Studied by 3 peopleso fun :(
What is consciousness?
the moment-to-moment subjective experience of the world, bodies, and mental sensations
subjective, dynamic, self-reflective
How is consciousness (supposedly) measured?
Self-reports
Physiological measures (ex. EEG, FMRI)
Behavioural measures (ex. rouge test)
Mirror-rouge test
idea: kid put in front of mirror with smear of rouge on forehead; if they touch it, they have awareness/self-concept
but it worked on pigeons too
Circular logic
Controlled processing
mental processing that requires some degree of volitional control and attentiveness
ex. studying for exam
Automatic processing
mental activities that occur automatically and require no minimal conscious control/awareness
ex. riding a bike
Divided attention
ability to perform more than one activity at the time
presumed to be made possible but automatic processing
difficult if tasks require similar cognitive resources
ex. listening to music while studying for an exam
circadian rhythm
cyclical changes that occur on roughly 24-hr basis in many biological processes
regulated by superchiasmatic nucleus (SCN)
superchiasmatic nucleus
located in hypothalamus
brain's "biological clock"
pineal gland releases a hormone melatonin -> triggers sensations of drowsiness
located above optic chiasm -partly learns day/night cycles through retinal signals
How much sleep does an average person need?
roughly 7-10 hours per night
Factors that affect the amount of sleep one needs
Age
Health
Quality of sleep
Genetics -> DCE2 gene mutation = may only require 6 hrs
Species
What can sleep deprivation result in?
Difficulties learning
Poor attention
lethargy
What health conditions are associated with sleep deprivation?
weight gain
diabetes
heart problems
weakened immune system
Stages of sleep/waves
Awake and alert: beta waves ( >13 waves per second)
Calm wakefulness: Alpha waves ( 8-12 wps)
Stage 1: Theta waves ( 4-7 wps)
Stage 2: Sleep spindles and K-complexes
Stage 3 and 4 : Delta waves ( 1-2 wps)
Stage 5 (REM)
Sleep stage 1
Theta waves (4-7 waves per second)
myoclonic jerks
Hypnagogic imagery
lasts 5-10 minutes
stage where you don't really feel like you're sleeping
Sleep stage 2
Sleep spindles
K-complexes
Sleep spindle
Stage 2
short bursts of neural activity, 5-1.5 seconds
possibly brain consolidating memories
K-complexes
Stage 2
large waveform that occurs intermittently
appear every 1-2 minutes in sleep
theory that they are related to ability to ignore external staimuli when sleeping
Sleep stages 3 and 4
Delta waves (1-2 per second), research suggests they are critical to good sleep
Stage 3 <50% of waves are delta
Stage 4 >50% of waves delta
"deep sleep" required for feeling rested
time spent in deep sleep declines with age
stage most difficult to wake someone up from
Sleep stage 5
REM
stage of sleep where brain is most active/where vivid dreaming most often occurs
approx 20% of sleep is REM
rebounds when REM is lost - periods will last longer, experience more vivid dreams - compensating for lost amounts of REM sleep
REM stage longer as night progresses
Theories on why we sleep
Energy conservation - body metabolizes slower in sleep
Adaptive for avoiding predation - human's don't see well at night
Restorative - body has chance to heal
Sleep disorders
Insomnia
Narcolepsy
Obstructive Sleep Apnea
Night Terrors
Sleepwalking
Insomnia
Difficulty falling/staying asleep
Treatment (Behavioural): consistent wake schedule, only go to bed when tired, only use bed for sleeping, exercise, avoid alcohol/caffeine in evening
Treatment (Pharmacological): Can be addictive, can have adverse side effects (ex. Amnesia), can lead to rebound insomnia
Narcolepsy
irregular control of sleep-wake cycles
Symptoms: . "sleep attacks" . cataplexy (lose voluntary muscle control for a few secs) . Hypnagogic & hypnopompic hallucinations (sleep-onset & sleep-offset) . sleep paralysis . disturbed nighttime sleep
Possible causes: . Insufficient hypocretin producing neurons in hypothalamus . Genes can help determine susceptibility, but % of related people both having = small
(Obstructive) Sleep Apnea
caused by blockage of airway during sleep = daytime fatigue
Health problems: Night sweats, weight gain, hearing loss, irregular heartbeat, ^ risk of death
Treatment: Weight loss, CPAP air mask
Night Terrors
Sudden waking episodes characterized by screaming, perspiring, and confusion followed by return to deep sleep
Lasts a few minutes
Stages 3 and 4 (not REM)
Harmless
Treatment: Getting older (usually happens in children)
Sleepwalking
Walking while fully asleep
Occurs during deep sleep stages
Usually harmless
Person often not aware they have done it
Occurs more often in children
Occurs during deep sleep
Are dreams typically more negative or positive?
