Consciousness

Chapter 5

Consciousness• Awareness of things both inside out outside

ourselves• Early psychologists said that consciousness

shouldn’t be studied b/c it can’t be measured• Today study it linked with measurable behavior

(talking, reading, walking) and brain waves• Psychological construct, like emotion & intelligence– Can’t be touched, seen, directly measured

• Awareness: 3 types: sensory, direct inner awareness, sense of self

Consciousness• Awareness: 3 types– 1. Sensory: sight, sound, smell, environemnt, aware of

things outside of yourself• Selective Attention: focusing on a particular stimulus (ME

TALKING! Music, TV, Etc.)• More conscious of sudden changes, unusual stimuli, intense

stimuli– 2. Direct Inner Awareness: imagination of past

experiences, emotions, feelings• You don’t have to actually be doing it b/c you remember it

– 3. Sense of Self: unique individuals, separate from others & surroundings

Consciousness• Levels of consciousness: – 1. Preconscious Level: not in your awareness now, but

you can recall them • What did you do yesterday after school?

– 2. Unconscious Level: sub conscious also, unavailable to awareness under most circumstances, hidden from conscious mind• Trouble getting ready for school, really don’t want to go…• Freud: Certain memories & painful, some impulses

(aggression) are unacceptable, so we use defense mechanisms to push them out of our consciousness & avoid anxiety, guilt, shame

Consciousness• Freud’s Iceberg Theory of Consciousness:– 1. Conscious level: perceptions & thoughts– 2. Preconscious level: memories & stored knowledge– 3.: Unconscious level:• A: Selfish Needs, Violent Motives• B. Immoral Urges, Fears• C. Irrational Wishes, Shameful Experiences, Unacceptable

Desires

Consciousness– 3. Nonconscious Level: finger nails & hair growing,

pupils change sizes– 4. Altered States of Consciousness: sense of self or

sense of world changes• Sleep, meditation, biofeedback, hypnosis, drugs

Sleep & Dreams• Circadian Rhythms: biological clocks that govern

living plants, animals & people– Babies will be sleepy about every 4 hours– Regulates body temperature, blood pressure, sleepiness,

wakefulness– Why people going to night shift have a tough time– W/o clocks, tv, computers, etc. our rhythms are about 25

hours

Sleep & Dreams• Sleep Stages: – EEG measures brainwaves and changes if we are awake, relaxed or

sleeping– Beta Waves: awake & alert, short & quick– Drowsy: slow from beta to alpha, slower

• Relaxed state: flashes of color, feeling of falling• Followed by sleep

– Stage 1: lightest sleep• Brain waves change from alpha to theta waves, slower• Brief images like photographs• Awakened will not recall them or feel like we haven’t slept at all• 30-40 minute max, then move into stage 2, then 3, then 4

– Stage 4: deepest sleep• Great difficulty waking someone• Stay about ½ hour go back, 3, 2, 1, very fast!

Sleep & Dreams– REM Sleep: Rapid Eye-Movement Sleep: our eyes move

rapidly under our eye lids• Breathe irregularly, blood pressure rises, heart beat increases,

brain waves similar to stage 1 sleep• The rest is NREM b/c eyes don’t move as much

• Most people go through these stages 5x, each time is one cycle– As night goes on REM sleep b/c longer

Sleep & Dreams• Importance of Sleep & Dreams:– Revive tired body– Built up resistance to infection– Recover from stress– Consolidate memory from previous day– Study: 11 days no sleep: irritable, couldn’t focus eyes,

speech problems, memory lapses• Recovery: slept 6.5 hours extra 1st 3 days, 4th 2.5 extra

– Study deprives of REM sleep: will catch up on it later, learn more slowly, forget more rapidly, help brain development & exercise brain cells

Sleep & Dreams• Dreams: – REM Sleep is when most dreams occur– Black & white or in color– Realistic or disorganized & less real– During REM sleep dreams have clear imagery & plots

that make sense– NREM vague plots & fleeting images– Most dreams are in real time– Often have trouble remembering details when moving to

other stages of consciouness

Sleep & Dreams• Freud’s View: “A dream is a wish your heart makes…”– Dreams reflect unconscious wishes & urges– Some may be unacceptable or painful– People dream in symbols

• decoding the symbols help understand meaning• Symbols help hide painful material can’t deal with consciously

• Biopsychological Approach: – Dreams begin with biological not psychological activity– Neurons fire in parts of the brain that control movement & vision

• Random, brain tries to make sense, weaves story, dream– Explains why we dream about things that happened that day,

concerns, problems we have– No real rule for interpreting

Sleep Problems• Insomnia: the inability to sleep– Difficulty falling asleep, racing thoughts before bedtime• Gets worse with stress & anxiety

