Consciousness and Sleep

Question 1

consciousness

Answer 1

our subjective awareness of ourselves and our environment

Question 2

unconscious

Answer 2

according to Freud, a reservoir of mostly unacceptable thoughts, wishes, feelings, and memories. According to contemporary psychologists, information processing of which we are unaware

Question 3

biological rhythms

Answer 3

the scientific study of the links between biological (genetic, neural, hormonal) and psychological processes. (Some biological psychologists call themselves behavioral neuroscientists, neuropsychologists, behavior geneticists, physiological psychologists, or biopsychologists.)

Question 4

circadian rhythm

Answer 4

our biological clock; regular bodily rhythms (for example, of temperature and wakefulness) that occur on a 24-hour cycle

Question 5

REM sleep

Answer 5

rapid eye movement sleep; a recurring sleep stage during which vivid dreams commonly occur. Also known as paradoxical sleep, because the muscles are relaxed (except for minor twitches) but other body systems are active. (Sometimes called R sleep.)

Question 6

REM rebound

Answer 6

the tendency for REM sleep to increase following REM sleep deprivation

Question 7

insomnia

Answer 7

recurring problems in falling or staying asleep

Question 8

narcolepsy

Answer 8

a sleep disorder characterized by uncontrollable sleep attacks. The affected person may lapse directly into REM sleep, often at inopportune times

Question 9

sleep apnea

Answer 9

a sleep disorder characterized by temporary cessations of breathing during sleep and repeated momentary awakenings

Question 10

dreams

Answer 10

a sequence of images, emotions, and thoughts passing through a sleeping person’s mind

Question 11

subconscious

Answer 11

describing mental processes of which a person is not aware

Question 12

beta waves

Answer 12

they are involved in conscious thought and logical thinking, and tend to have a stimulating effect. Having the right amount of beta waves allows us to focus.

Question 13

alpha waves

Answer 13

typically observed in relaxed states with minimal mental activity, especially during wakefulness.

Question 14

delta waves

Answer 14

associated with deep sleep

Question 15

manifest content

Answer 15

the actual images, thoughts, and content contained within the dream. The manifest content is the elements of the dream that you remember upon awakening

Question 16

latent content

Answer 16

the symbolic meaning of a dream that lies behind the literal content of the dream. The hidden meaning of dreams played an important role in Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic theory