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The use of associations with dream reports, although being diffused and greatly useful in psychotherapy, has so far played a limited role in dream research not directly finalized to therapy. On the other hand, it is difficult to investigate a basic property of dreaming, that of establishing connections, without searching for information beyond the dream report: indeed, the simplest and likely most effective way of obtaining this information consists in asking the dreamer for associations. Well-defined and rigorous methods are however necessary for research approaches which aim to achieve a better understanding of how the dreaming mind operates by processing and combining the dreamer's memory sources: we propose an experimental protocol ("Associations for Dream Reports Protocol") aiming to give a contribution in this direction. According to this protocol, the dreamer completes a form which asks him or her to describe a recent dream, to name key words or short phrases that characterize the dream, and, for each word or phrase, to provide associations that allow possible episodic sources, definite in space and time, to be identified. To be more effective, the method takes advantage of the presence of a researcher while the dreamer is completing the form: the terms of the interaction between dreamer and researcher are subjected to marked restrictions and rigorously defined. The protocol was applied to a homogeneous group of participants; the observed link patterns presented interesting phenomena, whose occurrence presented high statistical significance.

Introduction. Pregnancy represents a critical life stage for its physical and emotional changes. Maternal thoughts are often oriented to the worry to lose control on their body, and to their new physical shape. According to this, literature on eating disorder (ED) highlights how pregnancy is usually associated to a temporary interruption of the dysfunctional eating habits due to the move of concerns about the self and the body toward the caregiving of the baby. Aim. The goal of the present study is to explore the impact of generalized difficulties in emotion regulation (as a stable trait) versus specific difficulties in emotion regulation (as pregnancy-related) in women with prepregnancy eating problems. Method. The sample is made by 15 women previously overweight and recruited during their 3 rd trimester of pregnancy. The following measures were administered: Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS), Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26), Emotional Difficulties Specific to Pregnancy Scale (EDS), and the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI). Results. Preliminary findings have shown how higher scores on the DERS Impulse scale as well as higher difficulties in handling emotional states related to pregnancy (e.g. fear of the delivery) are associated to the existence of dysfunctional eating behaviors during the 3rd trimester. Conclusions. Emotion regulation has emerged as a transversal skill during the life cycle. Difficulties in this area seem to represent a stable trait in the individual functioning, with the risk to affect the eating behaviors, as well as the health of the mother and the baby during pregnancy.

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