Nightmares: Clinical characteristics and personality patterns

The authors evaluated the development and clinical course of nightmares and the personality patterns of people with this disorder by studying 30 adults who had a current complaint of nightmares. Nightmares usually began in childhood or adolescence and were chronic. Psychological factors played a major role in the development and persistence of nightmares, major life events were often associated with the onset of the disorder, mental stress usually increased the frequency of events, and psychological testing indicated relatively high levels of psychopathology. Nightmare sufferers in general were distrustful, alienated, and emotionally estranged, and many showed a chronic schizoid pattern of adjustment, but they were not overtly psychotic.