The Neuroscience of Sleep and Dreams

by Patrick McNamara

Overview

The Neuroscience of Sleep and Dreams provides comprehensive coverage of the basic neuroscience of both sleep and dreams for upper-level undergraduate and graduate students. It details new scientific discoveries, places those discoveries within evolutionary context, and links established findings with implications for sleep medicine. This second edition focuses on recent developments in the social nature of sleep and dreams. Coverage includes the neuroscience of all stages of sleep; the lifespan development of these sleep stages; the role of non-REM and REM sleep in health and mental health; comparative sleep; biological rhythms; sleep disorders; sleep memory; dream content; dream phenomenology, and dream functions. Students, scientists, and interested non-specialists will find this book accessible and informative.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781009208895
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	04/13/2023
Series:	Cambridge Fundamentals of Neuroscience in Psychology
Edition description:	2nd Revised ed.
Pages:	275
Sales rank:	872,093
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.56(d)

About the Author

Patrick McNamara is Associate Professor of Neurology at Boston University and Professor of Psychology at National University, USA. His research into sleep and dreams is ground-breaking and is recognized as such. He has published numerous papers on sleep and dreams, and authored or edited several volumes on the science of sleep and dreams. He won a VA Merit Review Award and two NIH research grant awards for his work.

Table of Contents

Part I. Sleep: 1. Introduction: what is sleep?; 2. From biological rhythms to the sleep cycle; 3. Expression of sleep across the human lifespan; 4. Characteristics of REM and NREM sleep; 5. Sleep disorders; 6. Theories of REM and NREM sleep; Part II. Dreams: 7. Introduction: what are dreams?; 8. Dreams across the human lifespan; 9. Characteristics of REM and NREM dreams; 10. Dream varieties; 11. Theories of dreaming; Appendix: methods.

Editorial Reviews

'This is an accessible and much-needed resource for students, teachers, and the general public. Sleep and dream sciences are rapidly expanding, but are underrepresented in psychology and neuroscience textbooks. This book fills the gap perfectly! Patrick McNamara’s fascinating incorporation of social and evolutionary neuroscience is certain to engage readers from many backgrounds.' Edward F. Pace-Schott, Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts

'Patrick McNamara gives all the answers that science has found so far; covering the psychology, neuroscience, evolution, and social aspects of sleep and dreams in a balanced and integrated manner that is a joy to read. Anyone who wants to know what science really knows about sleep and dreams should read this book.' Antti Revonsuo, University of Skövde, Sweden, and University of Turku, Finland

'The text is an introduction, as indicated by the title, but it could serve easily as a university textbook, containing clear learning objectives, review questions, and further reading sections. It is an absorbing read, an informative reference, and will appeal to students and researchers at every level of training.' Tore Nielsen, Director, Dream and Nightmare Laboratory, Université de Montréal

'This book offers an authoritative and clearly written overview of neuroscience's answers to questions about sleep and dreams. Patrick McNamara explains research findings suitable for the beginner, but also with enough depth for the experienced. I recommend it enthusiastically to all who want a solid scientific perspective on sleep and dreams.' Deirdre Barrett, author of The Committee of Sleep

'I found the chapter on dream varieties the most interesting, it is the longest chapter too and includes the characteristics of the wide variety of dream types reported by people.' Carol Singleton, Nursing Times

‘The well-organized format of the chapters includes learning objectives at the beginning, as well as review questions and further reading at the end, making the text suitable for classroom use. Highly recommended for collections in sleep, dream, and consciousness studies.’ J. Bailey, Choice

'The Neuroscience of Sleep and Dreams does a great job of summarizing contemporary research and theories in a fashion that facilities accessibility for readers, and should be of great interest to anyone seeking a general state-of-the-art of sleep and dream research.' Jean-Baptiste Eichenlaub, International Journal of Dream Research

From the Publisher