Relations of oral imagery to thought disorder in subjects with frequent nightmares

Oral imagery was examined in the Rorschach protocols of 60 female subjects, 30 who experienced at least one nightmare per week and 30 who had no more than one nightmare in the past year. Mean number of oral responses did not differ between the groups. In subjects with nightmares, Rorschach orality was significantly related to many personality measures, including state and trait anxiety, Beck Depression Inventory scores, five subscales of a schizotypy inventory, the Rorschach penetration score, and two measures of pathological thinking on the Rorschach. In the 30 subjects without nightmares, the number of significant correlations did not exceed that expected by chance. The results are discussed within the context of empirical and theoretical reports about the links between the oral personality and pathological behavior.