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Publication Details
AFRICAN RESEARCH NEXUS
SHINING A SPOTLIGHT ON AFRICAN RESEARCH
psychology
Sleep deprivation and hallucinations. A qualitative study of military personnel
Military Psychology, Volume 30, No. 5, Year 2018
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Description
Much anecdotal evidence suggests that sleep deprivation not only impairs performance, but also brings about other extraordinary effects like hallucinations. However, knowledge about how sleep deprivation may trigger hallucinations is limited. To qualitatively describe hallucinatory experiences during sleep deprivation 12 male military officers from the Norwegian Armed Forces who all had experienced at least one sleep loss-induced hallucinatory experience were recruited. Data were collected and analyzed by semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis. This resulted in the identification of three distinct main themes: (1) Modalities, (2) circumstances/triggers and (3) reactions to hallucinations. Hallucinations were experienced in several modalities (visual, auditory and multi-modality), although visual hallucinations seemed to dominate. Typical reported circumstances/triggers were sleep loss, physical exhaustion, time-of-day, low calorie intake, mental exhaustion and lack of external stimuli (low sensory and social input, boring situations, and monotonous activity). Negative emotions were dominant during the hallucinatory episodes. Often some reasoning and checking on behalf of the officers were necessary to differentiate between real percepts and hallucinations. In some cases the hallucinations caused erroneous actions. Retrospectively, most officers viewed their hallucinatory experiences in light of positive emotions and several emphasized having learned something from them. The results are discussed in relation to the existing literature and suggestions for future studies are outlined. © 2018, © 2018 Society for Military Psychology, Division 19 of the American Psychological Association.
Authors & Co-Authors
Pallesen, Ståle
Norway, Bergen
Universitetet I Bergen
Norway, Bergen
Haukeland Universitetssjukehus
Olsen, Olav Kjellevold
Norway, Bergen
Universitetet I Bergen
Norway, Bergen
Royal Norwegian Naval Academy
Gronli, Janne
Norway, Bergen
Universitetet I Bergen
Larøi, Frank
Norway, Bergen
Universitetet I Bergen
Norway, Oslo
Universitetet I Oslo
Belgium, Liege
Université de Liège
Nordmo, Morten
Norway, Bergen
Universitetet I Bergen
Statistics
Citations: 2
Authors: 5
Affiliations: 5
Identifiers
Doi:
10.1080/08995605.2018.1478561
ISSN:
08995605
Study Approach
Qualitative
Participants Gender
Male