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Dunkell's (1977) pioneering work suggested possible associations between sleep positions and personality traits. We located only two studies since Dunkell's that provide general support to the notion that sleep positions may be reflective of personality. This study examined whether selected body positions at sleep onset, along with varied or do not know category, were associated with the selected personality characteristics. Participants were 332 psychology students. In contrast to findings from previous studies, the results supporting the relationship of sleep positions and personality were too weak, with small effects sizes, to be useful for any theoretical or clinical purposes.
Extant studies (e.g., Dunkell, 1977, 1994; Schredl, 2002) suggest that the body, when we sleep, adopts various positions and these positions are possibly related to individual differences in defense mechanisms, everyday interactions with others, and personality characteristics (Domino & Bohn, 1980). Furthermore, the use of different methods and terms in these studies makes it difficult to draw general inferences about the relationship between sleep positions and personality. The present study was designed to comprehensively examine the relationships of selected sleep positions with Zuckerman-Kuhlman's big five characteristics, hypnotizability, creativity, and styles of creativity.
Dunkell (1977) proposed that the location of hands, feet, heels, ankles, wrists, elbows, calves, knees and thighs while asleep may carry information concerning an individual's personality. Also, the positioning of buttocks when couples sleep together may communicate something about their personality. Dunkell (1977) identified a wide variety of preferred sleep positions, including the Full-fetal, Prone, Royal, Semifetal, Chain-gang, Sandwich, Flamingo, Water Wings, Boxer, Mummy, Sphinx, Monkey, Dutch Wife, Barrymore, Military Brace, Cat, and Swastika. Dunkell reported that the Full-fetal Prone, Royal, and Semifetal were the most common sleeping positions (1977), and these four positions seem to have been most commonly evaluated across different studies.
Dunkell (1977) observed that the (a) Semi-fetal sleepers were normal and well adjusted, (b) Full-fetal and Prone sleepers were anxious and (c) Royal position sleepers were self-confident. In a later publication, Dunkell (1994, pp. 143-144) noted the Prone position sleepers to show tendencies for impulsivity, obsessive-compulsive behavior, rigidity, perfectionism, less sociability, and apt to "do well in professions like banking, accounting, business and management." The Royal position sleepers were observed to be open, expansive, self-confident, and sensation seeking. While the...