States of Consciousness
Call Kai
Learn
Practice Test
Spaced Repetition
Match
Flashcards
Knowt Play1/76
Earn XP
Description and Tags
Vocabulary flashcards covering fundamental terms, researchers, sleep stages, dream theories, sleep disorders, hypnosis, and psychoactive drugs related to states of consciousness.
77 Terms
state of consciousness
An individual's awareness of external stimuli, internal sensations, and mental processes at any given moment.
William James
Early psychologist who characterized consciousness not as discrete pieces, but as a continuous, ever-shifting flow termed the "stream of consciousness."
mental reality
A person's subjective internal construction and awareness of reality, shaped by their cognitive and sensory processes.
preconscious level
A level of awareness containing thoughts, memories, and information that are not currently in conscious focus, but can be easily recalled into awareness.
controlled processing
Conscious, deliberate mental processing that demands focused attention and effortful cognitive resources, typically used for novel or complex tasks.
automatic processing
Unconscious, routine mental processing that occurs with little to no intentional awareness or cognitive effort, typically developed through practice.
sleep melatonin
A hormone synthesized and released by the pineal gland in response to darkness that plays a key role in regulating sleep-wake cycles and inducing sleepiness.
circadian rhythm
A regular biological and physiological cycle that repeats roughly every 24 hours, governing processes such as sleep, body temperature, and hormone levels.
free-running rhythm
A biological cycle that operates naturally without external environmental time cues (zeitgebers) such as daylight, often lengthening to roughly 25 hours in humans.
beta waves
High-frequency, low-amplitude electrical brain waves associated with alert, attentive, and actively thinking conscious states.
alpha waves
Relatively slow, rhythmic brain waves characteristic of a relaxed, calm, but awake state, typically occurring when eyes are closed.
theta waves
Brain waves of lower frequency and higher amplitude than alpha waves, characteristic of the transition into early, light NREM sleep.
sleep spindles
Brief, rapid bursts of high-frequency brain activity lasting one to two seconds, characteristic of Stage 2 (N2) NREM sleep.
K complexes
Large, sharp, high-voltage wave patterns appearing on an EEG during Stage 2 NREM sleep, often triggered by external sensory stimuli.
delta waves
Large, slow brain waves of high amplitude and low frequency that signify deep, slow-wave sleep (Stage 3 NREM).
REM (rapid eye movement)
A distinct recurring sleep stage marked by rapid eye movements, elevated brain activity, vivid dreaming, and temporary skeletal muscle paralysis.
NREM
Non-rapid eye movement sleep; encompasses all sleep stages (Stages 1 through 3) other than REM, characterized by lower physiological activity and absence of rapid eye movements.
Aserinsky and Kleitman
Sleep researchers Eugene Aserinsky and Nathaniel Kleitman, who discovered REM sleep and its relationship to dreaming in 1953.
William Dement
Pioneering sleep researcher who founded the first sleep disorder clinic, established methods for sleep scoring, and coined the term REM rebound.
insomnia
A persistent sleep disorder involving recurring difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep, or obtaining restorative sleep.
narcolepsy
A chronic neurological sleep disorder characterized by overwhelming daytime sleepiness and sudden, uncontrollable episodes of falling asleep directly into REM sleep.
sleep apnea
A sleep disorder characterized by repeated temporary cessations of breathing during sleep, causing momentary awakenings and disrupted rest.
sleepwalking/somnambulism
A sleep disturbance occurring during deep NREM (slow-wave) sleep in which an individual gets out of bed and performs complex motor activities while asleep.
manifest content
According to Sigmund Freud's psychoanalytic dream theory, the remembered surface storyline, characters, and events directly experienced in a dream.
latent content
According to Sigmund Freud, the hidden, unconscious psychological desires, motives, and symbolic meanings underlying the manifest content of a dream.
activation-synthesis
A biological theory proposing that dreams result from the cerebral cortex's effort to synthesize and interpret random bursts of neural activity generated by the brainstem during REM sleep.
hypothesis of dreaming
Theoretical frameworks proposed by psychologists and neuroscientists to explain the origins, mechanisms, and biological or psychological purposes of dreams.
problem-solving theory of dreaming
Rosalind Cartwright's cognitive perspective asserting that dreams allow individuals to reflect on emotional conflicts and devise solutions to real-world problems without daytime constraints.
dreams
Subjective sequences of thoughts, images, sensations, and emotions experienced during sleep, occurring most vividly and coherently during REM sleep.
nightmare
A distressing, frightening dream that occurs during REM sleep and usually awakens the sleeper, leaving a vivid memory of the event.
night terrors
A sleep disorder marked by episodes of abrupt panic, screams, and high autonomic arousal during deep Stage 3 NREM sleep, with little to no subsequent recall.
hypnosis
A social interaction and altered state of consciousness wherein a subject becomes highly receptive to suggestions regarding changes in perception, memory, or behavior.
