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I & P Year 1 > Consciousness > Flashcards

Consciousness Flashcards

1
Q

What is consciousness?

A

The state of being aware and responsive to one’s surroundings

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2
Q

How does awareness of self and surroundings operate?

A

On a continuum

e.g. from focused alertness, daydreaming and coma

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3
Q

What are examples of altered states of consciousness?

A

The mind is aware but not in its usual wakeful condition

e.g. sleep/dreams
psychoactive drugs
meditation
hypnosis

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4
Q

How do we know that altered states of consciousness exist?

A

We are able to describe the subjective experience of an altered state

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5
Q

How can altered states of consciousness be measured objectively?

What is the problem with this?

A

Eye movements can be observed

People respond different to subjective experiences such as hypnosis

People may look similar to an outsider even if the states are subjectively very different

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6
Q

Why is there no agreed definition of consciousness?

A

Due to mind-body dualism

there are subjective and objective views of consciousness

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7
Q

What is mind-body dualism?

A

The theory that the mind and body are distinct kinds of substances, each with a different essential nature

They casually interact which being ontologically distinct substances

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8
Q

What would be the objective and subjective view of a pencil?

A

Objective - pencil is an object

Subjective - the colour, how sharp it is, how it smells

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9
Q

What is a subjective view?

A

A view that is unique to a particular individual

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10
Q

How can colours be used to show differences in subjective experiences?

A

Women are more sensitive to subtle changes in colour shades due to the arrangement of rods and cones in the retina

There is a difference in perception of different colours between women and men

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11
Q

How do subjective experiences between individuals tend to vary?

A

They tend to be similar to that of others, but are not exactly the same

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12
Q

Who devised the Hard Problem?

A

Chalmers

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13
Q

What does the Hard Problem explain?

A

How physical processes in the brain give rise to subjective experiences

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14
Q

What does the Hard Problem state?

A

We cannot explain the action of 90 billion neurones in the brain and their connections

We cannot explain the subjective experiences that we have of the world, which is based on this physical principle

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15
Q

What is an ‘easy problem’?

A

Easy problem all represent some ability, or the performance of a function or behaviour

e.g. difference between wakefulness and sleep

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16
Q

What are the 3 dominant functional views?

A
  1. monitoring
  2. controlling
  3. conscious and unconscious processes
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17
Q

What is involved in monitoring?

A

Attention - people only experience what they attend to

Inattentional blindness means consciousness is like a spotlight where it focuses only on one area

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18
Q

What is inattentional blindness?

A

When an individual lacks awareness of things that are occurring in the periphery

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19
Q

What is involved in controlling?

A

It is the ability to anticipate things that are going to happen in the future

It allows you to plan, initiate and guide future actions

This involves looking at different possibilities and choosing between alternatives

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20
Q

How are unconscious and conscious processes related?

A

Unconscious processes underpin consciousness

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21
Q

What is an example of an action that is alway unconscious?

A

Visuomotor control

Movement of the eyes is not consciously controlled

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22
Q

What is an example of an action that is normally unconscious but can be brought under conscious control?

A

Biofeedback

A technique you can use to learn to control your body’s functions, such as heart rate

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23
Q

What is involved in biofeedback?

A

Patient is connected to electrical sensors which allow them to receive information about their body

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24
Q

How can actions become automatic?

A

These actions are learnt with conscious effort but become automatic

e.g. playing piano

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25
Q

What type of action is driving?

A

Skilled actions that require learning can be conscious or unconscious

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26
Q

What is an example of an action that is always performed consciously?

A

recalling a phone number

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27
Q

When does subliminal perception occur?

A

When the stimuli is below the individual’s threshold for conscious perception

e.g. flashed images or sound below audible volume

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28
Q

How does subliminal perception affect an individual?

A

Information that is presented below the level for conscious registration is still picked up by the brain

It may affect behaviour later on

29
Q

How does subliminal advertising work?

A

It uses flashed images that are too quick to be consciously registered

The subliminal perception may impact someone’s behaviour later on

30
Q

What are 2 examples of subliminal advertising?

How do they work?

A

Product placement and attentional focus

People do not consciously register that the object is there, but it may become a desired product later on

31
Q

What is thought suppression?

A

The idea that if you are told not to think of a particular object, it is impossible to erase the object from your mind

32
Q

What are the two stages of the ironic thought process?

A

Intentional operating process

Ironic monitoring process

33
Q

What is the intentional operating process?

A

It takes effort, is conscious and interruptible

This is a mental state in which the object does not exist

34
Q

What is the ironic monitoring process?

A

It is automatic, unconscious and uninterruptible

It searches for mental contents that signal the failure of mental control

35
Q

What is the Stroop effect?

