Chap 4: States of Consciousness

Source: Barron's AP Psychology

REM

________ (Rapid Eye Movement) Sleep- Brain activity increases, your eyes dart around quickly, and your pulse, blood pressure, and breathing speed up.

internal process

A natural, ________ that regulates the sleep- wake cycle and repeats roughly every 24 hours.

form of symbols

Even during sleep, our ego protects us from the material in the unconscious mind by presenting these repressed desires in the ________.

physiological change

A(n) ________ that produces a need for more of the same drug in order to achieve the same effect.

Mere exposure Effect

Occurs when we prefer stimuli we have seen before over novel stimuli, even if we do not consciously remember seeing the old stimuli

Priming

Research participants respond more quickly and/or accurately to questions they have seen before, even if they do not remember seeing them

Blind Sight

• Some people who report being blind can nonetheless accurately describe the path of a moving object or accurately grasp objects they say they cannot see.

• One level of consciousness is not getting any visual information, while another level is able to “see” as demonstrated by their behaviour

Conscious level

The info about yourself and your environment you are currently aware of.

e.g. Reading these words

Nonconscious level

Body processes controlled by your mind that we are not usually aware of.

e.g. Heartbeat, digestion, respiration

Preconscious level

Information about yourself of your environment that you are not currently thinking about (not in your conscious level) but you could be.

e.g. What was your favourite toy as a child?

Subconscious level

Info that we are not consciously aware of but we know must exist due to behaviour

e.g. Fears

Unconscious level

Psychoanalytic psychologists believe some events and feelings are unacceptable to our conscious mind and are repressed into the unconscious mind.

Circadian Rhythm

A natural, internal process that regulates the sleep–wake cycle and repeats roughly every 24 hours.

Sleep onset

The period when we are falling asleep

Alpha waves

Produced when we are drowsy, but awake

Theta waves

Produced between stages 1 and 2

Sleep spindles

Short bursts of rapid brain waves during stage 2

Delta waves

• Produced between stages 3 and 4

• Delta sleep is important in replenishing the body’s chemical supplies, releasing growth hormones, and fortifying immune systems.

REM Sleep

Brain activity increases, your eyes dart around quickly, and your pulse, blood pressure, and breathing speed up.

Insomnia

• Most common sleep disorder

• Persistent problems getting to sleep or staying asleep at night

Narcolepsy

• Much rarer than insomnia

• Periods of intense sleepiness and may fall asleep at unpredictable and inappropriate times

Sleep Apnea

• Causes a person to stop breathing for short periods of time during the night

• Can be fatal if severe

Night terrors

• A sleep disorder in which a person quickly awakens from sleep in a terrified state

• Occur in stage 4 of sleep

Somnambulism (Sleep Walking)

• Getting up and walking around while in a state of sleep

• Occur in stage 4 of sleep

Manifest content

Literal content of our dreams

Latent content

Unconscious meaning of the manifest content

Protected sleep

Even during sleep, our ego protects us from the material in the unconscious mind by presenting these repressed desires in the form of symbols.

Activation-synthesis theory

• Looks at dreams first as biological phenomena

• Dreams are nothing more than the brain’s interpretations of what is happening physiologically during REM sleep

Information-processing theory

• Stress during the day will increase the number and intensity of dreams during the night

• Brain is dealing with daily stress and information during REM dreams

• Function of REM is to integrate the info processed during the day into our memories

Blood-Brain Barrier

• The brain is protected from harmful chemicals in the bloodstream by thicker walls surrounding the brain’s blood vessels

• Psychoactive drug molecules are small enough to pass through this barrier

Agonists

Drugs that occupy the receptors and activate them like a neurotransmitter

Antagonists

• Drugs that occupy receptors but do not activate them

• Block receptor activation by agonists

Tolerance

A physiological change that produces a need for more of the same drug in order to achieve the same effect.

Withdrawal

The combination of physical and mental effects a person experiences after they stop using or reduce their intake of a drug

Stimulants

• Arouse the autonomic nervous system

• Caffeine, cocaine, amphetamines, nicotine

Depressants

• Slow down the autonomic nervous system

• Alcohol, barbiturates, tranquilizers

Hallucinogens

• Cause sensory distortions

• Marijuana, LSD, peyote, mushrooms, psilocybin

Opiates

• Relieve pain, elevate mood (agonists for endorphins)

• Codeine, morphine, heroine, methadone

Reverse Tolerance

• Hallucinogens may remain in the body for weeks and if an individual ingests the hallucinogen again during this time period, the new dose is added to the lingering amount.

• Creates more profound and potentially dangerous side effects.

Sleep onset

The period when we are falling asleep

REM (Rapid Eye Movement) Sleep

Brain activity increases, your eyes dart around quickly, and your pulse, blood pressure, and breathing speed up

4 categories of drugs

Stimulants, Depressants, Hallucinogens, Opiates