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Consciousness

Consciousness . Chapter 7 – Myers Psychology. Levels of Consciousness . Normal or waking Consciousness – active conscious that you are currently thinking about Preconscious – information that is not conscious but is retrievable into conscious awareness

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Consciousness

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  1. Consciousness Chapter 7 – Myers Psychology

  2. Levels of Consciousness • Normal or waking Consciousness– active conscious that you are currently thinking about • Preconscious – information that is not conscious but is retrievable into conscious awareness • Non-conscious: we are unaware of it happening • Heartbeat, breathing, etc.

  3. Consciousness – continued Unconscious level • Sigmund Freud - Psychoanalytic approach • Repressed thoughts and feelings drive behaviors • Difficult/impossible to prove (not widely accepted) Subconscious level • Information that we are not consciously aware of but we know must exist due to behavior • Mere exposure effect

  4. Altered States Anything that enhances or diminishes consciousness Drugs, supplements, deprivation of sustenance… Most common is SLEEP

  5. Sleep • Sleep is a behavior and an altered state of consciousness • Fast Facts: • 1/3 of lifetime (25 years) spent in sleep • 6 of these 25 are spent dreaming (approx. 100,000 dreams in a lifetime) • Need for sleep varies (20 hours for infants) • Every animal sleeps

  6. Theories of Sleep • Protects • Our sleep suits our ecological niche – fits our environment • Hides us from harm; animals with least fear of predation sleep least • Restorative • Conserving energy for daylight hours, recuperating from exhaustion/stress • Literally repairing neurons (weaken unused connections and strength others)

  7. Theories of Sleep - continued • Remembering • Restores and rebuilds our fading memories of the day’s experiences • Increases creative thinking • Growth process • Pituitary releases growth hormones

  8. Biological Rhythms • Defn: periodic physiological fluctuations • Annual cycles – migration, hibernation, humans – experience seasonal variations in appetite, sleep length, and moods • SAD(Seasonal Affective Disorder) – people become depressed at the same time of year

  9. Biological Rhythms – continued • 28-day cycles – menstrual cycle • 24-hour cycle – varying and falling alertness, body temperature, and growth hormone secretion. • 90-minute cycle – cycle through various stages of sleep.

  10. Circadian Rhythm • the “biological clock” • Regular body rhythms (body temp, and wakefulness for example) that occur on a 24-hour cycle • High alertness portion of this cycle shifts as we age (“owls”“larks”) • Retirement homes vs. dorms

  11. Circadian Rhythm – Continued • Jet Lag – crossing time zones • Spend the 1st day outdoors – helps you assimilate • Shift work sleep disorder – work hours overlap normal sleep hours  can lead to insomnia • Suprachiasmatic Nucleus – pair of pinhead-sized clusters of 20,000 cells that control the circadian clock, located In hypothalamus • Partly does this by causing pineal gland to regulate melatonin

  12. Stages of Sleep (repeats ~ every 90 minutes) “Quiet sleep”- NREM (Non-Rapid Eye Movement) • Stage 0 (Awake, relaxed): relaxed with eyes closed • You don’t know when you fall asleep (characteristic of sleep – state you don’t know you are in until you are out) • But, an EEG will show exactly when you fell asleep • alpha waves

  13. Stages of Sleep NREM, continued • Stage 1: 30 seconds – 10 minutes • theta waves • hypnagogic (hypnic) jerks (usually falling or floating) • other hallucinations – false sensory experiences; seeing something in the absence of an external visual stimulus

  14. Stages of Sleep NREM, continued • Stage 2: 40-50% of sleep, 20 minutes • sleep spindles – bursts of rapid, rhythmic brain activity • sleep talking possible during this or later stages • Stage 3: transition stage • beginning of delta waves (“slow-wave sleep” = stages 3 and 4)

