Question

Compare and contrast two theories of dreams. Which one do you believe makes more sense and why? What is your theory of dreams? Please use intext citation.

Answer 1

Activation-synthesis theory of dreaming- This theory explains that some areas of the brain such as the hippocampus and the amygdala become active in Rapid eye movement sleep. These areas are involved in sensations and memory. This theory says that dreams are merely an attempt to interpret signals from these parts of the brain during sleep. It may look like meaninglessness but it is the brain's most creative state, in which people create any possible combination of random information.

Information-processing theory- This theory states that the REM cycle is the section of the brain's function of information processing that we received throughout the day. So, dreams can be defined as a by-product or maybe a tool that helps an individual to digest the information completely by a brain that has received throughout the day.

I think the information processing theory makes more sense because there is a lot of information we encounter throughout the day. Some information we accept easily but not some other. For this type of information, we need time to accept and digest them. So, dreams help us to reduce anxiety and increase acceptance by providing time and processing information completely.