A

People are asked to distinguish between the colour of a word and the word of the colour

This leads to a slower reaction time and more mistakes

36
Q

What does using the Stroop effect demonstrate?

A

Unconscious processing is happening at the same time you are consciously focussing on the colour

You cannot stop the brain from encoding the word whilst you are focusing on the colour

Brain tries to relate 2 conflicting pieces of information

37
Q

What are the 4 categories of psychoactive drugs?

A
  1. sedatives & hypnotics
  2. stimulants
  3. opiates
  4. hallucinogens and psychedelics
38
Q

What do stimulants and sedatives do?

A

Stimulants increase activity

Sedatives induce sleep

39
Q

What do opiates do?

A

They relieve pain and cause euphoria

40
Q

What do psychedelics do?

A

They cause hallucinations - an altered state of consciousness

41
Q

What are the characteristics of hallucinations?

A

They are visual and consist of patterns and colours

42
Q

What are the constants formed by hallucinations?

A

spiral, cobweb, tunnel or lattice

Predictable colours and patterns which happen every time

43
Q

What are the 2 types of pattern?

What is significant about the patterns?

A

The 2 basic forms are either a grid or a spiral

The patterns are also typical of non-drug hallucinations

44
Q

How are colour changes predicted?

A

The range of the colour change palette changes depending on the drug

45
Q

What are the 2 side effects of using psychedelics?

A
  1. delusions

such as merging with the surroundings

  1. emotional changes

vary from euphoria to terror

46
Q

Which mental health condition uses psychedelics as treatment?

A

They are used as an insight into schizophrenia

LSD and mescaline are used in mental health patients

47
Q

What are the 2 types of meditation

A
  1. concentrative (one-point)

2. open awareness

48
Q

What is involved in concentrative meditation?

A

Diminishing sensory input and focusing on one aspect

Single-minded attention is directed towards an object

49
Q

When is concentrative meditation used?

What kind of action is involved?

A

Used in active stress management

Uses a repeating mantra or relaxation movement

50
Q

What is involved in open awareness meditation?

A

This involves being aware of everything around you

The experience is slowed down so you are aware of everything that is happening around you

51
Q

what metaphor is used to describe open awareness meditation?

A

The mind is an open sky

The practitioner observes the clouds (thoughts) that pass along their field of awareness

52
Q

What is mindfulness and why is it used in open awareness meditation?

A

It is a way of bringing one’s attention to the present experience on a moment-to-moment basis

It is a way of paying attention

53
Q

When is open awareness meditation used?

A

In mental health, anxiety and eating disorders

54
Q

What is the definition of hypnosis?

A

A social interaction in which the subject responds to suggestions offered by the hypnotist involving alterations in perception, memory and voluntary action

55
Q

What happens to the subject during hypnosis?

A

It is a state of altered consciousness

The subject loses the power of voluntary action and is highly responsive to suggestion or direction

56
Q

When is hypnosis used in therapy?

A

To relieve suppressed memories or to allow modification of behaviour

57
Q

What are the 2 views of hypnosis?

A
  1. altered state of consciousness

2. period of focused attention

58
Q

What is Hilgard’s principle of the ‘hidden observer’?

A

During hypnosis, the hidden observer protects us from doing anything that we would not do under any circumstance consciously

59
Q

Why does the ‘hidden observer’ require an altered state of consciousness?

A

It involves having numerous levels of awareness, which operate separately

60
Q

What is involved in the ‘period of focussed attention’ theory?

A

It is a state of social compliance and suggestibility

In a more relaxed state, the mind is more responsive to suggestion

61
Q

How does an individual focus during hypnosis according to ‘period of focussed attention’?

A

They focus their attention on what the hypnotist suggests

They do not pay attention to what is going on around them, unless they are directed to do so

62
Q

What 4 characteristics define someone in a hypnotised state?

A
  1. receptive to suggestions
  2. narrow attention to a single source
  3. lack of initiative and wilful action
  4. trancelike state
63
Q

How would someone in a hypnotised state appear to an observer?

A

They appear fully alert and to be interacting normally

64
Q

What type of hallucinations occur under hypnosis?

A

Positive

Negative

They can occur via post-hypnotic suggestion, after the subject is relieved from the hypnotic trance

65
Q

What is a positive hallucination?

A

This occurs when the subject sees or hears something that is not present

66
Q

What is a negative hallucination?

A

This involves failure by the subject to perceive something, such as pain

67
Q

Is hypnosis an effective treatment for pain relief?

A

There is moderate evidence to suggest it is effective

68
Q

How does hypnosis differ to standard analgesia?

A

There is an awareness to other sensations, just not pain

69
Q

How can hypnosis be used to ignore pain?

What type of processing is this?

A

To ignore pain, the sensation must first be recognised so that the brain knows what to ignore

This is top-down processing

I & P Year 1 (21 decks)

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