Understanding Consciousness: Mind, Brain, and Self

1. UNIT 3: The Conscious Self • Area of Study 1: Mind, brain and body • Area of Study 2: Memory

2. Mind, brain and body • Why do I think and feel the way I do? • How does my brain work? • What is the relationship between my brain and my mind? • What happens when I sleep?

3. Consciousness

4. Dot points • consciousness as a psychological construct informed by the work of René Descartes and William James • concepts of normal waking consciousness and altered states of consciousness, including daydreaming, meditative and alcohol-induced, in terms of levels of awareness, content limitations, controlled and automatic processes, perceptual and cognitive distortions, emotional awareness, self-control and time orientation

5. Consciousness • Consciousness is our awareness of internal thoughts and feelings and external stimuli in the environment. • The contents of consciousness can include: • your perceptions of your surroundings (what you see, hear, feel or smell) and your physical self (are you hungry?) • your feelings and emotional state • the memories of events in your life • your thoughts, beliefs, attitudes, plans • your sense of self and who you are

6. Consciousness • Hard to define precisely because consciousness is personal and subjective • Everyone’s consciousness is unique to themselves and there is no way for us to objectively know or understand another person’s consciousness.

7. Consciousness • There are also multiple states of consciousness • eg. being awake is a different state to being asleep, being sober is different to being intoxicated, concentrating on an exam is different to being under anaesthetic. • Your general everyday state of consciousness is normal waking consciousness (NWC).Every other state is an altered state of consciousness (ASC).

8. Rene Descartes • Frenchman Rene Descartes (1596-1650) was a philosopher, mathematician, writer and scientist. • His theories relate to the mind-body problem: what is the relationship between the conscious mind and the physical brain?

9. Descartes • Descartes realised that our consciousness and sense of self includes our awareness of physical sensations and the world around us – but what if that awareness was wrong (ie. your conscious experience is an illusion or hallucination)? Anyone seen ‘The Matrix’?? • If the senses could not be trusted to provide knowledge, the only things definitely known to exist were your thoughts. If you thought, you must therefore exist. • He summed this up as ‘cogito ergo sum’ – ‘I think, therefore I am’.

10. Descartes • He saw that humans were different to machines as they had a mind, a language, the ability to think and a consciousness. He suggested that consciousness was placed in the mind (thought and rationality) rather than the body (physical experiences). • This is called the mind-body problem – how does the mind relate to the physical brain and body?

11. Dualism • Descartes’ theories separated the mind from the body, known as dualism. • He felt that a person’s soul (or consciousness) was a non-physical entity made of pure reason, while the brain and body were solely physical entities. • However, consciousness was able to interact with the body (a two-way process) and take in sensations and experiences through the brain, using some form of mechanism (he originally thought it was via the pineal gland, but later changed his mind). • He believed that only humans had minds that interact with the body.

12. The mind-body problem today • The dualistic view was dominant until biological science explained the functioning of cells, including neurons. This led researchers to believe that the complex interactions among nerve cells of the brain might explain consciousness – meaning that the mind and the body are one and the same. • The idea that the brain creates consciousness by the physical processes of its nerve cells is called materialism. • This is a form of monism – the belief that the mind and brain are one system.

13. The mind-body problem today • Support for materialism comes from case studies where brain damage has directly impacted on consciousness. However, we are still not certain of how the brain might create consciousness. • Research continues to look at how brain injuries, anaesthetics and other chemicals affect consciousness, and new ways of measuring and scanning the brain are being used. • Generally it is believed that consciousness is the result of widespread brain activity with different areas of the brain playing a role.

14. William James • American psychologist William James (1890) likened consciousness to a continuously flowing ‘stream’ of water – it flows as a seemingly unending, ever-changing string of thoughts, perceptions, feelings, urges and experiences. Hence, the concept of a stream of consciousness. It varies in the level of awareness we have of different mental events. These different levels of awareness are referred to as states of consciousness.

15. William James model James defined four core elements of consciousness. Consciousness is: • PERSONAL: your understanding of the internal and external world is unique to you • SELECTIVE: you can choose to attend to certain things and ignore other things • CONTINUOUS: perceptions and thoughts meld into one another with no beginning, end or breaks, and the stream never comes to an end, even when asleep. • CHANGING: the thoughts and perceptions of your consciousness are constantly changing from subject to subject, with new information continually coming into awareness, especially when you are awake.

16. Questions • What is it that makes consciousness difficult to define? • What is the mind-body problem? • What was Descarte’s theory of dualism? • Why does William James liken consciousness to a ‘stream’? • Why is consciousness considered to be selective?

17. Normal waking consciousness (NWC) • There are two broad categories of consciousness – normal waking consciousnessand altered states of consciousness. • Normal waking consciousness is the state of being awake and aware of our thoughts, memories, feelings and sensations we are experiencing from the outside world. • NWC is constantly changing, but our thoughts and perceptions are organised and clear, and we remain aware of who we are (our personal identity).

