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Psychology of Consciousness

Chapter 7

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Consciousness I. What is Consciousness?II. What Happens When We Sleep?III. What Are Dreams and What Do They

Mean?IV. Is it Possible to Control Consciousness

by Using Biofeedback, Hypnosis and Meditation?

V. How do Drugs Alter Consciousness?

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I. What is Consciousness?

State of awareness of internal & externaleventsRelated to activity of the neurons

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II. Sleep

The Sleep–Wakefulness Cycle: Circadian Rhythms– Internally generated patterns of bodily

functions that vary over a ~24-hour period

– Function even in the absence of normal cues

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Circadian Rhythms

Disruptions to the circadian rhythm– Can lead to thinking less clearly,

inattentiveness, and feeling sleepy– Due to shifting work schedules, jet lag,

pulling an “all nighter”

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Circadian Rhythms

Accommodating disruptions to the circadian rhythm– Change schedule slowly– Follow normal schedule, rather than

trying to adjust to the new time zone– Get exposure to bright light to

increase wakefulness– Small doses of melatonin promote

sleep

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Sleep Stages

REM and NREM Sleep

1. Studying Sleep• Electroencephalograms (EEGs)

– Graphically record brain-wave activity through electrodes placed on the scalp and forehead

– EEG waves vary in frequency and amplitude

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EEGsThese differ in frequency:

These differ in amplitude:

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Two Types of Sleep

1. Rapid Eye Movement (REM) Sleep• High-frequency, low amplitude brain-

wave activity• Systematic eye movements also occur

during REM• REM sleep occurs only after four

stages of non-REM (NREM) sleep

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Two Types of Sleep

2. NREM Sleep

– Increasing bodily relaxation– Slower EEG activity – Slower heart rate and respiration– More difficult to awaken as the four stages

of NREM sleep progress

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Sleep Stages

• Stages 1-4 Non-Rapid Eye Movement NREM)

• Light sleep. Low amp, mixed frequency. Easily awakened.

• Low amp. Relaxed deeper sleep.• Slower & high amp, low frequency. • Delta waves. Most difficult to awaken.• cycles 30-40 minutes. ( 1, 2, 3, 4, 3, 2,

1).

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REM Sleep

Very different from NREM sleepDifficult to distinguish from being awake on the basis

of physiological measuresPeople in REM are more difficult to awakenSleepwalking can not occur during REM sleep

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REM Sleep

Sleepers are more likely to report dreams when awakened from REM– Dreams do occur in other stages– Dreams are more vivid, long-lasting, and

detailed in REM sleep

REM Sleep sometimes called paradoxical sleep– Asleep but aroused– Small movements, but

paralyzed

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Sleep Deprivation

The longer a person is deprived of sleep, the greater the effect will be

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Sleep Deprivation

Chronic neglect of sleep is a common — and dangerous — problem

Can not study total sleep deprivation in humans for ethical reasons

However, rats totally deprived of sleep die

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Why do we sleep?

Because we are tired• Sleep has a restorative function• What is “restored” by sleep has not been

identified• Fatigue does not relate directly to sleep

– Bedridden people sleep as much as people on their feet all day

– Heavy exercise has little effect on need for sleep

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Repair & Restoration Theory

Makes repairs, restores digestion, removes waste, restore Norepi & dopamine

– Neural Basis: hypothalamus, forebrain, limbic system, brain stem. Exercises neurons.

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Evolution/Adaptation Theory

• Sleep requires less energy and keeps us out of danger– However, also seems to represent a non-

adaptive vulnerability– Hibernation: Decreases heart rate, brain

activity, conserve energy, metabolism, body temp

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Consolidation of Memory

Rehearse or preserve information learned though out the day

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Why do we sleep?

Obviously, no single theory fully explains why we sleep

– Sleep likely serves many functions– Several theories may be needed to explain it– Is there a sleep switch?– What makes people go to sleep and wake up?– Brain systems in the hypothalamus seem to

turn on sleeping and waking

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Sleep Disorders

Dysomnias: Predominantly disturbances in the amount, quality, or timing of sleep.

