Synesthesia Shapes Dream Content, New Study Shows

A large-scale study shows that people with synesthesia dream differently, revealing that stable traits can leave a measurable signature in dream content.

People who experience synesthesia — an automatic blending of senses such as seeing colors when hearing words — report distinctive patterns in their dreams, according to new research published in Consciousness and Cognition. The findings offer one of the first large-scale looks at how differences in waking perception might carry over into dreams. An artificial intelligence-enabled analysis of 2,337 dream reports revealed that synesthetes describe dreams with greater emotional intensity and more varied settings, including shifting cultural landscapes and dramatic fictional scenarios.

The study, conducted at the Center for Organizational Dreaming, used AI-enabled semantic analysis to compare dream reports from synesthetes and non-synesthetes. Rather than applying predefined scoring systems, the research examined how dreamers spontaneously wrote about their experiences. This revealed differences in the types of interactions, worlds, and emotions present in their narratives. The synesthete group showed a stronger tendency toward charged interpersonal situations, imaginative environments, and conflict-driven plotlines.

These findings align with what is known about synesthesia in waking life. Synesthetes often show elevated openness to experience, stronger associative memory, and higher engagement with fantasy and imagery. The new evidence suggests that these traits continue to exert influence during sleep. Dream content, in this view, reflects enduring cognitive style rather than solely daily residue or random imagery. The results suggest that dreams may preserve personality-linked ways of thinking.

The study adds to growing evidence that dream content reflects meaningful psychological traits. Computer analysis of large amounts of data enables the detection of subtle differences between groups without relying on interviews, lab studies, or formal surveys. This approach opens new opportunities to study how individual differences influence how people think and experience both waking and sleeping life.

The full research article, “Synesthesia is associated with distinctive patterns in dream content,” is available in Consciousness and Cognition. Press inquiries and media requests may be directed to the Center for Organizational Dreaming.