Can students’ dream experiences reflect their performance in public examinations?

Abstract

The hypothesis that the phenomenological intensity of dreaming can reflect academic performance was tested in this study. The sample contained 668 Hong Kong upper secondary school graduates, whose academic performance was measured by the results of two public examinations for the admission to local upper secondary schools and universities. Their dream intensity and personality traits were assessed using the Dream Intensity Scale, NEO Five-Factor Inventory, and Affective Neurosciences Personality Scales. The findings indicate that the subjective intensity of dreaming makes unique contributions to the prediction of examination grades that cannot be accounted for by sex, personality and emotional attributes, and former examination performance. Additionally, interindividual variations in dream experiences seem to be more sensitive to the performance in language subjects than to global academic performance.