Targeted dream incubation at sleep onset can influence later dream content in REM sleep: a pilot study
Adam Haar Horowitz, Karen Konkoly, Michelle Carr, Robert Stickgold, Pattie Maes
Frontiers in Sleep June 24, 2026 DOI: 10.3389/frsle.2026.1812535 via OpenAlex
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractA pilot study tested whether targeted dream incubation (TDI) at sleep onset can direct dream content into subsequent REM sleep. Eleven participants received verbal prompts about a tree and were awakened serially at sleep onset, then during a daytime nap. All 11 successfully incubated the target theme at sleep onset. Of the eight who entered REM sleep, four (50%) incorporated the tree into their first REM dream, and five (63%) did so in later REM dreams. Results suggest TDI may influence REM dream content, offering a method to explore how dream generation and function may be continuous or differ across sleep stages.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Pilot study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 11 |
| Population | Participants undergoing a daytime nap following TDI at sleep onset |
| Duration | Daytime nap opportunity with serial awakenings at sleep onset and after REM sleep entry |
| Topics | Lucid dreaming |
| Keywords | Sleep system call Sleep onset Nap Psychology Audiology |
| Key finding | Targeted dream incubation at sleep onset can affect dream content in subsequent REM sleep, with 50% of participants incorporating the target theme into their first REM dream. |
Abstract
Targeted dream incubation (TDI) is a highly effective method for eliciting hypnagogic dreams related to specific topics through the presentation of verbal prompts and serial awakenings at sleep onset. In this pilot study, we tested whether TDI at sleep onset can effectively direct dream content in subsequent rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. We allowed participants a daytime nap opportunity following TDI at sleep onset. Serial awakenings were performed both at sleep onset and after entry into REM sleep. Our primary objective was to assess whether the TDI protocol during the sleep onset period would continue to affect dream content in REM sleep, producing dreams of the target content ("tree") in the first REM awakening. Our second objective was to assess incorporation when participants received additional TDI prompts following REM awakenings. All 11 participants successfully incubated the target theme at sleep onset, and eight subsequently obtained REM sleep. Four of these participants (50%) incorporated the target theme into their first REM dream, and five incorporated the target theme in subsequent REM dreams (63%). Results provide preliminary evidence that TDI may impact dreams in REM sleep. This method of engineering dreams across sleep stages may be useful for understanding how dream generation and function may be continuous or different across sleep stages.