• NOT DUE TO DRUGS/ALCOHOL, MEDICATION OR GENERAL MEDICAL CONDITION

• DSM IV: Primary sleep disorders

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Narcolepsy

Sudden, uncontrollable episodes of sleep• People with narcolepsy experience muscle

weakness and fall uncontrollably asleep• Affects about 1 in 2,000 people• Has a genetic component• Effective drug treatment has been developed

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Sleep ApneaThe sleeper stops breathing, chokes, then

wakens briefly– Causes airflow to stop for at least 15 seconds– Loud snoring is a symptom – Can be life threatening– Associated with excessive daytime sleepiness, and

possibly memory loss, severe headaches, work-related injuries, SIDS

– Middle-aged, overweight men are at increased risk, but sleep apnea can even affect children

– Several effective therapies that keep the airway clear have been developed

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Insomnia

Difficulty in getting or staying asleep– Affects as many as 1 in 10 people– Insomniacs feel listless and tired during the day– Etiology: stress, anxiety, bad sleep habits,

psychopathology, age– More common in females– Behavioral treatments for insomnia include

relaxation training, thought restructuring, and self-hypnosis

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Hypersomnia

Excessive daytime sleepiness (for at least one month).- Falls asleep easily w/I 5 min. anytime- Common with obesity- Usually treated with stimulants, antidepressants.

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Circadian Rhythm Sleep Disorder

Mismatch between a person’s sleep wake pattern that is normal with his/her environment

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Parasomnias

Predominant disturbance is an abnormal behavioral or physiological event occurring during sleep

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Nightmare Disorder

• Formerly known as Dream Anxiety Disorder

• Bad dreams• Repeated awakenings from sleep with

detailed recall of frightening dreams.• Occurs during periods of REM

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Sleep Terror Disorder

Repeated episodes of abrupt awakenings fromsleep, usually with a panicky scream.Person is difficult to calm. No recollection the nextmorning.– Panic attacks that occur within 60–90 minutes

of falling asleep– They occur in NREM sleep, usually stage 4

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Sleep Terror Disorder

They are not nightmares– Sleep terrors are common in children

between ages 3 and 8– Cause is not well understood

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Sleep Walking Disorder

Repeated episodes of the person leaving bed & walking about w/o being conscious of the episode or later remembering it

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Sleep Walking DisorderRuns in familiesMore common in male childrenIt tends to decrease with ageSleepwalkers are in stage 4 sleep• In stage 4, motor portions of the brain are

active• Cognitive portions of the brain show little

activity in this stage– Person may be confused or startled

upon awakening

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III. Dreams and DreamingWhat is a Dream?A state of consciousness that occurs during sleep– Usually accompanied by vivid imagery– Associated with REM sleep– Dreams do occur during NREM sleep, but tend to be

less bizarre and contain less action imagery– Most people have dreams every night, but forget them

when they do not awaken during or soon after a dream

– More dreaming occurs during the second part of the night

– If we dream in 80% of REM periods, we dream three or four times a night

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Content of Dreams

– Dreams are mostly visual, and most are in color

– Most dreams focus on events and people a person comes into contact with

• Lucid dreaming occurs when one is aware of dreaming as it happens

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Dream Theories

Psychodynamic Views (Freud)• Dreams are the “royal road to the unconscious”• Freud believed dreams expressed desires,

wishes, and unfulfilled needs that exist in the unconscious

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Freud

Two types of contentManifest content• Consists of its overt story line, characters, and

settingLatent content• The deeper meaning, usually involving

symbolic ideas and wishes• These wishes might make the person

uncomfortable if expressed overtly

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Psychodynamic ViewsCarl Jung (1875 – 1961)

Three purposes of dreams:• An attempt to make sense of life’s tasks• To compensate for unconscious urges• To predict the future• Jung asserted dreams give expression to the

collective unconscious

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Carl Jung

Collective Unconscious

– Storehouse of primitive ideas and images inherited from our ancestors that is shared by all people

– These inherited ideas and images arearchetypes

– Representations of archetypes emerge as dreams

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Modern Approaches

Evidence from neuroscience seen as consistent with Freud’s view that dreams are expressions of the unconscious

Other see similarities with Native American philosophies

• Dreams as a route to empowerment and enlightenment

• Not seen as a separate state of consciousness, but as an altered reality

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Cognitive View

– Dreams reflect the same kind of thinking people do when they are awake

– Dreams express current wishes, desires, and issues the person is dealing with• Bilingual people dream about things

related to the language they used before sleeping

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IV. Controlling Consciousness

Biofeedback: Used to learn to control the activity of the system

Usually uses electronic equipment to measure the status of the system

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Hypnosis

A procedure during which a person’ssensations, perceptions, thoughts, orbehaviors change because ofsuggestions made to the person

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Hypnosis

First used as a treatment in the late 1700sby Franz Anton Mesmer

His work was discredited, and hypnosis fell into disfavor

Opinions are currently divided on the definition of hypnosis and its uses

James Braid: Father of modern hypnotism

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Is hypnosis an altered state of consciousness?

What do you think?

