerns into their sleep life." Said Dr Jennifer Parker, who carried out the research.

The findings
She found that women were much more likely to dream about emotionally traumatic events, like the death of a partner or child, and suggested that nightmares may be the brain’s way of rehearsing how it would respond to distressing or disturbing situations.

Vivid dreams
Evidence of a link between vivid or distressing dreams and changes in body temperature at different points in a woman’s menstrual cycle were also found in Dr Parker’s study, confirming what had also been found in previous experiments.

“Women who are premenstrual tend to dream more aggressively, and they are also more likely to remember the dreams,” Dr Parker, who lectures on psychology at the University, said.

Her work also found at least three distinctly different types of nightmare. The frightening scenarios include being chased or hunted, losing a parent, child or partner and finding yourself in a strange new environment.

However some dream experts, such as Dr Chris Idikowski, director of the Edinburgh Sleep Centre, argue that women may simply be better at remembering their dreams.

“They end up talking more about their mental life than men do so there's more ability to remember.” Dr Idikowski told the British Association science festival in Liverpool.

Dr Parker’s study asked participants to record their most recent dream upon waking. She found that 19 per cent of male students reported having a nightmare compared to 30 per cent of women, although there was no gender difference in the number of dreams reported.