Consciousness Chapter 3 Consciousness Everything of which we are aware at any given time internal and external o Thoughts o Feelings o Sensations o External stimuli Altered State of Consciousness o Changes in awareness produced by o Sleep o Meditation o Hypnosis o Drugs The Influences of Circadian Rhythms o Circadian Rhythm regular fluctuation from high to low points of certain bodily functions and behaviors follows roughly about a 24 hour cycle means certain functions are optimal at certain times of day and are not optimal at others Affects functions of Blood pressure slower at night Heart rate slower at night Appetite faster during day Secretion of hormones and digestive enzymes Sensory acuity Elimination Body s response to medication o o o o o o o o o Understanding of sleep increased by the study of Sleep o Brain waves o Eye movements o Chin muscle tension o Heart rate o Respiration rate o Two types of sleep REM and NON REM NREM Stage 1 lightest sleep not drowsy Hypnogogic state myoclonic startle awake Stage 2 somewhat more deeply asleep mid sleep sleep spindles occur K complex o Non REM Sleep Cycles o feeling of falling o occurs o are slow and regular o at lowest points in the 24 hour period sleep walking can occur here Stage 4 deepest sleep delta waves reach nearly 100 blood pressure and brain activity Stage 3 deep sleep delta waves 20 slow wave deep sleep begins heart and breathing o REM Sleep Rapid Eye Movement REM sleep called active sleep or paradoxical sleep and o also dream sleep 20 25 of a night s sleep occurs here o leads to increases in heart rate blood pressure respiration Internally intense brain activity brain temperature rises rapidly epinephrine release o Externally body appears calm large muscles become paralyzed eyes dart around dreaming occurs in 8 of people o During REM sleep the brain conducts consolidation of learning and memory i e why all night studying does not work perceptual or motor skills increase after 8 10 hours of sleep The true function of REM sleep is a mystery Sleep Deprivation Deprivation of sleep causes Difficulty concentrating General irritability Decreases cognitive functioning Impairs learning Long term health effects immune system impairment Technically could be fatal i e animal study on rats who were sleep deprived all died o o o o o o o within a few weeks because of infection due to lack of sleep o Causes many accidents and fatalities REM Rebound After a period of sleep deprivation o Intensity and length of REM sleep increase o Often associated with unpleasant dreams or nightmares o Alcohol amphetamines cocaine and LSD use suppress REM sleep and results in REM rebound Variations in Sleep roughly 8 hours needed for a typical human Infants and young children sleep the most 16 hours a day have the highest amount of o REM and slow wave sleep o Ages 6 puberty sleep and awake same time daily most consistent Adolescents sleep patterns are influenced by schedules need sleep for brain growth o poor sleep may contribute to poor school performance o Restorative theory sleep serves the function of restoring the body and mind Survival theory sleep evolved to keep humans out of harm s way during the dark of the o night Why do we sleep Dreams o REM Dream o Continually dreaming during REM sleep o REM dreams have story like qualities o More vivid visual and emotional than NREM dreams more likely to remember these dreams o NREM Dream o Less frequent than REM dreams o Less memorable than REM dreams o Lucid Dreams o A dream where the individual is aware of dreaming and whose content the individual is often able to influence while dreaming sometimes can get to the point where you can change and influence your dreams direct what you dream about you are in control Lucid Dreams Next time you wake up during a dream try the following the steps to see if you can engage in lucid dreaming o Relax o Close your eyes and focus on an imaginary spot in your field of vision o Focus on your intention to have a lucid dream o Tell yourself that you re going to dream about whatever you want o Imagine yourself in a dream of the type you want to have o Repeat the steps until you fall asleep Interpreting Dreams 1 Freudian Interpretation believed dreams satisfy unconscious sexual and aggressive desires and so must be disguised o Manifest Content the content of a dream as recalled by the dreamer what happened the plot o Example 1 woman dreams she is enjoying a train ride It is a beautiful day Suddenly it turns dark and the train enters a tunnel The woman becomes afraid o Example 2 man dreams that he is a gladiator He carries a sword and he is searching for something He sees a large golden egg He wants the egg and tried to get it He runs forward with his sword chases the egg it rolls away and he is angry and frustrated o Latent Content the underlying meaning of the dream hidden symbols and images that have meaning o Example 1 Freud tells the woman that the train represents the penis and the tunnel represents her vagina and she is afraid of sexual intercourse o Example 2 the gladiator represents his manhood the sword is his penis and the egg is his mother and his desire to return safely to her womb The egg also represents sexual desires he feels for his mother and he is angry that he cannot express these desires or return to the womb 2 Problem Focused Interpretation o Dreams are an expression of current ongoing concerns and can resolve or clarify current problems o Relate images in dream to things in your real life o Example 1 college student dreams that the car she just bought has been stole and she cannot find it She is very upset and afraid o Interpretation car represents her new found adult responsibilities She is afraid that she cannot handle her new responsibilities and they will be taken from her o Example 2 man dreams that he is a gladiator He carries a sword and he is searching for something He sees a large golden egg He wants the egg and tried to get it He runs forward with his sword chases the egg it rolls away and he is angry and frustrated o Interpretation man just had a baby with his wife The egg represents his baby and his desire to protect it He is also searching for his wife because she is not as focused on him anymore 3 Activation Synthesis Hypothesis o Dreams are the brain s attempt to make sense of the random firing of brain cells during sleep o People impose meaning on the random mental activity o Even if we impose meaning on a dream does that mean it doesn
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