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PSYA01 > States of Consciousness > Flashcards

States of Consciousness Flashcards

1
Q

Split-brain

A

Surgery that cuts corpus callosum (axons that connect 2 hemispheres of brain), therefore hemispheres can’t share information

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2
Q

Hemispheric specialization

A

Idea that 2 hemispheres have different functions

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3
Q

Conscious content

A

Subjective experience of internal and external world and is heavily dependent on the state of consciousness a person is in

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4
Q

States of consciousness

A

Refer to different levels of arousal and attention

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5
Q

Attention

A

Process of selecting info from internal/external environments to prioritize for processing (involuntary and automatic)

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6
Q

Passive vs active attention

A

Passive: Attentional priorities set by bottom-up (raw stimuli shapes perception)
Active: Attentional priorities set by top-down (shaped by goals, experiences and state of mind)

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7
Q

Selective attention

A

Occurs when person attends to some info while ignoring others

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8
Q

Stimulus salience

A

Idea that some stimuli in environment capture attention by virtue of their physical properties (bottom-up)

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9
Q

Attentional capture

A

When attention is diverted b/c of salience of stimulus

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10
Q

Cocktail party effect

A

Person can be engaged in convo and suppress/ignore surrounding info

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11
Q

When can attention be shifted to process something else?

A

When something is surprisingly, personally relevant or emotionally engaging

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12
Q

Dichotic listening

A

One stream of info is presented in one ear and another stream in another and participant is asked to pay attention to a specific side but is asked about unattended message

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13
Q

Divided attention

A

When person is engaged in 2 or more tasks simultaneously

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14
Q

Automaticity

A

Fast, effortless processing of info w/o conscious thought
- Note: Can still lower awareness of another task

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15
Q

Inattentional blindness

A

Tendency to miss changes to some kinds of info when attention is engaged elsewhere

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16
Q

Inattentional change detection

A

Attention task that requires participant to actively search for change made in stimulus (faster at identifying animate stimuli)

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17
Q

Inhibition

A

Actively reducing processing of some info while brain attends to specific task

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18
Q

Subliminal stimulus

A

Sensory stimulus that’s processed but doesn’t reach threshold for conscious perception

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19
Q

Subconscious vs subliminal processing

A

Subconscious: Aware of info from environment but not aware of its influence on behaviour
Subliminal: Can’t consciously detect info and has minimal/no effect on behaviour as far as research is concerned

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20
Q

Visual neglect

A
  • Disorder from lesions on right/inferior parietal lobe that cause you to lose awareness of visual stimuli on the left, as if they weren’t there
  • Processing of dorsal visual system goes to inferior parietal which helps identify location of visual stimuli
  • Can still impact behaviour but patients won’t know why
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21
Q

How is Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) diagnosed?

A

Minimum 6/9 deficits in attention AND hyperactive behaviours

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22
Q

Who were first interested in dreams and believed they were symbols/metaphors from the unconscious mind?

A

Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung

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23
Q

Fatal familial insomnia

A

Rare genetic disorder affecting thalamus that results in death b/c of insufficient sleep

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24
Q

Electroencephalograms (EEGs)

A

Measures sum of electrical activation across cortex’s surface

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25
Q

Electrooculogram

A

Used to measure eye movements

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26
Q

Electromyogram

A

Used to measure muscle tension around jaw

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27
Q

Frequency

A

Number of up and down cycles of the wave per sec measured in Hz

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28
Q

Amplitudes

A

Wave’s height

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29
Q

Regularity

A

How consistent/erratic waves appear

30
Q

Awake stage

A
  • Beta waves: Person is awake and alert; mostly low amplitude waves that are unsynchronized and erratic
  • Alpha waves: Person is awake and relaxed; regular and predictable waves w/ medium frequency
31
Q

Stage 1: Theta activity

A
  • Theta waves: Person is deeply relaxed/falling asleep; firing rate becomes more synchronized and amplitude increases
32
Q

Stage 2: Sleep spindles and k complexes

A
  • Theta activity but waves are generally irregular
  • Sleep spindles: Brief bursts of activity that happen 2-5 times per minute during NREM
  • K-complexes: Pattern of neural excitation followed by neural inhibition
33
Q

Stage 3-4: Slow-wave sleep

A
  • About 15-20 mins after start of stage 2
  • Delta waves: Person is deeply asleep; firing becomes coordinated; slow, regular, high-amplitude waves
  • Deepest stage
34
Q

