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Consciousness (not a state but a brain process that creates a mental model…
Consciousness (not a state but a brain process that creates a mental model of our experiences)
Brain operates on many levels at once, both conscious & unconscious
Models of Conscious & Nonconscious Minds
James' Stream of Consciousness
Area of Focus
Whatever we are paying attention to at any give time.
Peripheral consciousness
Encompasses feelings & associations that give meaning & context to our focus
Modern Cognitive Perspective (Computer metaphor)
Consciousness=info & images appear on computer screen
Nonconscious=electronic activity of machinery quietly operating in the background but operate in parallel with consciousness
sometimes a nonconscious motive/emotion erupts into consciousness eg. growing hunger brought to awareness
Freud's Levels of Consciousness
Preconscious
Memories of events & facts not conscious but readily accessible
Parallel processing
-->able to search for info many places at once
Unconscious
Houses emotional memories, desires & feelings that would be threatening if brought to consciousness
Includes levels of processing that occur without awareness
Conscious
Brain processes which we are aware
Functions of Consciousness
Provides a mental "meeting place"--> sensation can combine with memory, emotions motives in the process called perception
Allows us to create a mental model of the world that we can manipulate in our minds, allows us to think plan and evaluate responses, imagine how effective they would be
Restricts our attention, prevents brain from being overwhelmed by stimulation
Tools for studying consciousness
fMRI, EEG, PET
Mental rotation tasks, Zoom-in Tasks
What Cycles Occur in Everyday Consciousness?
Sleep
REM Sleep
stage of sleep occurring every 90min & experience dreams
burts of rapid eye movement under closed eyelids
Sleep paralysis-->voluntary muscles in rest of body immobile
Sleep Cycle
MEMORISE ENTIRE pg 336
Circadian Rhythms
physiological pattern that repeats approximately every 24 hrs
Importance of Sleep
Restore the body, form new neurons in brain, repair damaged brain cells
Flush out unwanted & useless info
To conserve energy
NREM sleep
interim periods without rapid eye movements
Why Do We Dream?
Dreams as Meaningful Events
Dreams connect with recent experience & our thoughts during the previous day
Dreams help in memory consolidation, selectively reinforces memory esp facts & locations (eg. Harvard exp students rmb tree location in maze)
Freud's theory of dreams
Guard sleep
Source of wish fulfillment
Manifest content of the dream can be scrutinised for clues realted to hidden motives desires in the unconscious to understand the latent content of the dream
African & Native American
Dreams are extensions of reality
Israelites
Interpreted dreams as msgs from God
Dreams are just random brain activity
Activation-synthesis theory (pg 340)
Dreams as sources of creative insight
Daydreaming
Helpful
can help us make plans, solve problems
Source of creative insight, provide flashes of intuition
when faced with hard problems, give brain access to unconscious associations & possibilities that provide "aha!" moment
mildly altered state of consciousness where attention shifts inward to memories , expectations, desires or fantasies & away from the immediate situation
Harmful
Can interfere with memories of recently learned material
ppl are happier when engaged rather than when daydreaming
Other Forms of Consciousness
Meditation
State of consciousness induced by focusing on repetitive behaviour, assume certain body position & minimising external stimulation
Psychoactive Drug States
Opiates
good analgesic properties & serve as cough suppressants
made from opium eg. morphine, heroin, codeine
Highly addictive, suppress physical sensation & response to stimulation
Depressants
relieve symptoms of pain/anxiety but overuse-->impair reflexes & judgement & may also be addictive
eg. Barbiturates(induce sleep), benzodiazepines(treat anxiety), alcohol(less self-monitoring on thoughts & behaviour)
slows down mental & physical activity by inhibiting transmission of nerve impulses in CNS
Hallucinogens
creates hallucinations/alters perceptions of external envirnt & inner awareness
eg. Mescaline, LSD, PCP, Cannabis (has medical uses in treating nausea associated with chemotherapy, reduce eye pressure associated with glaucoma)
Stimulants
Paradoxically, can also increase concentration, reduce activity level for children with ADHD
Recreational uses: intense pleasurable sensations, increased self-confidence & euphoria
speed up CNS activity, boosts mental & physical activity levels
Cocaine, amphetamine, methamphetamine, MDMA, caffeine, nicotine (details pg 353-354)
Hypnosis
Critics/alternate views
Hypnosis is just suggestibility where subjects are not entranced but just motivated to focus their attention & respond to suggestion
Hypnosis is a social process, involve role playing, ppl pretend to act like someone hypnotised to please the hypnotist
Dissociated state involving "hidden observer"in person's mind operating in parallel with normal consciousness
Hypnosis is a distinct state of consciousness not like sleep/normal waking state
Hypnosis involves shift in top-down processing. Ppl r hypnotised cos they want/expect to be, & focus on achieving responses hypnotist intends to evoke
Practical uses for hypnosis
Psychological treatment eg change behaviours/phobias
Pain management in medical treatments -->
Hypnotic analgesia
Research for studying mind-body connection
Definition
Sleep Disorders
Night Terrors
Occurs mostly in children, screaming in stage 4 sleep, forgotten on awakening
Narcolepsy
disorder of REM sleep, involve sleep-onset REM periods & sudden daytime REM-sleep attacks usually accompanied by cataplexy
Sleep Apnea
respiratory disorder where person intermittently stops breathing many times while asleep
Cataplexy
Sudden loss of muscle control that occurs before a narcoleptic sleep attack
Insomina
inability to fall asleep quickly, frequent arousals during sleep, early awakenings