Negative
Freud's Dream Protection Theory
Dreams reflect "wish-fulfillment" of unconscious desires -> prevent these from ruining sleep
unconscious desires expressed symbolically within dream, require "interpretation"
Manifest content: raw facts/details about dream
Latent content: underlying meaning about details in dream
Problems with Freud's dream protection theory
people with brain damage who can't dream will sleep soundly
dreams often not wish-fulfilling: mostly negative, consist of benign people/activities, can be nightmarish
most dreams involve no sexual themes
Activation synthesis theory
dreams reflect inputs from brain activation in pons, forebrain attempts to weave into story
REM induced by increased Acetylcholine in Pons & reductions in Serotonin/Norepinephrine -> signals sent to thalamus then cortical areas that try to make sense of them, but they are incomplete - try to make the best it
out-of-body experience (OBE)
sensation of consciousness leaving body
Occurs in approx. 10% of general population
people who experience OBE's often report other strange experiences as well
OBE's often occur in conjunction with near-death experiences
deja vu
Feeling of reliving an experience that's new
lasts approx. 10-30 seconds
May be due to: . excess levels of dopamine in temporal lobe -> people with small temporal lobe seizures will report Deja vu prior to the seizure . Resemblance of past events poorly remembered
Hypnosis
set of techniques that provides people with suggestions for alterations in perceptions, feelings, thoughts, behaviours
people are chosen to be "hypnotized" on the bases of their suggestibility
regression therapy
myths about hypnosis
Puts people in a "trance"
People can be made to do things they don't want to do
People are unaware of their surroundings
People forget what took place
Hypnosis can give you special abilities
Hypnotism enhances memory
Regression therapy
people hypnotized to remember events from childhood (where psych problems originated)
Problems: . Reports of age-regressed individuals often cant be corroborated by ppl present at the time . Poggendorff illusion . EEG responses
Past life regression therapy
people are regressed with hypnosis to remember events from a past life
problems: . Claims of regressed individuals often prove false when fact-checked . Ability to be regressed to a past-life is dependent on a belief in reincarnation
Psychoactive drug
contains chemicals similar to those found naturally in brains that alter consciousness by changing chemical processes in neurons
Alter how we think, feel, and act
Effects depend on: type, dose, beliefs and expectations, environment drug is taken in
Depressants
drugs that create a decrease in nervous system activity
ex. Alcohol, Barbiturates, Tranquilizers
Simulants
drugs that create an increase in nervous system activity
ex. Amphetamines, Methamphetamines, MDMA(Ecstasy), Cocaine, Tobacco
Opiates
bind to opioid/endorphin receptors and produce analgesic and euphoric effects
Derived from opium poppy
can produce ^ levels of dopamine -> Euphoria
administered in many ways -> affects potency
ex. Morphine, Codeine, heroin, Fentanyl, Oxy-Contin
Hallucinogens/Psychedelics
Drugs which cause dramatic alterations of perception, mood, and thought
Can enhance, distort, and intensify sensory experience
Effects often unpredictable leading to paranoia, violence, and anxiety in some people
ex. Cannabis
Routes of Administration of drugs
Ocular -> drops, bioadhesives
Buccal -> mucoadhesive, spray
Sublingual delivery -> tablets
Oral delivery -> capsule, pill
Intravenous delivery -> injection
Intramuscular delivery -> depot
Subcutaneous delivery -> Depot, implant -Transdermal/topical delivery -> patch, cream, spray
Pulmonary/Nasal delivery -> Aerosol, spray
Vaginal/rectal delivery -> Gel, suppository
For all drugs to enter into brain, need to enter bloodstream
Blood brain barrier
physiological mechanism that alters permeability of brain capillaries so some substances are prevented from entering brain tissue while others enter freely
Diagnosis of substance use disorder
user has significant and recurring impairments in their life as a result of the drug(s)
Tolerance
Withdrawal
Tolerance
