Psychobiological Processes

Question 1

What is an electroencephalograph?

Answer 1

EEG. Measures brain activity (brain waves).

Question 2

What is an electromyograph?

Answer 2

EMG. Measures muscle activity.

Question 3

What is an electro-ocular graph?

Answer 3

EOG. Measures eye movement.

Question 4

What are other measures of consciousness?

Answer 4

Heart rate and blood pressure, body temp., GSR (galvanic skin response), self-report, video monitoring.

Question 5

Who discovered 2 types of sleep?

Answer 5

Azerinsky and Kleitman (1953) - EEG: NREM and REM sleep. 90 min cycles 5 per night.

Question 6

Awareness

Answer 6

Awareness is reduced, however noises or sounds with personal relevance may wake someone.

Question 7

Content limitations

Answer 7

Broader and deeper thoughts. Bizarre dreams with less restrictions.

Question 8

Controlled and automatic processes

Answer 8

Unable to perform tasks, however somnambulists are an exception.

Question 9

Perceptual and cognitive distortions

Answer 9

Attention to sensory stimuli is lowered as is pain. Thoughts are disorganised and unrealistic.

Question 10

Memory

Answer 10

Although 2 hours of the night is spent dreaming, they cannot all be recalled.

Question 11

Emotional awareness

Answer 11

Emotions are intensified either positively or negatively. Some evidence suggests that sleep helps to deal with emotions (Cartwright, 1998).

Question 12

Self control

Answer 12

Maintaining self control and behaviour while sleeping is lowered resulting in snoring, dribbling, talking, grinding.

Question 13

Time orientation

Answer 13

The speed at which time passes can move more slowly or quickly. People are able to estimate the amount of time passed whilst asleep (Tagaya et al, 2009).

Question 14

What is consciousness?

Answer 14

“Subjective awareness of mental events” (Burton, 2009).

Question 15

What is an ASC?

Answer 15

When changes in mental awareness occur to the extent that you can notice differences in your level of mental functioning, you have entered an altered state of consciousness (Glicksohn, 1991).

Question 16

Partial sleep deprivation

Answer 16

The severity and extent of the side effects depend on the individual, the amount of sleep lost, and the period of time which the sleep deprivation occurs (Coren, 1996).

Question 17

Effects of partial sleep deprivation

Answer 17

Cognitive (slower reaction time, problem solving decreases, motor skills), psychological (inability to concentrate, low motivation), physiological (lack of energy, interruption in growth process (hormones are released in NREM)).

Question 18

Evidence of partial sleep deprivation

Answer 18

After 4 hours of sleep deprivation, reaction time is 45% slower on a perceptual motor task such as driving (Maas 1998).

Question 19

Sleep debt

Answer 19

People everywhere are living less than an optimal life and level of functioning, impaired by an amount of sleep debt that they are unaware of (Dement, 1999).

Question 20

Total sleep deprivation

Answer 20

Peter Tripp (Dement 1972) - 8 days awake for charity. Observed under strict conditions, mean body temperature decreased overtime, hallucinated during REM sleep. Behaviour and personality changed wife said.

Question 21

Selective sleep deprivation

Answer 21

The body will spend more time in REM sleep next time in order to make up for their deprivation (Bonnet, 2005).

Question 22

Circadian rhythm evidence

Answer 22

Many blind people report sleep problems as the absence of light disrupts their circadian rhythm (Czeisler et al, 1995)

Question 23

Circadian rhythm and preference

Answer 23

Refers to a biological clock which regulates within 24-25 hours.
Wallace (1993) discovered that there is circadian preference

Question 24

Sleep-wake cycle shift in adolescence

Answer 24

Hormonally induced shift of the body clock forward by 1 to 2 hours.

Question 25

Restoration theory

Answer 25

Oswald (1966) maintains that sleep’s purpose is restorative. NREM restores bodily processes while REM replenishes brain functions.

Question 26

REM repair evidence

Answer 26

Developing foetuses and infants spend more time in REM sleep than other life stages (Hockenbury and Hockenbury 2006). Information reviewed during waking hours is more likely to be remembered after sleep (Gais et al, 2006). The body will spend more time in REM sleep next time in order to make up for their deprivation (Bonnet, 2005).

Question 27

NREM repair evidence

Answer 27

Many hormones and neurotransmitters that influence mood and emotion are active when we’re asleep (Boivin at al 1997). Secretion of growth hormones is released during NREM (Pandi-Perumal et al, 2008).

Question 28

Evaluation of restoration theory

Answer 28

Empson (1993)- NREM and REM sleep are responsible for different restorative capabilities however cell repair occurs 24 hours a day.

Question 29

Survival theory

Answer 29

The adaptive theory suggests that sleep evolved because it prevented early humans and animals from wasting energy and exposing themselves to the dangers of nocturnal predators (Webb, 1992).

Question 30

Evidence of survival theory

Answer 30

Many birds sleep with only one hemisphere at a time, to guard against predators (Sillery, 2002). As humans rely on visual cues and lack night vision, circadian clock has evolved to allow for sleeping at night (Hirshkowitz et al, 1997).

Question 31

Evaluation of survival theory

Answer 31

Cannot generalise animal studies to humans.

Question 32

Psychoanalytic theory: Wish-fulfilment

Answer 32

Freud (1965)- dreams have meaning but must be translated by a dream interpreter. Manifest content- the basic storyline of the dream. Latent content- the dream’s underlying meaning- unconscious wish typically a sexual desire. Dreams are forgotten as they contain anxiety-provoking thoughts usually repressed during NWC. An interpreter’s task is to translate dream symbols and uncover a client’s unconscious desires (Bower, 2001).

Question 33

Evaluation of Psychoanalytic theory

Answer 33

Unreliable as it is untestable. Subjective self-report and interpretations.

Question 34

Extensions of Waking Life Theory

Answer 34

(Cartwright 1977) Dreams reflect a person’s thoughts and fears experienced when in NWC.

Question 35

Evidence of Waking Life Theory

Answer 35

Dreams serve a problem-solving capability presenting dreamers with solutions to problems being faced (Cartwright, 1996). Dreams show cognitive development- children’s dreams lack the sophistication of adult dreams (Foulkes, 1982).

Question 36

Activation Synthesis

Answer 36

(Hobson and McCarley 1970) Dreaming occurs as areas of the brain which provide cognitive control are shut down. Cortex is highly active during REM sleep but receives little external stimulation.

Question 37

Evidence of Activation Synthesis

Answer 37

Pre-frontal cortex responsible for problem-solving is less active while visual cortex and limbic systems (emotions) are highly active (Braun 1998). Explains why dreams are emotional and full of imagery but are often bizarre and lack logic that differs from NWC (Domhoff, 2003).

Question 38

Reverse learning

Answer 38

(Crick and Mitchison 1986) We dream to get rid of useless or redundant information. An overload of information during NWC occurs and REM sleep is used to clean up and allow for new input.