neodissociative theory
Ernest Hilgard's theoretical model asserting that hypnosis divides consciousness into two separate streams: one responding to suggestions and a "hidden observer" maintaining objective awareness.
posthypnotic suggestion
A directive given during hypnosis to be carried out after the subject returns to a normal waking state, often used to help modify habits or relieve pain.
alcohol
A central nervous system depressant that increases GABA activity, reduces anxiety, slows reaction time, impairs judgment, and hinders motor coordination.
barbiturates
A class of synthetic depressant drugs that suppress central nervous system activity, prescribed as sedatives or hypnotics, carrying high risks of tolerance, addiction, and lethal overdose.
tranqulizers
Depressant drugs, including benzodiazepines, that decrease anxiety, relax skeletal muscles, and promote calmness by depressing central nervous system excitability.
caffeine
A widely used psychoactive stimulant that enhances alertness, counteracts drowsiness, and boosts metabolic activity by blocking adenosine receptors in the brain.
amphetamines
Potent central nervous system stimulants that stimulate the release and block the reuptake of dopamine and norepinephrine, increasing arousal, energy, and alertness.
cocaine
An addictive stimulant derived from the coca plant that generates brief euphoria and high alertness by blocking the reuptake of dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin.
nicotine
A highly addictive stimulant compound found in tobacco products that activates acetylcholine receptors, elevating heart rate, blood pressure, and alertness.
narcotics
Opiate and opioid drugs (such as morphine and heroin) that relieve pain, induce drowsiness, and generate euphoria by binding to the body's natural endorphin receptors.
hallucinogens
Psychoactive drugs (such as LSD, psilocybin, and mescaline) that profoundly alter sensory perception, evoke vivid hallucinations, and distort the user's perception of reality.
dependence
A condition in which a person requires regular administration of a substance to function normally and avoid physical withdrawal symptoms or psychological distress.
tolerance
A diminished physiological response resulting from regular, repeated drug use, requiring progressively larger doses to produce the drug's initial effect.
withdrawal
The distressing and often painful physiological and psychological symptoms that emerge when an individual abruptly ceases or reduces the use of a drug to which they are dependent.
A learning procedure in which a biologically potent stimulus is paired with a previously neutral stimulus, causing the neutral stimulus to eventually elicit an involuntary response.
A method of learning that occurs through rewards and punishments, establishing an association between a voluntary behavior and its consequences.
The initial stage in conditioning where a response is first established and gradually strengthened through pairing or reinforcement.
Any consequence or stimulus presented or removed immediately following an action that decreases the future frequency of that behavior.
The tendency of an organism to exhibit a conditioned response to stimuli that resemble the original conditioned stimulus
The learned ability to differentiate between a conditioned stimulus and other similar stimuli that do not predict the unconditioned stimulus.
The gradual weakening and eventual disappearance of a conditioned response when reinforcement or the unconditioned stimulus stops being presented.
An environmental event that naturally, reliably, and automatically elicits a physiological or reflexive reaction without any prior training.
An unlearned, automatic, and reflexive physiological reaction triggered directly by an unconditioned stimulus.
An originally neutral stimulus that, after repeated pairing with an unconditioned stimulus, triggers a learned response
A learned physiological or behavioral reaction produced by a previously neutral stimulus after conditioning has taken place.
An environmental cue that elicits no specific behavioral reaction or target response prior to conditioning.
A fundamental learning process by which an organism connects two events, stimuli, or behaviors that occur together in time.
A relatively permanent change in knowledge, capability, or behavior resulting from experience, practice, or observation.
Any detectable change, event, or energy in the internal or external environment that evokes a sensory or behavioral response.
The acquisition of mental information, reasoning strategies, and problem-solving skills through thought, observation, and language.
An approach in psychology emphasizing that the discipline should be an objective science studying observable actions without referencing conscious mental states.
An automatic, involuntary motor or autonomic response elicited directly by an incoming environmental stimulus.
A procedure in which an established conditioned stimulus is paired with a new neutral stimulus, creating a second conditioned stimulus.
The reappearance of an extinguished conditioned response after a rest period with no further conditioning trials.
Thorndike's principle stating that behaviors followed by favorable outcomes become more likely, while behaviors followed by unfavorable outcomes become less likely.
A research apparatus containing a manipulable lever or key and a food dispenser used to measure rates of animal behavior.
Any event or stimulus following a voluntary behavior that increases the likelihood of that behavior occurring again.
An instructional procedure in which successive approximations of a desired behavior are systematically reinforced until the final target action is mastered
The strengthening of a behavior through the presentation of a favorable or rewarding stimulus immediately after the response occurs.
The strengthening of a behavior through the removal, reduction, or prevention of an unpleasant or aversive stimulus
An innately satisfying stimulus that directly meets a fundamental physiological need, such as food, water, or warmth.
A secondary stimulus that gains its reinforcing capacity by being paired with a primary reinforcer, such as money or praise.
: A rule or timetable establishing how often and under what conditions an operant response will be reinforced.
A schedule of reinforcement in which the target response is rewarded every single time it takes place.