Intro to Psychology :Intro to Psychology States of Consciousness


What is consciousness? :What is consciousness? A cognitive state in which you are aware of yourself and your situation Someone who is conscious is aware of the immediate environment Also includes inner awareness, knowledge of our own thoughts feelings, and memories The theater of our mind How is consciousness studied?


Slide 3:Consciousness in history Descartes – Dualism – The mind and body are completely separate things. Today, scientists do not believe this. The mind does not exist independent of the body Materialism – mental life has a physiological basis rooted in the brain Wundt has subjects report the contents of their consciousness while doing various activities Structuralists tried to uncover the structure of consciousness.


Slide 5:Freud believed that deep within consciousness contained needs, wishes, and desires that influence feelings and behavior – the unconscious That is, Freud believed that people had different levels of consciousness


Freud’s Levels of Consciousness :Freud’s Levels of Consciousness


Slide 7:Many people now believe that we have different levels of consciousness Ex. Automatic processing Ex. Being drunk (lower level of consciousness)


Theories of Consciousness :Theories of Consciousness Many theories, each somewhat different Commonality is that they all arise by firing patterns of the brain Neuroscience is revolutionizing the study of consciousness Ex. PET scans to look at visual perception Some things we may never be able to study


The Easy Problem of Consciousness :The Easy Problem of Consciousness Those that can be studied by cognitive science the ability to discriminate, categorize, and react to environmental stimuli; What is the brain doing when someone is thinking? the difference between wakefulness and sleep. The easy problem is actually very hard, but the hard problem is even harder!


The Hard Problem :The Hard Problem problem of experience - Qualia All experiences contain a subjective aspect the sound of music felt quality of redness the taste of cilantro the felt quality of emotion, and the experience of a stream of conscious thought Ex. Pain – we can study how it works in the brain, and the mental states involved, but: Why does it hurt? What is that feeling made of?


Slide 11:Consciousness is what makes us aware of ourselves The prevailing view of consciousness is that various levels of it exist. Sleep, dreams, hypnosis, meditation, drugs


Sleep :Sleep


Slide 13:Why do we sleep? Repair and restoration theory Sleep deprivation can deteriorate the body Repairing products are produced during sleep: protein production, growth hormone, etc. the more physical exercise an animal does, the more sleep an animal will have Evolutionary or Energy conservation theory Hedonistic theory – we sleep because we like it


When do we sleep? :When do we sleep? Circadian Rhythm - biological clock; controls the rise and fall of physiological responses such as temperature, and even sleep. Rhythm is daily and regulated by the sun. Studies find that without external reminders of time, we prefer 25 hour cycles Problems arise when our circadian rhythm is disrupted Jet lag Monday mornings


Slide 15:Environmental Arousal - When our body is in a state of high arousal, we cannot sleep. Stress, excitement, and drugs that increase arousal can interfere with the onset of sleep as well as staying a sleep. Lack of arousal can make you sleepy Sleep Deprivation When we are deprived of one night's sleep, we go to sleep sooner and stay asleep longer


What happens during sleep? :What happens during sleep? Is sleep like being unconscious? Not exactly. We can continue to process the external world while asleep. Infants crying Environmental events can become incorporated into our dreams. We can continue to process our internal world. We wake up when we have to use the restroom or get sick Events of the previous day become incorporated into our dreams.


What happens to the brain and body during sleep? :What happens to the brain and body during sleep? EEG: Electroencephalogram – measures overall activity patterns of neurons in the brain. Is used to tell how active as a whole a person’s brain is.


5 stages of sleep: Stage 1 :5 stages of sleep: Stage 1 EEG activity is of higher amplitude and lower frequency than during waking People awaken from Stage 1 claim to have not been asleep


Stage 2 :Stage 2 The EEG is higher in amplitude and lower in frequency Contains strange firing bursts K-complexes Sleep spindles


Stage 3 :Stage 3 Waves are slower and higher in amplitude, indicating greater cortical synchrony


Stage 4 :Stage 4 EEG is higher in amplitude and lower in frequency than in any other stage Stage 4 is the “restorative” stage


REM: Rapid Eye Movement Sleep :REM: Rapid Eye Movement Sleep The EEG is that of an awake individual Muscle activity ceases completely Heart rate returns to the level it had at the start of sleep Eyes dart back and forth together underneath the closed lids


Slide 23:REM is when the majority of dreaming occurs During REM, the brainstem actively shuts down muscles Many see REM as being important for memory consolidation Sleep occurs in cycles, generally progressing from 1 through 4 and REM and then starting over Interesting Aspects of Sleep


Slide 25:When people are deprived of REM sleep, REM rebound is often seen upon the next sleep period Stage 4 - peak occurrence of many restorative hormones growth hormone adrenocorticotropic hormone prolactin Implications of stage 4 involvement in growth Children sleep deprived will have stunted growth Many feel that people age because stage 4 sleep declines as we get older


Effects of Prolonged Sleep Deprivation :Effects of Prolonged Sleep Deprivation Research shows that it is bad After 90 hours awake, begin having perceptual distortions, hallucinations, and delusions. Experiments with rats show that it can cause death Deprivation of REM only – irritation, difficulty in concentration Many drugs specifically prevent REM Alcohol Antihistamines


Sleep Disturbances :Sleep Disturbances Sleep Walking: occurs in stage 4; person is not conscious Generally happens in children and it dissipates with age. Causes: Genetic Environmental: stress, drugs and alcohol Physiological – magnesium deficiency, pregnancy, and menstruation Psychiatric disorders – panic disorder, PTSD The walker can traverse their environment well if they are very familiar with it. Not dangerous to awaken a sleepwalker


Slide 28:Nightmares: Fear-inducing dreams during sleep Vivid and disturbing. Simply dreams with bad stuff in them. Causes: our experience Watching horror movies can cause nightmares Stress More frequent when people are under emotional stress. Basically, anything aversive can cause nightmares Drugs and alcohol


Slide 29:Narcolepsy: involves brain abnormalities. Person may suddenly fall into REM sleep without warning Lose consciousness and muscle tone Snoring: occurs during obstructive hypopnea, which is continuous but slow and shallow breathing Caused by blocked airways. Snoring can occur in both nose- and mouth-breathers Drugs and alcohol, lack of sleep can enhance snoring.


