Chapter 4 – Consciousness and Its Variations (Hockenbury & Nolan, 10th ed.)

Vocabulary flashcards summarizing essential terms and definitions from Chapter 4 on consciousness, sleep, hypnosis, meditation, and psychoactive drugs.

Consciousness

Personal awareness of mental activities, internal sensations, and the external environment.

Attention

Capacity to selectively focus awareness on particular stimuli, thoughts, or sensations.

Dualism (Descartes)

Philosophical view that mind and body are separate, with the mind controlling the body.

Introspection

Early psychological technique of looking inward to examine one’s own conscious experience.

Freud’s Unconscious

Hypothesized reservoir of repressed desires and instincts outside conscious awareness.

Cognitive Unconscious

Modern concept of unexperienced mental processes that influence thoughts, choices, and emotions.

Minimal Consciousness

Low-level sensory awareness and responsiveness to stimulation.

Full Consciousness

State in which one is fully aware and able to report mental content.

Self-Consciousness

Attention focused on oneself as the object of awareness.

Altered State of Consciousness

Condition in which awareness differs noticeably from waking consciousness (e.g., drug state, brain trauma).

Unity (Consciousness)

Property by which consciousness is experienced as an integrated whole.

Selectivity

Property of consciousness that filters information, focusing on what is relevant.

Intentionality

Quality of consciousness being directed toward an object or idea.

Transience

Tendency of consciousness to continually shift focus from one thing to another.

Perceptual Constancy

Perception of objects as constant despite changes in sensory input (size, shape).

Inattentional Blindness

Failure to notice visible stimuli when attention is engaged elsewhere.

Change Blindness

Inability to detect large visual changes in a scene due to limited attention.

Cocktail-Party Effect

Ability to focus on one conversation amid many, illustrating selective attention.

Multitasking

Dividing attention across tasks, often reducing performance on each.

Automatic Processing

Well-learned tasks performed with little conscious guidance (e.g., walking).

Controlled Processing

Tasks requiring focused attention and conscious effort (e.g., learning to drive).

Blindsight

Ability of cortically blind individuals to respond to visual stimuli without conscious seeing.

Priming

Unconscious exposure to information that influences later perceptions or behavior.

Circadian Rhythm

Biological cycle about 24 hours long regulating sleep, hormones, and other functions.

Melatonin

Pineal hormone that promotes sleep; production suppressed by bright light.

Jet Lag

Desynchronization of circadian rhythms due to rapid travel across time zones.

EEG (Electroencephalogram)

Recording of brain’s electrical activity used to study sleep stages.

Beta Waves

Fast brain-wave pattern associated with alert wakefulness.

Alpha Waves

Slower brain waves seen during relaxed wakefulness or drowsiness.

Theta Waves

Brain waves characteristic of light NREM sleep (Stage 1 & 2).

Delta Waves

Slow brain waves dominant in deep NREM Stage 3 sleep.

Hypnagogic Hallucinations

Vivid sensory experiences occurring at sleep onset.

Myoclonic Jerk

Sudden muscle spasm that often accompanies sleep onset.

Sleep Spindle

Burst of rapid brain activity in NREM Stage 2 sleep.

K-Complex

Large, high-voltage wave occurring in NREM Stage 2 sleep.

REM Sleep

Sleep phase with rapid eye movements, active brain, dreaming, and muscle paralysis.

NREM Sleep

Non-rapid-eye-movement sleep encompassing Stages 1–3; quiet and dreamless.

Sleep Cycle

Recurrent pattern of NREM and REM sleep lasting about 90 minutes.

REM Rebound

Excess REM sleep following deprivation of REM.

Microsleep

Brief, involuntary episode of sleep lasting seconds, often from deprivation.

Activation-Synthesis Model

Theory that dreams result from brainstem activation and cortical synthesis of meaning.

Neurocognitive Model of Dreaming

View that dreams mirror waking concerns and reflect personality and interests.

Manifest Content

Freud’s term for the surface storyline of a dream.

Latent Content

Freud’s hidden, symbolic meaning of a dream.

Insomnia

Chronic difficulty falling or staying asleep or feeling rested.

Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Breathing stops repeatedly during sleep due to airway blockage.