18. Altered states of consciousness (ASCs) • An altered state of consciousness(ASC) is any state of consciousness that it distinctly different from normal waking consciousness, such as daydreaming, meditation, hypnosis, sleep and unconsciousness. • In an ASC, some characteristics of NWC may be absent, distorted or function differently. An ASC may alter the level of awareness and experience, and the quality or intensity of sensations, perceptions, thoughts, feelings and memories that are experienced. • Some ASCs occur naturally, such as sleep and dreaming. Others are purposely induced, such as meditation, hypnosis, or through taking drugs.

19. Altered states of consciousness

20. States of consciousness • Our brain is continuously bombarded with internal and external information. It is our state of consciousness, or level of awareness, that determines how much of this information we take in and respond to. • Consciousness is not ‘all or nothing’. There are variations in how aware we are at different times, even within NWC. During the day we experience many different states of consciousness. • There are no distinct boundaries to show when one state ends and another begins. Consciousness is described as ranging along a continuum from total awareness (focused attention) to complete lack of awareness (unconsciousness).

21. Focused, selective attention Divided attention Daydreaming Meditative state Hypnotised Asleep Anaesthetised Unconscious (coma) High level of awareness Normal Waking Consciousness Altered States of Consciousness Low level of awareness

22. Continuum • At one end of the continuum, when attention is highly focused, concentration on specific thoughts, feelings or sensations dominates our consciousness so that other incoming information may not be noticed (eg. if you are totally absorbed in an exam you might not notice that you feel hungry because you skipped breakfast). • At the other end of the continuum, for example in an anaesthetised state, you have very little awareness of any thoughts, feelings or sensations.

23. Qualities • There are a number of qualities that change in different states of consciousness. These include: • your level of attention and awareness, • the content of your consciousness, • your perceptual experiences, • your cognitive abilities, • your emotional awareness, • your self-control, and • your experience of time.

24. Awareness • Awareness refers to all current perceptions, thoughts, motives and feelings in our consciousness at any one time. • It is a continuum from the thing your attention is focused on (eg. what you are reading) to things in your environment but outside your attention (eg. the smell of dinner cooking) in the background of your awareness. • Awareness involves all information available to your consciousness, while attention refers to the part of your awareness you focus on.

25. Awareness • Sometimes information in the background of your awareness may be unconsciously given importance and your awareness may shift – eg. if you hear a sudden loud noise. • Most ASCs lower your level of awareness or shift it from external to internal stimuli. Eg. in meditation you shut out the external world to concentrate on silence, or in many drug-induced ASCs people find it difficult to concentrate or focus, leading to a loss of attention and awareness.

26. Attention • Attention involves focusing on specific stimuli and ignoring others. Generally, NWC requires more attention than altered states of consciousness. • Attention can be focused on internal thoughts or feelings (eg. how tired you feel) or on external stimuli (eg. what someone is saying to you). • The focus of attention is like a spotlight that can be moved around. A shift in the focus of your attention (and therefore consciousness) can be intentional, however it more often occurs without you being aware of it – eg. when you are focused on a teacher’s explanation and the person sitting next to you starts talking to you, the focus of your attention will shift without you being aware of it.

27. Selective attention • At the top of the continuum is selective or focused attention. This involves selectively attending to certain stimuli while ignoring others. • The focus of our awareness is on only a limited range of all we are capable of experiencing. This might be on an internal event (eg. a pain in your foot) or an external event (eg. watching a car driving past). People notice very little of the information that is not attended to. Watch this. • We are more likely to attend to a stimulus if it is personally important to us (eg. the cocktail party phenomenon), if it changes in some way, or if it is novel (new or unusual).

28. Divided attention • This is lower on the continuum, meaning the level of attention required is not as focused and selective. • Divided attention means being able to distribute your attention and undertake two or more activities simultaneously (eg. someone washing the car while listening to the radio and watching their children playing). • Our ability to divide attention depends on how much conscious effort is required for the various tasks we are engaged in. Our perceptual system can handle divided attention tasks if they are not complex and do not demand considerable mental effort. A complex task requires selective attention and a higher level of consciousness than a simple or familiar task. This is an argument for why we are not allowed to use mobile phones while driving. Try this too.

29. Content limitations • The content is the type of information held in our consciousness. As there is more information in the environment than we can ever focus upon at one time, we usually limit ourselves to the content that matters most to us, eg. mentions of our own name or danger signals. This is called content limitation. • In NWC we have some control over what we allow into our NWC, eg. through selective attention. We can block out information that makes us feel self-conscious, embarrassed, depressed, sad, afraid, etc. We are more able to limit the content of our consciousness so we can organise logical and meaningful thoughts, without being distracted by unwanted ones.

30. Content limitations • In ASCs, our ability to control or limit the content can change. • In meditation, the content of consciousness is limited in order to free the mind of busy and bombarding thoughts. • In a drug-induced ASC, our ability to control our attention and therefore limit content is reduced. That is why the content experienced in a drug-induced state can be bizarre, illogical and can conflict with reality. A drug user may find it difficult to focus on one idea and exclude others, so may switch attention every few seconds. It might be difficult to limit negative information and thoughts, so the person may dwell on thoughts that make them unhappy. As irrelevant information may not be blocked out, thoughts can become chaotic and illogical.

