J. Allan Hobson
J. Allan Hobson was a psychiatrist and sleep researcher who set out the activation-synthesis hypothesis of the dream process with Robert McCarley in 1977.
Who they are
The work of J. Allan Hobson reaches this site through the paper listed below. On this site the name is tied to Activation-Synthesis Hypothesis, REM Sleep.
Key papers
Hobson, J. A., & McCarley, R. W. (1977). The brain as a dream state generator: An activation-synthesis hypothesis of the dream process. American Journal of Psychiatry, 134(12), 1335-1348. What it reports: Proposes that dreaming is set off by brainstem mechanisms that periodically activate the forebrain, which synthesises the activated information by comparing it with stored memory.
Key ideas
Activation-Synthesis Hypothesis: Hobson and McCarley's 1977 proposal that brainstem activity activates the forebrain, which synthesises it with stored memory into a dream.
REM Sleep: The sleep stage marked by periods of rapid eye movement, first recorded in 1953, from which detailed dream reports were often obtained.
Sources
- Hobson, J. A., & McCarley, R. W. (1977). The brain as a dream state generator: An activation-synthesis hypothesis of the dream process. American Journal of Psychiatry, 134(12), 1335-1348.