Yes• People can control physiological processes

while hypnotized that they normally can not• Support from PET scan studies

No• Some people are more suggestible than

others and are simply playing the role of a hypnotized person

• Support from studies in which participants are given motivating instructions

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Meditation

The use of a variety of techniques to produce astate of consciousness characterized by a senseof detachment These techniques include concentration, and

restriction of incoming stimuliHowever, meditation is not

relaxation• Relaxation is a by-

product of meditation

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V. Drugs and Altering Consciousness

• A drug is a chemical substance that alters biological or cognitive processes– Psychoactive drugs

• Alter behavior, thought, or perception• Therefore, can affect consciousness

• Properties of Drugs– Tolerance

• Higher and higher doses of a drug are needed to produce the same effect

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Properties of Drugs

• Dependence

– Occurs when the drug becomes part of the body’s functioning

• Withdrawal– Occurs when dependence has developed

and use of the drug is discontinued• Addiction

– A combination of tolerance and dependence

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Psychoactive Drugs

Must affect the nervous system – Most do so by crossing the blood–brain

barrier– Mechanism that prevents some

molecules from entering the brainOnce in the brain, drugs alter neural activity

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Sedatives/Hypnotics

A class of drugs that relax and calm a userCan induce sleep at higher dosesDepress neural activity

• Sometimes called sedatives or depressants

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Alcohol

Produces tolerance and dependenceCrosses blood–brain barrierDepresses brain activity• Dampens arousal• Decreases inhibitions• Slows reaction time

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Sedative–Hypnotics

TranquilizersBarbituratesOpiates

– Derived from the opium poppy– Opium, morphine, and heroin– Synthetic opiates

• Oxycodone (Oxycontin) and Hydrocodone (Vicodin)

• Chemically similar and have similar effects– Medical uses include pain relief

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Opiates

• In the brain, opiates occupy endorphinreceptors

– Neurochemicals manufactured in the brain– A natural mechanism of pain relief

• Opiates produce high tolerance and dependence in those who use them for pleasure

• Few people given opiates for pain relief in hospitals become addicted

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Stimulants

Drugs that increase alertness, reduce fatigue, and elevate mood states

Also tend to increase blood pressure, heart rate, metabolic rate, and decrease appetite

Act on the peripheral and central nervous systemsAll stimulants have tolerance and dependence

properties

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Stimulants

Caffeine

Nicotine– Addictive drug in tobacco– Does not have strong tolerance properties– Does lead to strong dependence and

unpleasant withdrawal symptoms

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Amphetamines

Also produce strong dependence and toleranceProduce arousal and alertnessSome people use amphetamines for their appetite-

suppressing effectsContinued use can cause altered thoughts

• Unfounded suspicion• Symptoms similar to schizophrenia

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Cocaine

Increases alertnessRapidly creates positive feelingsThese effects are short-lived, creating an urge to

use moreStrong potential for abuse

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Psychedelic Drugs

Affect mood, thought, memory, judgment, and perception

Sometimes called hallucinogensAlter perception and produce vivid imageryTheir impact varies widely depending on the user

and the particular drug

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LSD

Lysergic Acid Diethylamide– Produces altered visual and auditory

perception– Sometimes causes changes in time and

distance perception

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Ecstasy

Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)– Causes massive release of serotonin in the

brain• Produces feelings of well-being and

kinship• This action may be dangerous

– May lead to prolonged problems regulating serotonin levels

– May contribute to depression and memory problems

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Marijuana

The dried leaves and flowering tops of the cannabis sativa plant

Most widely used illicit drugReactions vary widely• Elation and well-being• Sleepiness• Paranoia and nausea• Marijuana affects judgment and coordination

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Marijuana

Produces neither tolerance nor dependence

– But, some people use marijuana to the point that it interferes with their lives

– Seems to create a “psychological”dependence in some

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Drug Use and Abuse

Legal or over-the-counter medications are often not thought of as drugs– Leads to underestimating hazards of

drugs such as alcohol and tobacco– Alcohol and tobacco present the biggest

drug problem in the United States• 51% of adolescents are current

drinkers and 27% are current smokers

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What is Substance Abuse?

When use leads to negative consequencesWhen drugs are overused and relied on to deal with

everyday lifeA person is a substance abuser if:• The person has used a substance for one month• Use has caused legal, personal, social, or

vocational problems• The person repeatedly uses the substance even

in situations when doing so is hazardous

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With Dependence

Withdrawal symptoms will occur if use is decreased or stopped

• Withdrawal symptoms are typically the opposite of a drug’s effects

• Typically unpleasant• Can be stopped by taking more drugs• Doing so is often considered addiction