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Sleep and states of consciousness - Coggle Diagram
Sleep and states of consciousness
DP1: CONSCIOUSNESS
Can be defined as our awareness of objects and events in the external world, and of our sensations, mental experiences and own existence at any given moment
PSYCHOLOGICAL CONSTRUCT
The concept or idea that consciousness is believed to occur or exist but cannot be directly observed. It is used to describe specific psychological activity or a pattern of activity
CONTINUUM
Psychologists often describe consciousness as varying along a continuum of awareness with 2 distinctive extremes: total awareness and a complete lack of awareness
NORMAL WAKING CONSCIOUSNESS (NWS)
The states of consciousness associated with being awake and aware of objects and events in the external world
ALTERED STATES OF CONSCIOUSNESS (ASC)
Any state of consciousness that is distinctly different from normal waking consciousness in terms of level of awareness and experience
NATURALLY OCCURRING
Are a normal part of our lives and occur in the course of our everyday activities without the need for any aid
Daydreaming & sleep
INDUCED
Can be intentionally achieved by the use of some kind of aid. eg. meditation & hypnosis
Can be induced unintentionally due to an accident, disease or some other disorder. eg. brain trauma
DP2: CHANGES IN A PERSONS PSYCHOLOGICAL STATE
EMOTIONAL AWARENESS
NWC
Feelings are generally characteristic of the individual
Emotional reactions tend to be: within the individual's normal range, predictable, generally appropriate for an event or situation
ASC
Feelings are often uncharacteristic
Emotional reactions can be: heightened, dulled, inappropriate for an event or situation, unpredictable
CONTROLLED & AUTOMATIC PROCESSES
ASC
Unable to perform controlled processes effectively, as the demands placed upon awareness and mental effort are usually too high
The performance of automatic processes can be difficult
NWC
CONTROLLED PROCESS
An action that requires a high level of conscious awareness and mental effort
Required when a task is unfamiliar or difficult
Serial; perform one task requiring controlled processing at a time
Effortful; makes heavy demands on attention and requires a high level of conscious awareness
Relatively slow
AUTOMATIC PROCESS
An action that requires little conscious awareness or mental effort
Used when a task is simple and familiar
Tend to be rapid
Tend to be parallel; we usually can handle two or more tasks at the same time
CONTENT LIMITATIONS
ASC
Don't have the same control
Often nonsensical, illogical and disorganised
Less restricted/limited
NWC
More restricted/limited
More control over what we allow into our consciousness eg. selective attention
More organised and logical
PERCEPTUAL & COGNITIVE DISTORTIONS
ASC
PERCEPTUAL DISTORTIONS
Senses may be heightened or dulled
Hallucinations may occur
Pain perception may differ; tolerance may be higher
Feeling that you are losing touch with reality may occur
COGNITVE DISTORTIONS
Thought processes are often more disorganised, often illogical and lacking in sequence
Difficulties with decision making and problem solving can occur
Trouble storing memories of events that occur and retrieving information from LTM
NWC
PERCEPTUAL DISTORTIONS
Generally do not tend to occur
COGNITIVE DISTORTIONS
Our memory system functions effectively
Our thought processes are organised, logical and sequential
We are able to problem solve and decision make effectively
AWARENESS
NWC
More awareness and attention
Can be focused on either internal thoughts or feeling or on external stimuli
SELECTIVE
Involves choosing and attending to a specific stimulus to the exclusive of others
DIVIDED
Refers to the ability to distribute our attention and undertake two or more activities simultaneously
ASC
Less awareness and attention
Particularly less focused/selective attention
SELF-CONTROL
ASC
Difficulty coordinating and controlling movements
Increased risk-taking behaviour
Some ASC's like hypnosis can help people gain greater self control. eg. hypnosis has helped some people to stop smoking
NWC
Able to manage and coordinate physical responses
We can inhibit fine motor control and coordinate complex series of movements
TIME ORIENTATION
ASC
Estimation of time is often distorted, less accurate
Time seems to pass at a different speed to normal, may seem to slow down or speed up
