A new Lego series has been unveiled that aims to tackle emotional problems children face on a daily basis, with the company saying it hopes to help channel the positivity of kids' dreams and make them reality.
The Lego Dreamzzz sets have been created after global research of over 23,000 children between the ages of 6 to 12 from 29 countries showed 69 percent of them experience complex emotions every day.
New Zealand children were not involved in the research.
One in four of those surveyed said current world events or social media played a part in their anxieties and emotional states, with around 20 percent of those saying they were having nightmares as a result of the heightened states they found themselves in from worry.
However, 86 percent of the children surveyed said they experienced "positive emotions" while dreaming with many revealing those emotions spilled over into when they were awake. They also said the subsequent play after waking from their dreams spurred them into being more creative.
Lego said the research galvanised it into creating a new television series and tie-in Lego sets to help children deal with their fears and also channel the creativity of their dreams and imaginations into something practical.
The Lego Dreamzzz series, which will launch on May 15 on the company's YouTube channel, will follow the adventures of a group of school friends who join a secret agency and learn to use the power of imagination to journey into Dream World to defeat the tyrannical Nightmare King.
The company said the series will also be available to stream on Netflix and Prime Video.
The Dreamzzz sets will allow users to build to around 80 percent completion before giving children the chance to choose what their final creation looks like.
"This is the first time the Lego Group has used story-led building instructions that will inspire kids to be part of the story as they build. This play experience also gives kids the choice," Lego's head of Product Marcia Marks Laursen said.
"Kids get to build around 80 percent of the set through the building instructions before a choice moment; do you want to build a Croc Truck or a Monster Truck? Then you transform the vehicle you've built and create whatever you feel like creating so you can play out the story, which we haven't done before."
Psychologist and behavioural sleep expert Dr Shelby Harris said: "Kids are natural dreamers and experimenters but as they get older, societal pressures begin to confine them and limit their imaginations.
"Dreaming is a universal phenomenon generally welcomed by children across the globe. With more stress and demands in their daily lives, encouraging free play and creativity is important in today's world.
"The research has clearly shown that kids that have access to free play time increases their frequency of dreams and as a result makes them feel happier and more imaginative. It's great to see content like Lego Dreamzzz, which shows kids how the stuff of our dreams can be used in the real world to help them reach their full creative potential."