Narcolepsy

Disorder marked by excessive daytime sleepiness and sudden sleep attacks.

Parasomnia

Undesired arousal or behaviors during sleep, e.g., sleepwalking or sleep terrors.

Sleep Terrors

Abrupt awakenings in NREM Stage 3 with intense fear and autonomic arousal.

Sleepwalking

Walking or performing actions during deep NREM sleep.

Sleep-Related Eating Disorder

Episodes of eating while asleep with little recollection.

Sexsomnia

Engaging in sexual behaviors during sleep without awareness.

Exploding Head Syndrome

Parasomnia involving perception of loud noises during sleep transitions.

Hypnosis

Cooperative social interaction producing changes in perception, memory, and behavior via suggestion.

Posthypnotic Suggestion

Instruction given during hypnosis to be acted on after trance ends.

Dissociation Theory (Hypnosis)

Proposes hypnosis splits consciousness into separate streams.

Social-Cognitive Theory of Hypnosis

Suggests hypnotized behavior results from expectations and social roles.

Meditation

Practice using mental or physical techniques to focus attention and heighten awareness.

Focused Attention Meditation

Meditative strategy concentrating on a single object or mantra.

Open Monitoring Meditation

Meditative approach observing present-moment experience without fixation.

Psychoactive Drug

Substance that alters arousal, mood, thinking, sensation, or perception.

Depressants

Drugs that inhibit or slow central nervous system activity.

Opioids (Opiates)

Pain-relieving, euphoria-producing drugs chemically similar to morphine.

Stimulants

Drugs that increase brain activity and mental alertness.

Psychedelics

Drugs that produce perceptual distortions and alter thinking and mood.

Physical Dependence

Physiological need for a drug marked by tolerance and withdrawal.

Drug Tolerance

Diminished effect of a drug requiring higher doses for same effect.

Withdrawal Symptoms

Unpleasant effects experienced when drug use is reduced or stopped.

Drug Rebound Effect

Withdrawal symptom opposite to the drug’s action (e.g., insomnia after sedatives).

Dopamine Reward System

Brain pathway activated by addictive drugs, reinforcing use.

Alcohol

Widely used depressant; lowers inhibitions, high abuse potential, dangerous at high BAC.

Barbiturates

Powerful sedatives that reduce anxiety and promote sleep; high overdose risk.

Tranquilizers (Benzodiazepines)

Less potent depressants used to treat anxiety (e.g., Valium).

Morphine

Natural opioid from opium poppy used medically for pain relief.

Heroin

Illegal, highly addictive opioid derived from morphine.

Methadone

Synthetic opioid used to treat heroin dependence and pain.

Oxycodone

Prescription opioid analgesic with high abuse potential.

Fentanyl

Very potent synthetic opioid associated with overdose deaths.

Caffeine

Common stimulant in coffee and tea that blocks adenosine receptors, promoting alertness.

Nicotine

Stimulant in tobacco that increases alertness and is highly addictive.

Vaping

Inhalation of aerosol from e-cigarettes to deliver nicotine or cannabis compounds.

Amphetamines

Stimulants that increase CNS activity and suppress appetite; include prescription and illicit forms.

Methamphetamine

Illegal amphetamine producing long-lasting euphoria and severe brain damage risk.

Cocaine

Illegal stimulant blocking reuptake of dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine.

Mescaline

Psychedelic compound from peyote cactus causing sensory distortions.

Psilocybin

Psychedelic chemical in "magic mushrooms" producing altered perception.

LSD

Synthetic psychedelic mimicking serotonin, producing profound perceptual changes.

Flashback (Drug)

Recurrence of a psychedelic experience after the drug has worn off.

Marijuana (THC)

Cannabis product whose active ingredient tetrahydrocannabinol alters perception and mood.

Anandamide

Endogenous neurotransmitter that binds THC receptors involved in pain regulation.

MDMA (Ecstasy)

Synthetic club drug with stimulant and mild psychedelic effects; releases serotonin.

Hyperthermia

Dangerously high body temperature possible with MDMA or PCP use.

Dissociative Anesthetics

Drugs like PCP and ketamine that produce detachment from reality and pain insensitivity.

Stimulus Control Therapy

Behavioral treatment for insomnia pairing the bedroom only with sleep to improve onset.