Slide 30:Sleep apnea: dangerous condition where the person stops breathing while asleep. Causes: mechanical problems with the airways. It is an obstructive problem. Treated with several types of devices that serve to keep the airway open Can lead to SIDS in infants


Slide 31:Insomnia: impairment in functioning due to inability to sleep. About 15-20% of adults suffer this. Causes Anxiety Emotional problems Health Use of drugs One major cause is worry about having insomnia. Treatment: Drugs – sleeping pills like Unisom, Ambien, etc. Fix source of problem Conditioning procedures


Slide 32:Night Terrors: Sudden awakening from sleep, persistent fear or terror that occurs at night, screaming, sweating, confusion, and rapid heart rate Can involve violent movement. Usually no recall of "bad dreams" or nightmares, may have a vague sense of frightening images., no memory of the event on awakening the next day. Almost always occurs in children, and it goes away with age Generally occurs during stage 4 sleep and not REM Not just a bad dream Cause is physiological and not psychological. Tends to run in families


Slide 33:Sleep paralysis – Upon waking, person has an inability to move Probably due to delayed offset of motor inhibition from REM REM Behavior Disorder: act out dramatic and/or violent dreams during rapid eye movement (REM) stage sleep Problem with the normal inhibition of muscles that the pons usually carries out


Dreaming :Dreaming Freud- Two functions of dreams: 1) Dreams prevent the sleeper from being awoken by minor environmental disturbances 2) Wish fulfillment- Unconscious impulses are responsible for dreams and the goal of dreams was to gratify some drive. Reflects sexual and aggressive instincts Distorted and symbolic version of the impulses that trigger it. Symbolic especially about sex.


Slide 35:According to Freud, dreams had two types of content Manifest content – the overt story line, characters, and setting of the dream Latent content – deeper meaning involving symbolism, hidden meaning, and repressed ideas or wishes Common dreams?


Slide 36:Being chased or attacked Being injured, ill or dying Freud: dreams of teeth falling out means fear of castration Poor test scores Falling or drowning Being naked in public


Slide 37:Carl Jung- believed that dreams were prospective: they helped the dreamer prepare for events anticipated in the immediate future. Asserted that dreams give visual expression to instincts Claimed that all humans share a collective unconscious – a storehouse of primitive ideas and images inherited from one’s ancestors.


Activation – Synthesis Model :Activation – Synthesis Model During REM, the pons starts firing randomly in waves like pulses. These travel to the visual cortex. Called PGO waves.


Slide 39:Visual cortex is activated producing images Frontal lobe of the brain tries to interpret these images Overall result is a visual story albeit very strange at times What visual images appear? What is interpreted? Depends on previous experience of the day or things that are especially important Priming - Neurons that are active often become easier to activate. Result: we dream about what we have recently seen or are very familiar with


Slide 40:Lucid dreaming - dreaming while knowing that you are dreaming Has advantages: fantasy, overcoming nightmares, practice Must first be able to remember your dreams Start writing down your dreams in detail immediately when you wake up Many techniques for recognizing when you are dreaming


Hypnosis :Hypnosis Stage hypnotists Hypnotism – a state of mind characterized by a focused awareness on vivid, imagined experiences and decreased awareness of the external environment. The state is brought on by hypnotic induction – a process in which the participant is encouraged to relax and focus Trance state Generalized reality fading Trance logic


Hypnotic Responsiveness :Hypnotic Responsiveness Who can be hypnotized? Open to experience Vivid imagination Deeply absorbed in activities Able to sustain attention Able to filter distractions Need lack of skepticism


Hypnosis – What can it do? :Hypnosis – What can it do? Hypnotized people subjectively experience actions to be involuntary Hypnosis can affect physiological responses, but nonhypnotized controls often develop the same responses It can produce analgesia (absence of pain) It can relieve anxiety It can produce amnesia in some people


Hypnosis :Hypnosis Can hypnosis improve memory? Controlled experiments suggest the hypnosis does not improve eyewitness memory Some memories (pseudomemories) recalled under hypnosis may be created by leading suggestions or statements Increases number of memories reported, both true and false


Theories of Hypnosis :Theories of Hypnosis Dissociation Theories (Trance theory) Hypnosis experiences two streams of consciousness that are cut off from each other Social-Cognitive Theories Hypnotic experiences result from expectations of people who are motivated to take on the role of being “hypnotized”


Meditation :Meditation An altered state of consciousness characterized by a sense of deep relaxation and loss of self-awareness Contrast to hypnosis Similar to hypnotic induction Tends to focus on objects rather than someone else’s voice Mantra, mandala, rhythmic breathing


Slide 47:Mandala


Slide 48:Many types of meditation Prayer, yoga, etc. Concentrative meditation – attention is restricted to one stimulus while disregarding everything else. Yoga, transcendental meditation Opening-up meditation – Focus on one object and gradually increase the whole of the surroundings Mindfulness meditation – combination of first two, except focus is on whatever comes to mind. Also called awareness meditation


Effects of Meditation :Effects of Meditation Relaxation, release of tension Reduction of stress and anxiety Can have many, many effects Decreases heart and respiration rate Better overall health of the body