Background:
The psychological functions of night dream sharing remain insufficiently understood. This study investigated the psychological functions of night dream sharing behavior and its associations with stress coping strategies among university students in China.


Methods:
Participants were 865 Chinese students. Descriptive statistics showed moderate frequencies of dream recall (M=4.68, SD=1.78), nightmare recall (M=3.95, SD=2.00), and dream sharing (M=4.12, SD=2.20). Mean scores for problem-focused, emotion-focused, and avoidant coping were 22.02 (SD=4.27), 29.39 (SD=5.51), and 16.88 (SD=3.36), respectively.


Results:
Comparative analyses revealed that Chinese students reported higher dream recall, nightmare recall, and dream sharing, whereas Japanese students reported greater use of emotion-focused coping. No significant differences were observed for problem-focused or avoidant coping. Hierarchical regression analyses controlling for gender, dream recall, and nightmare recall indicated that emotion-focused coping was the only significant positive predictor of dream sharing among Chinese students. Friends were the most frequent recipients, followed by mothers and classmates. Positive dreams were most frequently shared, and recipients generally responded positively.


Conclusion:
This implies that under conditions of stress, night dream sharing may serve as part of a coping process aimed at utilizing social resources to resolve real-life problems. Among Chinese students, night dream sharing appears to serve as an emotional coping strategy, helping individuals utilize social resources to manage real-life stressors.