Transcript Chapter 7: States of Consciousness

States of Consciousness
What is Consciousness?
• Consciousness consists of all
the sensations, perceptions,
memories and feeling you are
aware of.
• Altered States of Consciousness
Levels of Consciousness
• Based on Freud’s Psychodynamic
Theory
• Preconscious: Information that is not
currently in consciousness but
available to consciousness
• Unconscious: Part of the mind that
stores emotional memories, desires and
feelings that could be harmful if
brought to consciousness
Daydreams
• A common variation of consciousness in
which attention shifts to memories,
expectations, desires or fantasies
• Advantages include:
– A way to escape
– Prepare for future events
– Aware of unfinished business
– Increase creativity
– Substitute for impulsive behavior
Who’s Paying Attention?
Biological Rhythms
• Circadian Rhythms:
periodic physiological
fluctuations built into
human beings that repeats
approximately every 24
hours
Sleep’s Functions
• Theories:
• 1. Sleep protects
• 2. Helps us recuperate
• 3. Facilitates growth in babies
Sleep Deprivation
Sleep
• Sleep: refers to the
periodic, natural,
reversible loss of
consciousness.
• Using an EEG, sleep
researchers have shown
the mind is “awake”
during various stages of
sleep.
Brain Waves and Stages of Sleep
Sleep Stages: Stage One (Light Sleep)
• During Stage 1 sleep, your heart rate slows,
breathing becomes irregular and experience
hypnic jerks.
• Slow Theta waves accompanied by fast Beta
waves will appear on the EEG machine in
Stage 1
Second Stage: Sleep Spindles
• After about 5 minutes in stage 1 sleep, you
delve into Stage 2 sleep which is
characterized by
– Sleep Spindles: bursts of rapid, rhythmic,
brain wave activity.
• Stage where you are clearly asleep. Sleep
talking can occur in this stage or any other
later stage.
Stages Three and Four
• In these two stages the sleeper enters a
progressively deeper state of relaxed
sleep
• The heart rate and breathing slows down
at this stage. Brain waves also slow.
• Deepest point of sleep occurs in Stage 4
• As stage 4 ends, the sleeper climbs back
through the stages in reverse order
Stage Four: Deep Sleep
• Stage when you are hard to
awaken…but still aware of
stimuli around you. This is
due to a resurgence in
electrical activity in the brain.
• Stage at which children may
wet the bed or sleep walk.
• Also experience night terrors.
R.E.M. Sleep
• R.E.M.: rapid eye movement sleep, stage where
vivid dreams occur. Heart rate increases,
Breathing more rapid, eyes dart behind lids.
• R.E.M. sleep is now thought of as it’s own stage
of sleep, between being awake and Stage 1 of
sleep
• NREM sleep occurs during the sleep stages, and
this is a time where there are no dreams, or the
dreams are not recalled as vividly as R.E.M. sleep
R.E.M. Sleep
Sleep Disorders
• Insomnia: inability to
fall asleep or stay
asleep.
• 10-15 % of adults
• Sleeping pills and
alcohol might make it
worse
– Less REM sleep
Sleep Disorders
• Sleep Apnea: sleep disorder
characterized by a temporary
stoppage of breathing during
sleep and consequent
momentary awakenings.
• Often complained about as
“snoring.”
• Often interrupts deep sleep
stages leaving person feeling
exhausted.
Dreams
What’s the Meaning Of Dreams? Depends
Who You Ask!
• Psychoanalytic Theorists like Freud will argue
that dreams represent the royal road to the
“unconscious.” Dreams represent unresolved
wishes/desires and discharge feelings that would
be unacceptable if consciously voiced.
– wish fulfillment
– discharge otherwise unacceptable feelings
• Manifest Content: represents remembered story line of a
dream.
• Latent Content: represents underlying meaning of dreams
dealing with wishes and drives.
What’s The Meaning of Dreams?
Depends Who You Ask!
• Activation-Synthesis Theory: dreams begin
with random electrical activation coming from
the brain stem. Dreams, then, are the brain’s
attempt to make sense of (synthesize) this
random activity
ALTERED STATES OF
CONSCIOUSNESS
HYPNOSIS &
MEDITATION
Hypnosis
• Hypnosis- an altered
•
state of consciousness
characterized by
narrowed attention and
increased suggestibility
Hypnosis
Can anyone Experience
Hypnosis?
• It depends on the subject’s
openness to suggestion
Hypnosis
Can Hypnosis Enhance Recall of Forgotten
Events?
• Hypnosis does not help us recover “accurate
memories as far back as birth”
• Highly hypnotizable people are especially
venerable to false memory suggestions
Is Hypnosis an Altered State of
Consciousness
Hypnosis as a social phenomenon
• Behaviors produced through hypnotic
procedures can also be produced
without them
• People do what is expected of them
MEDITATION
• Is defined as a mental exercise for
producing relaxation or heightened
awareness
• Meditation interrupts the typical flow of
thoughts, worries and analysis. It helps to
reduce stress, anxiety, tension, etc…
• Evokes a Relaxation Response