PSYCH Exam 2

What is Consciousness?

ones moment-to-moment subjective experience of the world (external events, internal sensation/reactions)

qualia = subjective experience of sensation

Dualism

earliest attempt to understand consciousness

Consciousness = Limited and is Governed by…

attention

Change Blindness

when we fail to notice change in our environment due to distraction

Shadowing

technique when people receive different auditory input in each ear to study selective attention

Endogenous Attention

directed voluntarily

Exogenous Attention

directed involuntarily by external stimuli

Variation in Consciousness depends on…

• task engagement (automatic vs controlled)

• meditation/hypnosis

• sleep/waking cycle

• consumption of psychoactive substances

• brain injury

Priming

facilitation in response to stimulus due to recent experience with that/related stimulus

unconscious

Subliminal Perception

processing without conscious awareness

Meditation

mental practice that focuses attention on external objects, internal events, or sense of awareness

• concentrative: focused attention on 1 thing

• mindfulness: letting thoughts flow freely + paying attention, but not reacting

stress reduction

Flow

experience that is engrossing + changes consciousness

• religious ecstasy: when religious ceremonies/practices decrease awareness of external stimuli

• escapist activities: decreases awareness of external stimuli

Hypnosis

interaction where a person (responding to suggestions) experiences change in memory/perception/actions

• sociocognitive theory: a hypnotized person highly suggestible + essentially acting upon role directed by hypnotist

• neodissociation theory: views hypnotic state as true altered state of consciousness

  • evidence: brain imaging supports in cortex of hypnotic analgesia

Sleep and Waking Cycle

biological + environmental factors influence sleep

EEG used in sleep research to monitor electrical activity of the brain (also eye movement, respiration, pulse, body temp.)

Sleep + Biological Rhythm

biological rhythm: periodic fluctuations in physiological functioning

circadian rhythm: 24-hour bio rhythm in humans/other species

• sleep/waking, body temp

• Regulated by dark/light exposure

  • when light detected by eye, signals sent to suprchiasmatic nerve (region of hypothalamus) → sent to pineal gland → secretes melatonin (which is synthesized by serotonin)

    • bright light suppresses melatonin production

Stages/Cycle of Sleep

repeats 5 times during the night

• alert wakefulness: Beta waves

• Drowsiness: Alpha waves

stages 1 + 2

1. Theta waves

2. high frequency sleep spindles + k-complex

stages 3 + 4

• slow waves/deep sleep

• Delta waves

REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep

• 1st cycle 90min into sleep

• paradoxical sleep

• eyes dart back and forth, paralysis of motor/muscle systems, dreams

Dreams

mental experience during sleep with vivid imagery, sensation, emotion

non-REM dreams

• general deactivation of brain regions, usually more dull

REM-dreams

• activation of structures associated with motivation, emotion, reward, visual processing → bizarre/exciting

Why do we Dream?

• wish fulfillment theory (Freud): manifest (what we dream about) + latent content (what it means)

• activation-synthesis theory (Hobson+McCarley): dreams = brains attempt at making sense of random neural firings

• restorative theories: sleep allows body + brain to rest/recover

• circadian theories: sleep evolved to limit exposure to predators

• facilitation of learning theory: sleep strengthens neural connections that promote learning

Age and Sleep

• newborns: 16h, 50% REM

• young adults: 8h, 60% light/20% slow wave/20% REM

• elderly adults: 5-6h, increased light sleep

Sleep Disorders

• insomnia: inability to sleep that can cause significant problems in daily living

• obstructive sleep apnea: where throat closes during sleep → results in frequent awakening

• narcolepsy: excessive sleepiness during waking hours

• REM-behavior disorder: normal paralysis during REM doesn’t occur → may act out cleans while sleeping

• somnambulism: sleepwalking → during slow wave sleep

Traumatic Brain Injury + Consciousness

Impairment of mental functioning → caused by blow to head

~ concussion: type of TBI with brain swelling, can cause permanent damage

Coma + Consciousness

prolonged loss of general conscious awareness

• unresponsive wakefulness: eyes may open, sleep cycle may occur → no response to external stimuli

• minimally conscious state: some response to external stimuli, eye tracking may occur

Psychoactive Drugs

modify mental/emotion/behavior by altering neurotransmitter functioning

dopamine activity in limbic system associated with dng dependence

• stimulants, depressants, opioids, hallucinations

Mixed Classification Drugs

• cannabis

• MDMA

Learning

relatively durable change in behavior/knowledge due to experience

Conditioning

learning through association between events/stimuli that occurs in an organisms environment