reduction in effect of a drug as result of repeated use, requiring greater quantities to achieve same affect
often result of bodies attempt to maintain homeostasis
Withdrawal
unpleasant effects of reducing or stopping consumption of a drug that users had consumed habitually
these can be learned - when someone stops taking drug, they can still occur in times/places where they would normally take it
Alcohol
Depressant
Increases GABA, decreases glutamate
at low doses inhibitory control centers in cortex are "depressed" -> creates release of inhibitors, "upper" phase pf drinking
at higher doses other regions "depressed" -> loss of motor coordination, impaired judgement, "downer" phase of drinking, alcohol myopia
Barbiturates and tranquilizers
depressants
aka sleeping pills and sedatives
increase GABA activity
at high doses can lead to depression, loss of motor coordination, memory impairments
like Valium -> highly prescribed to housewives in 60s
Withdrawal symptoms can be insomnia or anxiety
Amphetamines
Simulants
reduce sleep, fatigue, appetite, depression
increase dopamine and norepinephrine
injections can lead to massive spikes in blood pressure causing stroke
Amphetamine psychosis -> schizophrenia-like hallucinations that occur when brain's dopamine activity is artificially ^ beyond normal level by heavy use
Methamphetamine
Simulant
inhaled via smoking
ingredients very accessible
more potent than standard amphetamines -> ^ probability of OD and dependence
can cause aggression, paranoia, acne, "meth mouth"
MDMA (ecstasy)
stimulant
3,4-methylenediosymethamphetamine
alter serotonin levels by ^ release and blocking reuptake
impaired immune function, sleep problems, intellectual impairments, sexual dysfunction
Cocaine
Stimulant
injected, inhaled, snorted
analgesic properties
creates excitement/euphoria -> blocks reuptake of dopamine/norepinephrine
relatively mild withdrawal symptoms, accompanied by strong cravings
in high doses: fever, vomiting, convulsions, hallucinations, paranoid delusions
overdose: can go into cardiac arrest
Heroin
opiate
most commonly administered via injection, but can be smoked, ingested, inhaled, etc.
Fentanyl
opiate
powerful painkiller that gets abused
Cannabis
Hallucinogen/psychedelic
usually smoked, can be consumed other ways
primary ingredient THC -> stimulates cannabinoid receptors
effects: slowed time, enhanced sensations, giggles, ^ appetite
high doses: impairments in memory, exaggerated emotions, difficulty focusing, anxiety
Long term: more toxic than tobacco smoke, ^ risk of lung/respiratory disease, negative effect on attention/memory
Myths about cannabis
Causes amotivational syndrome -> true that highschool students who use it have lower grades, but often shown that they were low before use
"gateway drug" -> twin studies dispel this myth, in many cases its true that it is the 1st "illicit" drug consumed, but just cause one event precedes another =/= cause
The problem with likert scales
assumes people are operating on same psychological scale, difference between values same for all people
Behaviourism
should only attribute behaviour things that can be objectively measures (not things like mind/consciousness)
pragmatic argument about how science of behaviour should be conducted, not a metaphysical position about the nature of the mind
phylogenetic behaviour
behaviour hardwired into you through evolutionary pressures (like instinctual, innate)
Reflexes, fixed action patters, general behaviour traits
Reflexes
ex. of phylogenetic behaviour
relationship between special event and simple response to it
found in all members of species
highly stereotypic
human ex : Pupillary, rooting, suckling, salivary, palmar grasp, peristalsis, respiratory, patellar
not all useful (ex. allergies, seizures)
Primary laws of the reflex
Law of the Threshold -> point below which no response is elicited and above always occurs
Law of Intensity- Magnitude -> increases in stimulus intensity also increase intensity of response
Law of Latency -> more intense a stimulus is, the faster the response is elicited
Habituation
decrease in the intensity or probability of a reflex response resulting from repeated exposure to a stimulus that evoked that response
perhaps the simplest form of learning
