Chapter 7A Flashcards
consciousness
is the awareness of your own internal mental processes and your awareness of the external world around you.
why is consciousness considered a psychological construct?
because it cannot be objectively observed or measured through the collection of data, but it is widely understood to exist.
normal waking consciousness
is a state associated with being aware of our internal and external environments.
altered state of consciousness
any state that differs in awareness from normal waking consciousness.
naturally occurring altered state of consciousness
occur without any external influence, such as sleep or a state of fatigue.
induced altered states of consciousness
an altered state
of consciousness
that has been
brought about on
purpose. for example alcohol, anaesthised state or mediatative state.
sleep
is a naturally occurring and reversible altered state of consciousness, characterised by a reduction in awareness and responsiveness to external surroundings.
NREM
a type of sleep
characterised
by a progressive
decline in
physiological
activity
NREM1
- transitional phase between wakefulness and sleep
- light sleep
- physiological responses begin to slow down.
- person can be most easily woken up
NREM2
- also light sleep, physiological responses continue to slow down
- bursts of brain activity help resist being woken by environmental stimuli.
- most experienced stage of sleep during sleep episode.
NREM3
- deep sleep, physiological responses at their slowest
- experienced more in the first half of the night than the second half.
- as sleep episode progresses, N3 is experienced less and may not be experience in the one or two sleep cycles
- age influences the amount of time spent in N3.
REM
a type of sleep
characterised by
quick darting of
the eyes behind
closed eyelids
and an increase
in physiological
activity
