PSYC 101 - Chapter 5: Variations in Consciousness

What is consciousness?

The awareness of internal and external stimuli, including your thoughts, sensations, and your sense of self.

What are circadian rhythms?

The 24-hour biological cycles found in humans and many other species, influencing sleep, body temperature, and hormone levels.

What does an Electroencephalograph (EEG) record?

The electrical activity of the brain over time, summarized as brain waves.

Which brain waves are associated with normal waking thought and alert problem-solving?

$Beta$ waves with a frequency of $13-24\,Hz$.

Which brain waves are characteristic of deep relaxation or a blank mind?

$Alpha$ waves with a frequency of $8-12\,Hz$.

What type of brain waves are most prominent during light sleep (Stage 1)?

$Theta$ waves with a frequency of $4-7\,Hz$.

What are sleep spindles?

Brief bursts of high-frequency brain waves that occur during Stage 2 sleep.

What are Delta waves?

High-amplitude, low-frequency brain waves (less than $4\,Hz$) characteristic of deep Stage 3 sleep.

What is REM sleep?

A deep stage of sleep marked by Rapid Eye Movements, high-frequency brain waves, and vivid dreaming.

What happens to muscle tone during REM sleep?

Muscle tone is extremely relaxed, essentially resulting in temporary paralysis of most voluntary muscles.

What is REM rebound?

The tendency for people to spend increased time in REM sleep after being deprived of it for several nights.

What is insomnia?

A chronic problem in getting adequate sleep, characterized by difficulty falling asleep, remaining asleep, or early-morning awakening.

What is narcolepsy?

A disease marked by sudden and irresistible onsets of sleep during normal waking periods.

What is sleep apnea?

A disorder involving frequent, reflexive gasping for air that awakens a person and disrupts sleep.

What are night terrors?

Abrupt awakenings from NREM sleep accompanied by intense autonomic arousal and feelings of panic.

What is somnambulism?

Also known as sleepwalking, a phenomenon where a person arises and wanders about while remaining asleep.

In Freud's dream theory, what is manifest content?

The actual plot of the dream at the surface level.

In Freud's dream theory, what is latent content?

The hidden or disguised meaning of the events in the dream plot.

What is the activation-synthesis hypothesis of dreaming?

The theory that dreams are the brain's attempt to make sense of random neural activity occurring during REM sleep.

What is hypnosis?

A systematic procedure that typically produces a heightened state of suggestibility.

What is the dissociation theory of hypnosis?

Ernest Hilgard's proposal that hypnosis creates a splitting of mental processes into two separate, simultaneous streams of awareness.

What is drug tolerance?

A progressive decrease in a person's responsiveness to a drug as a result of continued use.

What are stimulants?

Drugs that tend to increase central nervous system activation and behavioral activity, such as caffeine, nicotine, and cocaine.

Freud’s theory of dreaming

wish-fulfilling function of dreams

Cartwright’s theory of dreaming

problem-solving function of dreams

Hobson’s theory of dreaming

asserts that dreams are merely a by-product of periodic neural activation