NWC
Estimation of time is usually accurate
Time passes at normal speed
DP3: MEASURING CONSCIOUSNESS
SUBJECTIVE DATA
ADVANTAGES
Provides qualitative data, thus is more detailed
Can provide insight into mental processes that cannot be directly measured
DISADVANTAGES
Qualitative data, means it can be difficult to measure and compare
Requires personal judgements/interpretation, meaning it is often influenced by bias
Less valid and reliable
Difficult to replicate due to bias
Measurements are collected through personal observations of behaviour
OBJECTIVE DATA
ADVANTAGES
Data is quantitative, which is easy to measure and compare
Minimal interruptions
More accurate and reliable data, allowing for replication
DISADVANTAGES
Can lack detail as no insight gained about why responses/measures are obtained
Can be artificial and lack external validity because measurements are taken in a lab
Measurements of behaviour collected under controlled conditions
SUBJECTIVE MEASURES
SLEEP DIARY
A self reported record of an individuals sleep and waking time activities, usually over a period of several weeks
Time when trying to fall asleep
Number of awakenings during the night
How sleepy the individual feels at different times of the day
Factors affecting sleep eg. caffeine, alcohol consumption
VIDEO MONITORING
Video cameras are used to record externally observable physiological responses throughout a sleep episode
Changes in posture or body position
Amount of tossing and turning
Sleep related breathing problems
Awakening from a nightmare
Behaviours such as sleep walking or sleep talking
OBJECTIVE MEASURES (PHYSIOLOGICAL)
EEG
Detects, amplifies and records the electrical activity of the brain (in the form of brain waves)
EOG
Detects, amplifies and records the electrical activity of the muscles surrounding the eyes
EMG
Detects, amplifies and records the electrical activity of the muscles
OBJECTIVE MEASURES (NON-PHYSIOLOGICAL)
SPEED
Measurement of speed typically involves a response or reaction time to a stimulus
That is, how much time elapses between the presentation of a stimulus and the individual's response to the stimulus
ACCURACY
Involves the number of correct responses and incorrect responses made by the individual
Usually the researcher calculates the proportions of correct and incorrect responses in relation to the total number of possible responses to pinpoint accuracy
DP5: SLEEP
Described as an altered state of consciousness that features lowered level of awareness of the external environment and is accompanied by a number of physiological changes to the body
Naturally occurring biological rhythm
BIOLOGICAL RHYTHMS
Cyclical natural rhythms our body follows in order to perform a variety of functions
A variety of factors affect these rhythms, including hormones, our body clock, travel and shift work
Examples include sleep-wake, body temp changes and menstrual cycles
ULTRADIAN RHYTHMS
Biological rhythm's that follow a cycle of less than 24 hours. eg. heart rate, eye blinks and sleep patterns
A typical night's sleep generally follows a sequence of different states and stages
Generally experience 4-5, 90 minute 'cycles' consisting of 2 distinct types of sleep: non-rapid eye movement sleep (NREM) and rapid eye movement sleep (REM)
CIRCADIAN RHYTHM
Biological processes that roughly follow a 24-hour cycle
Controlled by our internal 'body clock'
Found in the hypothalamus, called the SCN
Located next to the optic nerve, the SCN receives info about light from the eyes
MELATONIN
Hormone associated with alertness
Lower levels of melatonin = more alert
Higher levels of melatonin = more drowsy
Levels of melatonin are controlled by our SCN as it adjusts our sleep-wake cycle according to the amount of light, directing the pineal gland to secrete more or less melatonin
Less light = more melatonin secreted
More light = less melatonin secreted
NREM
Divided into 4 stages
First occurs when we fall asleep
80% of our total sleep time
Decreases as the night progresses. stages 3 & 4 only occurs in the first couple of cycles
Stages 3 & 4 are particularly deep, and it is difficult to wake the sleeper
Only 20% of dreaming occurs
Dreams tend to be shorter, less clear, detailed and vivid
Replenishes the body, by releasing growth hormone and sleeping longer/deeper after physical exertion
REM
Only has 1 stage
