Chapter 5: Consciousness Flashcards
What is consciousness?
moment-to-moment awareness of ourselves and our environment
subjective (everyone’s reality is different)
dynamic, multiple states, self-reflective (aware of itself)
Explain Freud’s three-level system of consciousness?
conscious mind: everything we’re currently aware of
preconscious mind: contains things that are brought into consciousness
unconscious mind: cannot be brought in conscious awareness (such as some emotional or motivational processes)
How do psychologists measure states of consciousness?
self-report / physiological measures / behavioral measures
focused awareness, drifting consciousness, divided consciousness, sleeping and dreaming, waking states of altered consciousness
How do cognitive psychologists view the unconscious?
sleeping and dreaming
What is automatic processing and why is it important?
it allows us to do several things at once like watching TV, talking on phone.
Based on the modular model of the mind, how does consciousness arise?
modular mind says the brain has many processing subsystems that work together to give us consciousness.
How do the brain and environment regulate circadian rhythms?
part in hypothalamus responds to light and pineal gland releases melatonin.
time shifts in environment make your internal clock different and you get jet lag.
seasons.
and night-shift work can also alter these.
What are free-running circadian rhythms?
just follow your circadian rythms, ie. sleep when you feel tired and not otherwise and manipulate your circadian clock
Explain how SAD, jet lag, and night-shift work involve circadian disruptions.
SAD makes you depressed during certain months of the year.
jet lag fucks your internal clock along with night shift.
Besides exposure to light, what other methods are used to treat circadian disruptions?
dark therapy, medication such as melatonin and modafinil
What brain wave patterns distinguish the first four stages of sleep?
Stage 1: light sleep, beta waves
Stage 2: sleep spindles
Stage 3: slow, large, delta waves
Stage 4: REM sleep
Describe the major characteristics of REM sleep.
physiological arousal increases to daytime levels, and then dreaming occurs.
you are paralyzed.
What brain areas help regulate sleep onset and REM sleep?
brain stem and basal forebrain.
How do sleep patterns change with age?
We sleep less as we age and spend less time in Stage 3 and Stage 4. less REM sleep during early childhood.
What evidence indicates that genetic factors partly account for differences in people’s sleep behaviors?
depending on how fast or slow our internal clock clicks.
if it ticks faster, you are lark.
if it ticks slower, you are an owl.
How do different types of sleep deprivation affect mood and performance?
deficits in mood, cognitive, and physical performance
Explain the restoration and evolutionary theories of sleep.
Sleep recharges out rundown bodies. It developed through evolutionary processes.
We would survive predators if we sleep at night.
What evidence supports and contradicts the hypothesis that REM sleep serves a special function?
people with REM disorder kick and punch in sleep, it acts to paralyze you.
What is insomnia and how is it treated?
can’t fall asleep, or stay asleep.
relaxation training, behaviour therapy, stimulus control, and drugs.
Describe the major symptoms of narcolepsy and REM-BD.
REM-BD will throw and kick during sleep.
narcoleptics have extreme daytime sleepiness and can have sleep attacks.
Describe the major symptoms of sleep apnea and sleepwalking.
sleep apnea start and stop breathing during sleep.
sleep walking they move around during stage 3, 4 and don’t know whats happening.
Identify the major differences between nightmares and night terrors.
nightmares are common, night terrors are more intense.
When do we dream most? Why?
last few hours, and during REM.
According to the Freudian and activation-synthesis theories, why do we dream?
the gratification of unconscious urges.
dreams occur because cortex is trying to make sense of random neural activity.