Classical Conditioning (CC)

Pavlovian

• where previous neural stimulus has the capacity to provoke a response that is normally produced by a different stimuli

  • dogs salivary reflex

Unconditioned Stimulus (US)

stimulus produces an unconditioned response without previous conditioning

~smelling/seeing food causes salivation

Unconditioned Response (UR)

response that does not have to be learned

~when you put food in your mouth you automatically produce saliva

Conditioned Stimulus (CS)

previously exposed to neural stimulus (through conditioning) acquires the capacity to produce a conditioned response

~after becoming sick/nauseous after eating something specific → the sight/smell of that food produces a CR

Conditioned Response (CR)

learned response to a conditioned stimulus that occurs because of conditioning

~seeing/smelling/thinking of a food that previously made you sick makes you feel sick when seeing/smelling/thinking of that food later

Classical Conditioning can result in…

varying emotional responses

conditioned (learned) fears/phobias → Little Albert

Acquisition (CC Process)

formation of new conditioned responses

Stimulus Contiguity (CC Process)

association between CS + US critical for acquiring CR

~unusual/intense stimili more likely to become CS

Extinction (CC Process)

gradual awakening/disappearance of a CR tendency

~when CS presented alone, treatment of phobias

Spontaneous Recovery (CC Process)

reappearance of an extinguished response after presentation of CS

Stimulus Generalization (CC Process)

responding to stimuli that are similar (not identical) to CS that provide CR

Stimulus Discrimination (CC Process)

discriminating between CS + other similar stimuli

Second (Higher) Order Conditioning (CC Process)

situation where CR is produced by stimulus even though stimulus has never been paired with US

Operant Conditioning (OC)

form of learning in which voluntary responses come to be controlled by their consequences

established gradually

~Thorndike’s puzzle boxes (law of effect), Skinner’s operant chambers (principle of reinforcement)

Extinction (OC)

gradual awakening/disappearance of a response tendency because the response is no longer followed by reinforcement

Resistance to Extinction (OC)

when an organism continues to make a response after delivery of the reinforcement is stoped

Discriminative Stimuli (OC)

cues that influence operant behavior by indicating the likely consequence of a response

Primary Reinforcement (OC)

inherently reinforcing because it fulfills a biological need

Secondary/Conditioned Reinforcement (OC)

events that become reinforcers thought CC associated with primary reinforcers

Positive Reinforcement (OC)

when a response is strengthen → because its followed by the presentation of a rewarding stimulus

Negative Reinforcement (OC)

when a response if strengthened → because it followed by the removal of an negative stimulus

Continuous Reinforcement

when every instance of a designated response = rewarded

Partial Reinforcement

when a designated response = rewarded only some of the time

~makes response harder to extinguish

Ratio Schedules

require organism to make the assigned response a specific # of times to be rewarded

• fixed ratio: reward given after fixed # of responses

• variable ratio: reward given after random # of responses

Punishment (OC)

side effects

• suppression of behavioral activity, increased emotional response (fear, anger, aggression, etc.), physical punishment increases aggressive behavior

to make more effective

• apply punishment immediately, make sever enough to be effective, explain the punishment

Instinctive Drift

animals innate response tendencies interfere with conditioning process

Observational Learning

when an organisms response is influenced by observing others actions/responses

Memory Definition

the nervous systems capacity to retain and retrieve skills + knowledge

Memory Info Processing Model

1. encoding: processing of info so I can be stored

2. storage: retention of encoded info over time

3. consolidation: neural process by which information becomes stored in memory

4. retrieval: recalling/remembering stored info

5. reconsolidation: neural process involved when memories are recalled then stored again for retrieval

Memory + Brain Activity

bored in many brain regions and linked by memory circuits

hippocampus, prefrontal cortex, tempotal lobes, cerebellum, amygdala

H.M. Case

showed how specific brain regions affect memory

• to combat seizures doctors removed parts of medial temporal lobes (including hippocampus) → thinking abilities + long term memory remained intact

  • lost his ability to remember new information for longer then brief periods

Long Term Potentiation (LTP)

strengthening of a synaptic connection → making postsynaptic neurons more easily activated by presynaptic neurons

Memory + Genetics

NMDA involved in LTP

→ enzymes called HDAC inhibit gene expression ~ blocking HDAC may increase memory

Sensory Memory

brief traces reflecting perceptual processes → brief time (1/3 sec) and helps us experience the world as a continuous stream

