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Chapter 4 Study Guide- William James- coined the idea of a ‘stream of consciousness’- Stream of consciousness- the mind as a continuous flow of changing sensations, images, thoughts and feelings- Awareness vs. Arousal- two parts of consciousnesso Awareness- includes awareness of the self and thoughts about one’s experienceso Arousal- the physiological state of being engaged with the environment- Prefrontal cortex- location where the subjective state of being conscious of what is going on, as occurring in the ‘global brain workspace’, where various brain areas are working in parallel- Theory of mind-individuals’ understanding that they and others think, feel, perceive and have private experiences. Essential to many valuable social capacities, such as empathy and sympathy- Levels of consciousnessLevel of Awareness Description ExamplesHigher-level Consciousness Involves controlled processing, in which individual actively focuses their errors on attaining a goal;the most alert state of consciousnessDoing math or science problem, preparing for a debateLower-Level Consciousness Includes automatic processing that requires little attention, as well as daydreamingDialing a cell phone number, typing as an expert, gazing at asunsetAltered states of ConsciousnessCan be produced by drugs, trauma, fatigue, possibly hypnosis and sensory deprivationFeeling the effects of alcohol or psychedelic drugs, undergoing hypnosesSubconscious awareness Can occur when people are awake, sleeping, and dreamingSleeping and dreamingNo awareness Freud’s belief that some unconscious thoughts are too laden with anxiety and other negative emotions for consciousness to admit themHaving unconscious thoughts, being knocked out by a blow us anesthetized - Controlled vs. Automatic Processeso Controlled- the most alert state of human consciousness, during which individuals actively focus their efforts towards a goalo Automatic- states of consciousness that require little attention and do not interfere with other ongoing activities- Circadian rhythm- daily behavioral or psychological cycles that involve the sleep/wake cycle, body temperature, blood pressure, and blood sugar level- Suprachiasmatic nucleus- also known as the SCN, a small brain structure that usesinput from the retina to synchronize its own rhythm with the daily cycle of light and dark; the body’s way of monitoring the change from day to night- Sleep’s effect on memory- sleep may play a role in the consolidation of memories, whether for specific information, skills, or emotional experiences. During sleep the cerebral cortex is free to conduct activities that strengthen memory associations, so that memories formed during recent waking hours can beintegrated into long-term memory storage. Lost sleep can lead to lost memories- Stages of sleepo Stage 1- drowsy sleep, person may experience sudden muscle movements,stage is characterized by theta waveso Stage 2- muscle activity decreases, person is no longer consciously aware of their environment, sudden increase in wave frequencyo Stage 3- characterized by delta waves typically occurring less than 50 percent of the timeo Stage 4- characterized by delta waves occurring more than 50 percent of the time. Stage when bedwetting, sleep walking, etc. occur. Hardest stage to awake sleepers fromo REM- “Stage 5 Sleep” ; an active stage of sleep during which dreaming occurs, rapid eye movement, plays a role in memory- Insomnia- the inability to sleep. May involve problems with falling asleep, waking up during the night, or waking up too early- Narcolepsy- sudden, overpowering urge to sleep. Immediately enter REM sleep rather than passing the earlier 4 stages of sleep first. Involves problems with the hypothalamus and amygdala- Sleep terrors- nightmare- frightening dreams that awaken a dreamer from REM sleep. Peak between ages of 3 and 6. A night terror involves sudden arousal from sleep and intense fear. Accompanied by physiological reactions . Less common than nightmares and don’t occur in REM sleep- Sleep apnea- sleep disorder when individuals stop breathing because the windpipefails to open or because the brain process involved in respiration fail to work properly. Most common among infants and elderly.- Freud’s theories about dreams-says that dreams are a key to our unconscious minds. He believed that dreams symbolize unconscious wishes and that analysis of dream symbols could uncover our hidden desireso Manifest content- the surface content of a dream containing dream symbols that disguise the dream’s true meaningo Latent content- a dream’s hidden content; it’s unconscious and true meaning- James’ theories about dreams- felt that dreams are our real world while we are sleeping- Cognitive theory of dreaming- proposes that we can understand dreaming by applying the same cognitive concepts we use in studying the waking mind. Rests on the idea that dreams are essentially subconscious cognitive processing. Does not involve ‘symbolism’ of dreams- Activation-Synthesis Theory of dreaming- theory that dreaming occurs when the cerebral cortex synthesizes neural-signals generated from activity in the lower brain and that dreams result from the brain’s attempts to find logic in random brain activity that occurs during sleep. Driven by internal stimuli- Psychoactive Drugs- drugs that act on the nervous system to alter consciousness, modify perceptions, and change moods- Tolerance- the need to take increasing amounts of a drug t get the same effect. - Physical vs. Psychological Dependenceo Physical- physiological need for a drug that causes unpleasant withdrawal symptoms such as physical pain and a craving for the drug when it is discontinued. o Psychological- strong desire to repeat the use of a drug for emotional reasons, such as a feeling of well-being and reduction of stress- Dopamine- helps to control voluntary movement and affects sleep, mood, attention, learning and the ability to recognize rewards in an environment. Stimulant drugs produce excitement, alertness, elevated mood, decreased fatigue, and sometimes increased motor activity by activating dopamine receptors- Brain’s reward pathway- located in the VTA and Nac. Drugs increase the activity of the reward pathway by increasing dopamine transmission- Binge drinking – having five or more drinks in a row. Often increases during the first two years of college- Alcoholism-disorder that involves long-term, repeated, uncontrolled,


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GSU PSYC 1101 - Chapter 4

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