Stage 5: REM sleep

A
  • About 45 mins after start of SWS
  • Rapid eye movement: Highly irregular unsynchronized beta and theta waves (similar to awake stage)
  • Blood flow in brain decreases but visual association cortex and prefrontal cortex receive large portions of oxygenated blood
  • REM sleep antonia: Sleep paralysis during REM caused by inhibited signals
  • Repeats about 4-5x during 8 hrs of sleep
35
Q

List some theorized functions of sleep

A
  • Consolidation of memories (especially long-term and typically done by SWS)
  • Resting cognitive function
  • Consolidating info (typically done during REM)
36
Q

Activation-synthesis hypothesis

A

Dreams have no purpose and are a consequence of other sleep processes

37
Q

Evolutionary hypothesis of dreams

A

Dreams have biological significance thorugh increasing performance in life-threatening situations

38
Q

Insomnia

A

Inability to fall/stau asleep

39
Q

Sleep hygiene

A

Behavioural practices that promote ability to fall/stay asleep

40
Q

Conditioned insomnia

A

Occurs when cues usually associated w/ falling asleep instead cause anxiety surrounding ability to sleep (self-fulfilling prophecy)

41
Q

Idiopathic/child onsent insomnia

A

Neurological condition b/c of abnormality in CNS that causes inability to sleep

42
Q

Hypersomnia

A

Excessive need for sleep/sleepiness during daytime hours

43
Q

Sleep apnea

A

Patient stops breathing during night, causing CO2 to build up which causes patient to wake up

44
Q

Narcolepsy

A

Sudden and extreme need to sleep

45
Q

Cataplexy

A
  • Muscle weakness/paralysis during waking hours and commonly associated w/ narcolepsy
  • REM sleep at wrong times
  • Initiated by emotionally engaging events
46
Q

Hypnagogic hallucinations

A

Hallucinations right before onset of sleep

47
Q

Hyponopompic hallucinations

A

Hallucinations right before waking

48
Q

REM sleep behaviour disorder

A

Neurodegenerative disorder where brain doesn’t paralyze body effectively during REM

49
Q

Night terrors

A

Frantic, panicked screaming during SWS but often little/no memory of episode that caused it

50
Q

Somnambulism/sleepwalking

A

Execute complicated behaviours while in SWS

51
Q

Biological clocks

A

Internal clocks that prep body for daily, seasonal and annual rhythms

52
Q

Circadian rhythm

A

Daily body clocks that tell body when to sleep and wake

53
Q

“Free running” cycle is closer to __ hours

A

25

54
Q

Zeitgebers

A

Cues from environment that set biological clocks (e.g. absence/presence of light)

55
Q

Jet lag

A

When one travels to a different time zone and body is out of sync with zeitgebers

56
Q

Suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN)

A

Structure of brain, next to optic chiasm, that sets body’s circadian clock

57
Q

In response to light/dark the ___ ____ secretes _____

A

Pineal gland; melatonin

58
Q

Psychoactive drugs

A

External substances that influence mood, thoughts and behaviour

59
Q

Drug tolerance

A

Increased ability to tolerate drug after repeated ingestion, resulting in the need for larger doses to feel effects

60
Q

Dependence

A

Individual requires drug to maintain normal functioning and will experience withdrawal if not

61
Q

Withdrawal

A

Distress, restlessness and irritability b/c of reduced/discontinuation of drug/behaviour

62
Q

Depressants and examples

A
  • Slow/depress arousal of CNS
  • Alcohol, barbiturates (sedation and induce sleep) and benzodiazepine (treat anxiety)
63
Q

Glutamate vs GABA

A

Glutamate: NT creates excitatory effects in NS
GABA: NT creates inhibitory effects in NS

64
Q

Dopamine

A

NT implicated in rewarding effects of some drugs

65
Q

Stimulants and examples

A
  • Increase activity of NS
  • Caffeine, nic, cocaine, amphetamines
66
Q

Adenosine vs acetylcholine

A

Adenosine: NT creates excitatory effect in brain
Acetylcholine: NT creates inhibitory effect in brain

67
Q

Psychedelic drugs and examples

A
  • Influence sensory systems and interpretation of reality
  • Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), mescaline, cannabis/marijuana
68
Q

Synthesia

A

Experience where senses seem to merge

69
Q

3 factors that allowed humans to dominate planet

A

1) Bi-pedalism
2) Frontal cortex for complex movement (specifically right)
3) Language: Ability to transmit info across generations

70
Q

Animal mirror experiment

A

Stage 1: Animal reacts as though new member of species was there

Stage 2: Animal ignores reflection b/c it has no informational value

Stage 3: Some re-enage and start “using mirror”, which may be evidence of self-awareness

PSYA01 (8 decks)

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