  15. Stages of Sleep NREM, continued • Stage 4: about 30 minutes, decreases as night goes on • deep sleep, 20-50% delta waves, brain responds to sounds • Sleepwalking and bedwetting Function of Non-REM sleep: • Body tissues are restored, pituitary releases growth hormone, body re-energizes

  16. Sleep Cycle • Stage 1  Stage 2  Stage 3  Stage 4  Stage 3  Stage 2  Stage 1 REM (repeat)

  17. REM Sleep • Resembles nearly-awake stage 1 sleep • Heart rate and breathing increase, approx. every ½ minute your eyes dart around • Nearly all dreams occur in REM • Vivid and story-like • 25% of night’s sleep (approx. 100 min per night) • temporary paralysis

  18. Function of REM Sleep • Necessity demonstrated by “REM Rebound” • Intoxication increases SWS (Slow-wave sleep) Stage 4, resulting in REM Suppression • After removal of suppressant, rebound occurs • hormones are released that counteract fatigue, irritability, and inattention • Nervous system development (provided neural stimulation needed) • Memory consolidation (esp. procedural memory)

  19. Sleep Duration • Take a one minute to think and write: • How much sleep is necessary? Explain your thoughts.

  20. Sleep Duration – Continued • What accounts for differences among individuals? • Genetics (identical twins more similar than fraternal) • Cultural (2001 Gallup avg = 6.7 / night, 1942 avg. = 7.6 hours) Sleep Debt: your body is not forgiving!

  21. Effects of Sleep Deprivation • Causes problems with • Confusion • Attention - Causing accidents • Chernobyl, Exxon Valdez, Three Mile Island accidents, BP oil spill • Misperceptions • Hand tremors, droopy eye-lids, focusing, sensitivity to pain • Suppressed immune systems (even cancer – people who sleep 7-8 hours per night outlive the sleep deprived). • http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/video/sleep-deprivation-observed-21-volunteers-16120599

  22. Sleep Deprivation - Continued • Randy Gardner - 1964 • 17 year old high school student • 264 hours (about 11 days), no stimulants • Wanted to show that he could break the record without negative consequences. • Day 4 he thought a street sign was a person. • Day 11 he was asked by a reporter to continually subtract 7 starting with 100. He stopped at 65, and said he forgot what he was doing.

  23. Sleep Deprivation • Peter Tripp - 1950s disc jockey • 201 hour wake-a-thon, used some drugs (controlled by psychiatrists) • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ko9MdrVWvHM

  24. Sleep Disorders • Dyssomnias – sleeping disorders that make it difficult to get to (or remain) asleep – insomnia, sleep apnea, alcohol-dependent sleep disorder • Insomnia – Recurring problems in falling or staying asleep • Onset Insomnia – Takes a long time (30 + min) to fall asleep • Maintenance Insomnia – awakening after a short period of sleep • Early Morning Awakening –30-60 before person intends to rise • Often worsened by worry over sleep loss

  25. Sleep Disorders - Continued • Sleeping pills and alcohol trigger SWS, not REM, so it just makes it worse.  Solutions? • Relax before you go to bed • Avoid caffeine • Exercise regularly (not late at night) • Sleep on a regular schedule

  26. Sleep Disorders - Continued • Sleep apnea – temporary cessations of breathing during sleep – causes wakefulness • 1 in 20 people • Serious cases require a mask-like device to open airways  • Narcolepsy – uncontrollable sleep attacks (often directly in to REM sleep) • Narcoleptic Dog (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zVCYdrw-1o)

  27. Sleep Disorders – continued • Parasomnias – involve abnormal movements, behaviors, emotions, perceptions, and dreams that occur while falling asleep, sleeping: • Bruxism – severe teeth grinding • Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) • Somnambulism (Sleepwalking) • SIDS (crib death) • Jet Lag

  28. Sleep Disorders - continued • Night terrors – high arousal and appearance of being terrified; Stage 4, seldom remembered. • Nightmares v. Night terrors • Mares – unpleasant dreams, REM sleep, memories • Terrors – physical symptoms, Stage 4, no memori

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