Fixed action patterns
example of phylogenetic behaviour
series of related acts found in all members of a species
occurs when releaser stimulus is present
AKA modal action patterns, species-specific behaviour
ex. gray-legged goose rolling anything vaguely egg-shaped into nest
not completely hardwired, degree of variability environment/learning can modify
remove releaser stimulus, behaviour continues (ex. squirrel digging nut)
General behaviour traits
ex. of phylogenetic behaviour
Any general behavioural tendency strongly influenced by genes
ex. introversion, general anxiety, drug abuses, etc. -Evidence: . selective breeding -> can breed animals to be more aggresive . gene knockout . twin studies
Limits of natural selection
takes long time, so not ideal for coping w/ sudden environmental changes
adaption that was once useful might become useless, even maladaptive quickly -> humans with fondness for salt/sugar
What is measured when measuring learning?
changing behaviour
not the acquisition of smth
Poggendorff illusion (regression)
Illusion increases in effectiveness with age
people who have supposedly regressed often do not see the illusion how a child should (children tend to see it correct)
Types of learning
habituation
respondent (i.e. classical/pavlovian conditioning)
operant conditioning
are all changes in behaviour learning?
no
ex. Phineas Gage (guy who's personality changed after pipe went through his frontal lobe), changes due to drug use
Classical/Respondent/Pavlovian conditioning
associating involuntary action with a stimulus that doesn't naturally elicit that response
Comes from associating a US with a CS to produce a CR
ex. playing a bell tone before presenting someone with a donut -> salivation, over time only bell tone needed for salivation
Unconditional Stimulus (US)
classical/respondent conditioning
stimulus that naturally and automatically triggers a response (UR)
ex. a donut (US) triggering salivation (UR)
Unconditional Response (UR)
classical/respondent conditioning
behaviour elicited by the antecedent stimulus (US) without need of any prior history of learning
ex. salivation (UR) after seeing a donut (US)
Conditional Stimulus (CS)
classical/respondent conditioning
previously neutral stimulus that acquires possibility to elicit a conditioned response when paired with US
CS's function literally "conditional" on relationship with US
ex. Bell tone being played before presenting Donut (US)
Conditional Response (CR)
classical/respondent conditioning
behaviour elicited by the antecedent stimulus (CS)
ex. salivation (CR) upon hearing the bell tone (CS)
Probe Trial
classical/respondent conditioning
Presents CS alone (with no US)
more exposure = greater conditional responding
early exposure = more learning than later (non-linear)
conditioning/learning can occur and different rates (ex. taste aversion can happen after only 1 exposure, salivation requires numerous)
Temporal relationships
(classical/respondent conditioning)
Delayed conditioning
trace conditioning
Simultaneous conditioning
Backwards conditioning
delayed conditioning
classical/respondent conditioning
CS begins and US overlap partially
most effective method, when CS-US interval is short (0.4-1 sec)
common in real world
ex. training to salivate at sound of bell - food delivered while bell still sounding a bit
trace conditioning
classical/respondent conditioning
Cs begins and ends before the US
longer intervals between CS and US produce weaker responding - but depends on response being learned
common in real world
ex. food poisoning from restaurant
useful in wild to know what is poisonous
simultaneous conditioning
Classical conditioning
CS and US begin and end at same time
less common in real world
less effective than delayed and trace conditioning
backwards conditioning
Classical conditioning
CS follows US
not effective, but can be demonstrated in a lab
Respondent extinction
presenting the conditional stimulus (CS) in the absence of the unconditional stimulus
results in gradual decline of the conditioned response
spontaneous recovery
increase in magnitude of the CS after respondent extinction has occurred & time has passed
demonstrates that extinction is not "forgetting" what was learned