Tends to occur at the end of each cycle
20% of our total sleep time, or about 90 mins
Increases as the night progresses, first period of REM may only be a few minutes but the final period may last up to 1 hour
Considered a light stage of sleep, sleeper is easily woken
80% of dreaming occurs
Dreams tend to be longer, clearer and more detailed and vivid
Replenishes the mind, helping us sort memories and consolidate them
DP4: BRAIN WAVES AND ALERTNESS
DRUG
STIMULANTS
Are drugs that increase activity in the CNS and the rest of the body
Have an altering or activating effect
EFFECT ON ALERTNESS
Elevates mood
Reduces fatigue
Increases alertness
Increases energy levels
BRAIN WAVE PATTERNS
Increases the presence of higher frequency brain waves (faster), such as beta (caffeine) and/or alpha waves (nicotine)
DEPRESSANTS
Are drugs that decrease activity in the CNS and the rest of the body
Have a calming or relaxation effect
EFFECT ON ALERTNESS
Decreases alertness
Increases fatigue
Reduces anxiety
Induces calmness
BRAIN WAVE PATTERNS
Increases the presence of lower frequency brain waves (slower), such as alpha waves (alcohol) and/or theta waves (meditation)
Any substance that can change a persons physical and/or mental functioning
BRAIN WAVES (MEASURED BY AN EEG)
FREQUENCY
Refers to how many brain waves occur per second
AMPLITUDE
Refers to the size of the brain wave
BETA
High frequency, low amplitude
NWC, when alert, attentive to external stimuli and intensive mental activity
ALPHA
High frequency (slower than beta), low amplitude (slightly larger than beta waves)
NWC, calm, interanally focused, wakeful state, with eyes closed
THETA
Medium frequency, a mix of high and low amplitude waves
Drowsiness, falling asleep, awakening from sleep, deep meditative state
DELTA
Low frequency, high amplitude
Deepest stage of sleep and consciousness
DP8: SLEEP DEPRIVATION
PARTIAL SLEEP DEPRIVATION
Involves having less sleep (either quantity or quality) than what is normally required
May occur periodically or persistently over the short-term or long-term
TOTAL SLEEP DEPRIVATION
Involves not having any sleep at all over a short-term or long-period
May occurs for just one night or several nights
AFFECTIVE
Amplified emotional responses
Mood changes
Poorer emotional perception
Feelings of being overwhelmed when confronted with stressors
BEHAVIOURAL
Reduced motor coordination
Slowed reaction time on cognitive and motor taks
Micro-sleeps during normal waking time
Impaired behaviour/impulse control
COGNITIVE
Lapses in attention and poor connection
Problems performing simple monotonous tasks
Impaired problem solving, decision making, errors in judgement
Impaired thinking, learning and memory
It is a state caused by inadequate quantity or quality of sleep, either voluntary or involuntary. Sleep quantity refers to the amount of sleep (measured objectively using time). Sleep quality refers to how well we feel when we have slept (relies on subjective self-report measures)
DP9: EFFECTS ON CONSCIOUSNESS OF BAC VS SLEEP DEP
Being awake for 17-19hrs is the equivalent of a BAC 0.05
Being awake for 24-28hrs is the equivalent of a BAC 0.10
CONCENTRATION
Simple, routine, repetitive or boring tasks are particularly impaired
More complex tasks seem to be affected
Difficulty focusing attention
COGNITION
Decreased performance on cognitive tasks
Inability to problem solve or make decisions
Impaired memory ability
Impaired logic and reasoning
MOOD
TOTAL SLEEP DEPRIVATION
Irritable, short tempered, impatient
Positive moods decrease and negative increase
Emotional reactivity increases and our emotional perception becomes more negatively biased
Increased anxiety and feelings of depression
LEGAL BAC (0.05)
Emotions may be heightened, exaggerated or intensified
A person may be overly emotional, displaying inappropriate emotions or emotions may also be dulled, lack of emotions
Moods may fluctuate
Overall, mood can be more positive or negative and may go up and down
DP10: PARASOMNIAS AND DYSSOMNIAS
PARASOMNIAS
Characterised by abnormal behaviour or physiological occurrences during sleep or sleep wake transitions
SLEEP WALKING
Walking or doing routine tasks while sleeping. Usually occurs during NREM 3 & 4. Ranges from a few minutes to 15 minutes. No memory of the event occurring. Difficult to wake a person up. May experience daytime sleepiness the following day due to disruption to normal sleep episodes
