Ch. 6 Consciousness Flashcards
Subjective data
Data collected through personal observations, interpretations, emotions and judgement
Objective data
Measurements of behaviour collected under controlled conditions, which allow data to be directly observed or measured
State of consciousness
An individual’s level of awareness of internal and external stimuli at any given moment
Attention
A voluntary or involuntary tendency to focus on a particular stimulus and ignore another stimulus
Normal waking consciousness (NWC)
A state of consciousness characterised by clear and organised alertness to internal and external stimuli
Altered state of consciousness (ASC)
A state of consciousness that is characteristically different from NWC in terms of awareness, sensation and perception
Different types of ASC
Naturally occurring ASC
Induced ASC
EEG
Detects, amplifies and records the brain’s electrical activity - brainwaves
EOG
Detects, amplifies and records the electrical activity of muscles that control eye movement
EMG
Detects, amplifies and records the electrical activity of voluntary muscles
Self report
Involves an individual keeping a record of their own subjective experiences
Sleep diary
A log of subjective behavioural and psychological experiences surrounding a person’s sleep
Video monitoring
Videotaping a person while they are sleeping to record and then analyse any observable disturbances in their sleep
Controlled processes
Actions that require a high level of conscious awareness, attention and mental effort
Subjective attention
Attending to a particular stimulus while ignoring others. It requires a high level of awareness
Automatic processes
Actions that require little conscious awareness or mental effort and do not interfere with performance on other activities
Divided attention
When an individual simultaneously focuses on two or more stimuli.
Stimulants
A group of drugs that elevate mood, increase alertness and reduce fatigue by exciting neural activity in the brain
Examples of stimulants
Caffeine Nicotine Amphetamine Meth Cocaine
Depressants
A group of drugs that calm neural activity and slow down bodily functions
Examples of depressants
Alcohol
Cannabis
Sleep deprivation
Going without sleep or not getting sufficient amounts of sleep to support daytime functioning
Microsleep
A short period of sleep where the individual appears to be awake, but brain activity indicates that they are asleep because of sleep deprivation
Working memory
Part of our memory system that temporarily stores and manipulates a limited amount of information needed to perform cognitive tasks
Blood alcohol concentration (BAC)
The amount of alcohol present in the bloodstream