after enough trials, will stop completely
Classical and Operant conditioning
Treatment of phobias
respondent extinction
present the stimuli in the absence of any aversive event
counter existing conditioning
Exposure therapy
Respondent/stimulus Generalization
When an organism shows a conditioned response to values of the CS that were not trained during acquisition -produces a generalization gradient
ex. dogs not only salivating to exact tone used for conditioning, but similar tones too - but farther from the original, the lower the response
respondent/stimulus discrimination
when the value of the CS, other than what was originally trained, elicit little to no conditional response
ex. therapy for phobia - what if treatment does not generalize to outside of the clinic
Higher-order conditioning
(classical/respondent conditioning)
type of conditioning in which a neutral stimulus becomes a conditional stimulus (CS2) because of relationship with already effective CS
ex. person afraid of bees (CS) also afraid of flowers/garden (higher order CS)
Aversion Therapy
(Classical/respondent conditioning)
stimulus contingently paired with a noxious stimulus
Ex. for alcoholism -> given drug disulfiram (antabuse) that blocks enzyme needed to process alcohol = sick, associate alcohol w/ illness
Operant conditioning
study of how consequences effect behaivour
ex. giving dog a treat after they do a trick, or scolding
Distinction between respondent and operant conditioning
respondent: behaviour elicited by stimulus, controlling event = stimuli PRECEDING response
Operant: behaviour emitted to produce/remove stimulus, controlling event = stimuli FOLLOWING response
B.F. skinner
developed operant conditioning
influenced by Edward Thorndike
Puzzle box -> cats could only escape by opening latch, get food after
Believed that if an act brings a reward, it becomes stamped into mind -> behaviour changes because of consequence
Operant conditioning chamber
Skinner box
rats typically push a lever, pigeons peck at a disc or touch screen
If they do correct response, get a bit of food
highly controlled environment with no confounding variables
Increase in behaviour due to consequence
= "reinforce"
ex. giving rat food for pressing lever = ^ probability of lever being pressed
decrease behaviour due to consequences
= "punish"
rat gets shocked for lever press = decrease in probability of it getting pressed
effects of reinforcing consequences
^ frequency
increase duration
^ intensity
^ in quickness (decrease in latency)
^ in variability
^ of whatever the reinforcer in contingent on
ex. kid studying for a certain period of time to get access to videogames -> reinforcer contingent on continued performance of behaviour for duration
Two ways of reinforcing
add (+) a simulus = positive reinforcement . ex. rat pressing lever for food -> stimulus GIVEN
remove (-) a stimulus = negative reinforcement . ex. rat repeatedly shocked and only way to stop is pressing lever -> stimulus TAKEN AWAY
Does reward = reinforcer?
no
just because you reward a behaviour doesn't mean you have reinforced it - needs to influence probability of behaviour
to truly know if reinforcer, need to test it
ex. coffee as a positive reinforcer for playing piano
two ways of punishing
add (+) a stimulus = positive punishment . ex. walk down street & get mugged -> less likely to walk it again
remove (-) a stimulus = negative punishment . remove internet for kid misbehaving -> less likely to misbehave
Punishment
defined by their effect on behaviour -> if it doesn't decrease the behaviour, its not a punishment
can be highly effective and work over the long time when used properly
but many drawbacks
drawbacks of punishment
doesn't teach new acceptable behaviour
usually fosters undesirable emotional response (aggression, fear/anxiety, crying, apathy/depression)
can foster subversive practices to escape punishment (lying, cheating, etc.)
imitation of the punisher (children - sees parent slap sibling for punishment, might slap classmate for behaviour they don't like)
Discriminative stimulus
stimulus or event that sets the occasion for reinforcement
ex. researcher only reinforcing lever pressing of rat when a light is turned on
Note
Flashcard