Dreams can be influenced by external stimuli. In this study attempts were made to influence or direct the theme of a dream or sleep mentation using a series of thematically related words. 10 subjects were presented one of four series of 6 tape-recorded theme words, repeated 10 times, during REM or Stage 2 sleep followed by awakening to collect the dream or mentation report. Of the 40 awakenings, 30 produced a report, 10 of which were judged by two “blind” judges to be on the same or a very similar theme to the words. It was concluded that the theme of a dream can be influenced by the theme of the words.
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