Chapter Five - Consciousness Flashcards
Activation-Synthesis Theory
Theory that dreams reflect inputs from brain activation originating in the pons, which the forebrain then attempts to weave into a story.
Biological Clock
Term for the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) in hypothalamus that’s responsible for controlling our levels of alertness.
Circadian Rhythm
Cyclical changes that occur on a roughly 24-hour basis in many biological processes.
Consciousness
Our subjective experience of the world, our bodies, and our mental perspectives.
Déjà Vu
Feeling of reliving an experience that’s new.
Dissociation Theory
Approach to explaining hypnosis based on a separation between personality functions that are normally well integrated.
Dream Continuity Hypothesis
Hypothesis that there is continuity between sleeping and waking experiences and that dreams can mirror life circumstances.
Hallucinogenic
Drug that causes dramatic alterations of perception, mood, and thought.
Hypnosis
An interpersonal situation in which imaginative suggestions are administered for changes in consciousness.
Hypnotic
Drug that exerts a sleep-inducing effect.
Insomnia
Difficulty falling and staying asleep.
Lucid Dreaming
Experience of becoming aware that one is dreaming.
Mystical Experience
Feelings of unity or oneness with the world, often with strong spiritual overtones.
Narcolepsy
Disorder characterized by the rapid and often unexpected onset of sleep.
Narcotic
Drug that relieves pain and induces sleep.
Near-Death Experience
Out-of-body experience reported by people who’ve nearly died or thought they were going to die.
Neurocognitive Theory
Theory that dreams are supported by the brain’s default network and are a meaningful product of our cognitive capacities, which shape what we dream about.
Night Terrors
Sudden waking episodes characterized by screaming, perspiring, and confusion followed by a return to a deep sleep.
Non-REM Sleep
Stages one through four of the sleep cycle, during which rapid eye movements do not occur and dreaming is less frequent and vivid.
Out of Body Experience
Sense of our consciousness leaving our body.
Past Life Regression Therapy
Therapeutic approach that hypnotizes and supposedly age-regresses patients to a previous life to identify the source of a present day problem.
Physical Dependence
Dependence on a drug that occurs when people continue to take it to avoid withdrawal symptoms.
Psychoactive Drug
Substance that contains chemicals similar to those found naturally in our brains that alter consciousness by changing chemical processes in neurons.
Psychological Dependence
Non-psychological dependence on a drug that occurs when continued use of the drug is motivated by intense cravings.
Rapid Eye Movement
Darting of the eyes underneath closed eyelids during sleep.
REM Sleep
Stage of sleep during which the brain is most active and vivid dreaming most often occurs.
Sedative
Drug that exerts a calming effect.
Sleep Apnea
Disorder caused by blockage of the airway during sleep, resulting in multiple awakenings during the night and daytime fatigue.
Sleep Paralysis
State of being unable to move just before falling asleep or right before waking up.
Sleepwalking
Walking while fully asleep.
Sociocognitive Theory
Approach to explaining hypnosis based on people’s attitudes, beliefs, and expectations.
Stimulant
Drug that increases activity in the CNS, including heart rate, respiration, and blood pressure.
Tolerance
Reduction in the effect of a drug as a result of repeated use, requiring users to consume greater quantities to achieve the same effect.
Withdrawal
Unpleasant effects of reducing or stopping consumption of a drug that users had consumed habitually.
