Examining the daydreaming experiences of maladaptive daydreamers

Maladaptive daydreaming (MD) is a clinical condition in which a person becomes excessively immersed in an internal fantasy world, resulting in clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning. Although it negatively impacts the lives of many people, there is limited research on this topic. The present study is the first qualitative study conducted in the Turkish population on MD. With the aim of exploring in depth the experiences of people suffering from MD using a qualitative method, online individual interviews were conducted with a total of 10 participants (women n = 6; men n = 4). Based on the research questions, participants were asked to respond in detail to open-ended questions. The data obtained were analyzed with the method of Thematic Analysis using MAXQDA 2022, a qualitative analysis program. Five main themes emerged. These main themes can be listed as follows: "content of daydreams", "reasons for daydreaming", "triggers", "situations accompanying daydreams", and "the problems caused by daydreams". The theme "daydream content" included the subthemes "social relationship daydreams," "ideal self daydreams," "fantastic daydreams," "negative daydreams," and "testimony and demonstration." The theme " reasons for daydreaming" is composed of the subthemes "initiating factors" and "maintaining factors." The theme "triggers" is composed of the subthemes "internal triggers" and "external triggers". The theme "situations accompanying daydreams" comprises the subthemes "stereotypical movements," "enactment," and "affective experiences." Finally, the main theme "problems caused by daydreams" includes the subthemes "not being able to stay in the moment," "experiential difficulties," "seeking help and not being understood," and "affective complaints." The findings are discussed in the context of the literature and suggestions for theory and practice are made. Keywords: maladaptive daydreaming, qualitative study, thematic analysis