Does not involve a dysfunction in the mechanisms regulating the sleep-wake cycle
Only affects sleep quality
DYSSOMNIAS
Characterised by a disturbance in the quality, amount and timing of sleep
Involves a dysfunction in the mechanisms regulating the sleep-wake cycle
Involves an abnormality in the quantity, quality or time of sleep
Does not involve abnormal behaviours or physiological events during sleep
SLEEP ONSET INSOMNIA
Disorder resulting in a persistent inability to fall asleep at night. Can be due to psychological, physiological and/or behavioural factors. Involves a change in the timing, amount and quality of sleep. Also leads to disruptions in the circadian sleep-wake cycle as it becomes out of sync with the external environment
CIRCADIAN PHASE DISORDERS
Sleep disorder that disrupts a person's ability to sleep due to a mismatch between an individual's sleep wake-cycle and the external environment
DP6:
DP5:
DP11: CIRCADIAN PHASE DISORDERS
SLEEP WAKE CYCLE SHIFTS IN ADOLESCENTS
SOCIAL FACTORS
Increased demands on their time for socialising
Increased academic or work demands
Increased use of technology and the light emitted from these devices, can also inhibit the secretion of melatonin
BIOLOGICAL FACTORS
Delay in the release of melatonin by 1-2 hours in the evening
Delay in the release of cortisol by 1-2 hours in the morning
PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTORS
They believe that early sleep times are associated with childhood
They can have a poor attitude to good sleep hygiene
Adolescents like to exert their independence, by deciding to stay up late, when to sleep etc.
A shift forward in sleep onset by about 1-2 hours (phase delay)
This means their body clock wants to go to sleep later, but doesn't match the sleep time required by the external environment, which is an earlier bedtime
A shift forward in wakefulness by 1-2 hours and thus difficulty waking
This means again there is a mismatch between their body clock wanting to sleep in later and the early wake time required by the external environment
SHIFT WORK
CHANGES TO THE SLEEP WAKE CYCLE
Difficulty falling asleep (delayed sleep onset) during the day to environment factors
Less total hours slept, between 1-4 hours less on average than someone who doesn't work shifts
SUMMARY OF THE EFFECTS
Issues with sleep timing - shift work scheduled outside normal/habitual sleep hours, thereby resulting in a change to sleep onset time
Poor sleep quantity and quality - due to the lack of time for the biological sleep-wake cycle to adjust and align with the day-night cycle of the individual's environment and other external sleep-wake cues. Which leads to sleep deprivation
Sleep deprivation - leading to excessive sleepiness, cognitive impairments etc
Involves paid employment that is outside the period of a normal working day and may follow a different pattern in consecutive periods of the week
It conflicts with our natural body clock, forcing people to be awake when they should be sleeping
JET LAG
Considered to be a sleep disorder because of the disturbance to the circadian sleep-wake cycle caused by rapid travel across multiple time zones
SUMMARY OF THE EFFECTS
Difficulties in initiating or maintaining sleep
Excessive sleep
Reduced daytime alertness
Imapaired concentration and cognitive performance
Group of sleep disorders involving sleep disruption that is primarily due to a mismatch between an individual's sleep-wake pattern and the pattern that is desired or required by the external environment
DP12: INTERVENTIONS FOR SLEEP DISORDERS
COGNITIVE BEHAVIOURAL THERAPY FOR INSOMNIA
COGNITIVE COMPONENT
IDENTIFY unhelpful thoughts
CHALLENGE these unhelpful thoughts
CHANGE them to more helpful or adaptive thoughts
BEHAVIOURAL COMPONENT
SLEEP HYGIENE
Creating healthy sleeping habits - avoid caffeine, engaging in relaxation before bed and avoid electronics at night
STIMULUS CONTROL
Creating a positive association between bed and sleep by avoiding doing work in bed, napping and only going to bed when sleepy
BRIGHT LIGHT THERAPY FOR CIRCADIAN PHASE DISORDERS
Involves timed exposure of the eyes to intense but safe amount of light
The aim is to shift an individuals sleep-wake cycle to a desired schedule, typically the day-night cycle of their external environment
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