31. Controlled processes • Activities that demand high concentration, such as solving a maths problem in an exam, are called controlled processes. These tasks involve alert awareness and mental effort, where you actively focus your attention on achieving the goal. They are best done in NWC. • Only one activity requiring controlled processes can usually be performed at a time. Controlled processes are often required when an activity is difficult or unfamiliar. When you first learn to drive a manual car, controlled processes are required. You have to concentrate on controlling the steering wheel while using the accelerator, brake, clutch and gears, as well as monitoring events outside the vehicle. This requires complete focused attention.

32. Automatic processes • However once you are experienced, driving becomes an automatic process that does not demand the same level of attention. You can then drive, listen to the radio, and have a conversation, all at the same time. • Automatic processes require little conscious awareness and mental effort, minimal attention, and do not interfere with the performance of other activities. They occur when an activity is easy or familiar (eg. when the steps involved in driving have become automatic). When automatic processes are used we can handle two or more activities at the same time.

33. Stroop test • The Stroop effect demonstrates the effect of controlled and automatic processes. • Name the colour that each word is printed in on the following slide. • How long does is take?

34. blue yellow green blue red yellow red green blue red

35. Stroop test • Now do the same thing again. • How long does it take this time?

36. red yellow green blue red blue yellow green blue red

37. Questions • What is the difference between selective attention and divided attention? • Why is the content of our consciousness more limited during NWC compared to altered states of consciousness? • How do controlled processes differ from automatic processes?

38. Distortions of perception • An ASC can lead to perceptual distortion, where a person’s perceptions of themselves or the environment are dulled, heightened or modified. • An ASC can heighten perceptions, making your senses more receptive to external stimuli and making sensory experiences more vivid (eg. LSD). An ASC may produce a hallucination – a perception of something that does not actually exist (seeing, hearing, feeling things). • Perceptions may also be dulled, eg. during meditation a person may be able to focus their concentration so they do not experience pain.

39. Distortions of cognition • An ASC may produce cognitive distortions, or changes in thought processes. • Cognitive functioning generally becomes impaired during an ASC. Thought processes are often more disorganised, thinking is often illogical and lacking in sequence, and difficulties may be experienced in problem solving. • People may have trouble remembering events that occur during an ASC (eg. when drunk). ASCs may impair short-term memory and recall from long-term memory.

40. Time orientation • Estimation of time is often distorted in an ASC – time seems to pass at a different speed to normal. It may appear to pass more quickly or slowly, depending on the ASC and the person. Eg. a daydream may feel brief but actually last a few minutes, or a meditation may seem a lot shorter than its actual time.

41. Emotional awareness • Many ASCs cause a change in our awareness and experience of emotion. This can produce uncharacteristic responses and people may feel emotions that are not connected to the events going on. • For example, in an alcohol-induced ASC people may become more emotional than normal. In some ASCs people report becoming emotionless – they have no feelings for things that would normally get a reaction from them. • ASCs can also lead to inappropriate and unpredictable emotional reactions, such as crying when told a joke, or becoming highly aggressive for no apparent reason.

42. Self control • ASCs often change our ability to maintain self-control – controlling our movements, reactions and behaviours. • In an alcohol-induced ASC people may lose awareness of themselves and have difficulty coordinating and controlling movements, speaking and thinking clearly as well as controlling emotions. • Inhibitions (restraints on your behaviour) may be changed. In a hypnotic state, people can behave in a less inhibited way, and can also be trained to increase their self-control (eg. to stop smoking or gambling).

43. Demonstration • List the various effects that Homer experiences while in an altered state of consciousness. Categorise these changes in terms of: • perception—sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch • cognition / thinking—including problem solving, reasoningand understanding • memory • emotions • behaviours—including self-control, coordination,balance and speech • perception of time—e.g. understanding theamount of time that has passed • awareness of the environment.

45. Focus • Focus on • Daydreaming • Meditation • Alcohol-induced ASC • Last part of Ch.3 in textbook.

46. Questions • Describe three ways that the quality of our consciousness might change when in an altered state of consciousness. • Describe two different ways our perception may be distorted in an ASC. • What are similarities and differences of being in an alcohol-induced ASC compared to a meditation?

47. Methods of studying consciousness • A person’s state of consciousness is best determined by • observation, • self-reports and • physiological measurements.

48. Methods of studying consciousness • Observation involves watching the behaviour and actions of an individual (either during the state of consciousness or via video monitoring). • A self-report is an account of a person’s own thoughts, feelings and experiences (collected in an interview, survey or questionnaire). • Physiological measurements involve recording the functions of the body during a state of consciousness (eg. brainwave activity, eye movement, heart rate, body temperature, perspiration).

49. Methods of studying consciousness • Observations and self-reports are subjective data, so need to interpreted with caution – can contain the unintentional bias of the assessor or the individual. • Physiological measures are objective data – free from bias and less susceptible to manipulation.

50. EEG • The electroencephalograph (EEG) detects, amplifies and records electrical activity in the brain, using electrodes attached to the skull. • Changes in brainwave activity are associated with changes to states of consciousness, such as the different stages of sleep.