Danielle had a dream in which she was playing cards with an elephant. The next instant, the elephant had changed into one of her elementary school teachers. What do the sudden bizarre changes that took place in Danielle's dream represent, according to the activation synthesis model of dreaming?

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Quizplus · Accepted Answer

According to the activation synthesis model of dreaming, dreams are caused by random firing of neurons in lower brain centers. The bizarre changes in the dream are a result of the brain trying to make sense of these random neural firings. Therefore, the sudden change from an elephant to a teacher can be explained as a random firing of neurons, rather than any attempt to work through problems or the manifest or latent content of the dream.

Danielle Had a Dream in Which She Was Playing Cards