• iconic memory: visual sensory

• echoic memory: auditory sensory

Short Term Memory

storage system that briefly holds limited info in awareness

Working Memory

• keeps different types of information available for current use

• persists of 20-30 sec without rehearsal

Memory Span + Chunking

the amount of info in working memory

Miller:

• rule of 7 (±) items

• chunking: organizing info into meaningful units to facilitate memory

Long Term Memory (LTM)

relatively permanent storage of information → if information is repeatedly rehearsed and deeply processed

• levels of processing model: deeper encoding results in deeper meaning + retrievability

  • maintenance rehearsal: repeating over and over

  • elaborative rehearsal: encoding in a more meaningful way

Serial Position Effects

shows distinction between working memory and LTM

• primacy effect: better memory for words at beginning of list (LTM)

• recency effect: better memory for words at end of list (working memory)

Schemas

cognitive structures in LTM that help us perceive, organize, process, and use info

• rooted in culture and can be biased → stereotypes

Networks of Association Model

items distinctive features are linked to identify the item

→ each unit of information if a node

Spreading Activation Model

stimuli in working memory activate specific nodes in LTM → spreads to related node

Retrieval Cues

anything that helps recall a memory → contextual cues and internal states

• encoding specificity model: any stimulus that is encoded with an experience can help trigger memory of that experience

  • context dependent memory: recall situation = similar to encoding the situation (test taking in same room as studied in)

  • state dependent memory: what internal state experience when encoding + recall match → memory = higher (moods, psychoactive state)

Prospective Memory

remembering to do something in the future

• takes up cognitive effort + reduces working memory

• retrieval cues help (timer, rubber band)

Mnemonics

learning aids/strategies that improve recall using retrieval cues

• associating item with physical location

• acronyms

Implicit Memory (LTM)

system underlying unconscious memories

exists without our awareness of them and don’t require conscious attention

• motor memory: type of implicit memory involving motor skills, habits, etc.

Explicit Memory (LTM)

system underlying conscious memories

• declarative memory: cognitive info retrieved from explicit memory (factual knowledge→ memory for exam content)

• episodic memory: personal experience

• semantic memory: knowledge of facts independent of personal experience

  • for H.M. case: semantic memory was intact, but episodic memory was damaged

Forgetting (Memory Flaw)

inability to retrieve memory from LT storage

memory decay

• proactive interference: when prior info inhibits the ability to remember new information

• retroactive interference: the new info inhibits the memory for old information

Blocking (Memory Flaw)

temporary inability to remember something

→ tip of tongue phenomenon

Absentmindedness (Memory Flaw)

inattentive/shallow encoding of events

Amnesia (Memory Flaw)

deficit in LTM resulting from disease, brain injury, or trauma

• retrograde amnesia: loss of past memories (events, facts, people, places, personal info)

• anterograde amnesia: loss of ability to form new memories (H.M.)

Persistence (Memory Flaw)

continual recurrent of unwanted memories

• PTSD: classical conditioning, associated with processes in amygdala, HDAC inhibition may be helpful, propranolol may be helpful

Reconstructed Memory

people have the tendency to remember past events in concordance with current events

• memory bias: changing of memories over time to conform to current beliefs/attitudes

  • collective memories can distort past

Flashbulb Memories

vivid, episodic memories for circumstances where people 1st learn of surprising, consequential, or emotional news/events

• can be biased/inaccurate

Source Misattribution

misremembering of time, place, person, circumstances of a memory

• false frame effect: familiarity of name is associated with belief in persons fame

• sleeper effect: argument from questionable source becomes more persuasive over time

• source amnesia: misremembering where someone encountered info

• crypto-amnesia: when someone thinks some else’s ideas are their own (false plagiarism)

Suggestibility

development of biased memories from misleading info

• “remembering” seeing non-existent things when primed

False Memories

memories can be distorted/implanted by false info

• children are susceptible

Repressed Memories

research questions if repressed memory examples are real memories of trauma or memories implanted by suggestive techniques (hypnosis/guided recall)

Prenatal Development 1

germinal stage

• first 2 weeks

• sperm and egg join to create cell mass called zygote

• zygote attached to uterine wall 7th day after fertilization

• placenta begins to from

Prenatal Development 2

embryonic stage

• 2 weeks - 2 months

• nervous sytem emerges

• organs begin to form + bodily structures discernible

• critical development stage with significant vulnerability (teratogens, maternal stress, nutrition)

Prenatal Development 3

fetal stage

• 2 months - birth

• bones begin to form

• capable of movement

• sex organs develop

• age of viability at 22 weeks

Environment Factors in Prenatal Development

• maternal nutrition

• maternal stress

• exposure to teratogens

  • alcohol