– Can make it worse by trying to get to sleep, backfires & causes tension

– Sleeping pills overrated– Psychologists recommend:• Tense muscles 1 at a time, then relax• Avoid worrying in bed, get up if it persists• Regular daily & nightly routine• Pleasant images

– Only problem if continues for a while

Sleep Problems• Nightmare vs. Night Terror:– Nightmare: originally thought to be work of demons, now know

REM sleep dreams• Some studies show 2 nightmares a month• More common near upsetting events, when depressed or anxious

– Night Terrors: sleep terrors, similar to but more severe than nightmares• Hearts racing, gasp for air, sit up, talk incoherently, thrash about, don’t

fully wake, recall some in morning• More likely in stages 3,4 and nightmares usually REM

• Night terrors 1st few sleep cycles, nightmares more toward end of sleep

• Night terrors more common in young children, show immature nervous system

Sleep Problems• Sleep walking: roam around in sleep, talk, seem awake, but

not– Don’t remember– Can become violent or upset if awakened– More prone to accidents, so should be supervised– Usually outgrow it

• Sleep Apnea: breathing interruption that occurs while sleeping– Don’t automatically start breathing till wake up or gasp for air, then

fall asleep again– Usually don’t totally awaken, probably unaware– Feel tired during day b/c interrupts sleep cycle– Could be seen with snoring– About 10 million have it, more common if obese– Can lead to high blood pressure, heart attacks, stroke

Sleep Problems• Narcolepsy: rare sleep problem when people

suddenly fall asleep, no matter where they are or what time it is– Enter directly into REM sleep– Drug therapy & frequent naps can treat it– Usually awaken refreshed– Can be dangerous– Unknown cause, likely an inherited genetic disorder

Altered State of Consciousness• Hypnosis pg. 141– Method for altering consciousness during which people

respond to suggestions and behave as though they are in a trance

– Some question it, if you don’t believe it won’t work– Some can occur w/o hypnosis, when comparing brain waves– Began w/ Franz Mesmer in 1700’s, universe connected by

magnetism so passed magnets over body, went into trance, awoke feeling better, no scientific basis

– Focus on something specific, arms & legs become warn, heavy relaxed, becoming sleepy or falling asleep• Hypnotic suggestibility : more easily to focus• Some of us have selected conscious issues

Altered States of Consciousness– Freud: allowed unconscious to lose control, liked having

hypnotist in control– Role Theory: people are playing a part as if they are in a play,

feel like what they are doing is real– Thought to affect memory, pain, stopping habits, calm patients,

anxiety, overcome fear– Jog memory of witness to crime, proven

• Has more to do with memory of events than trance– Pain Prevention: dentists, surgery– Bad Habits: posthypnotic suggestion: give instructions during

hypnosis that are to be carried out after the session has ended• Smoking or overeating• Link habit with something negative• Can make it positive, you have will power to resist

Drugs & Consciousness• Addiction: drug means that a person uses it for a

while the body craves it to feel normal• Depressants: slow down the nervous system– Alcohol• Intoxication: drunkeness, slurs speech, blurs vision, makes

them clumsy, difficult to concentrate, affects judgement, hard time writing, less attention to consequences, takes away inhibitions• Withdrawl: trembling, tension, seizure

– Problems: Liver, heart, cancer

Drugs & Consciousness– Narcotics: • Addictive depressants that have been used to relieve pain,

induce sleep, etc.• Morphine: Civil War, deaden pain from wounds, addiction was

soldiers disease• Heroin: hero to cure addiction to morphine, made people feel

heroic, now illegal, intense feeling of pleasure– Can cause depression, impair judgment & memory, drowsiness, stupor – Depresses respiratory system, leads to loss of consciousness, coma,

death– Intravenously, injected in vein, AIDS risk

• Withdrawls: tremors, cramps, chills, rapid heartbeat, insomnia, vomiting, diarrhea

Drugs & Consciousness• Stimulants: increase activity of the nervous system,

including heart rate and breathing rate– Nicotine: tobacco, smoke or chew

• Releases adrenaline, causes heart rate to increase• May make people feel more alert & attentive, but does not help solve

complex tasks• Reduces appetite, raises rate at which food converts to energy• Many quitters experience weight gain• As addictive as heroin• Withdrawls: nervousness, drowsiness, insomnia, dizziness, cramps

heart palpitations, tremors, sweating• Health Risks: lung disease, cancer, low birth weight, miscarriage,

premature birth• 2nd hand smoke: breathing problems & other illnesses• 3rd hand smoke: lingers on clothing & in upholstry

Drugs & Consciousness• Stimulants Continued– Amphetamines: helps people stay awake, reduces

appetite, colorless liquid• Used in WWII to keep them awake & alert during the night• Speed or uppers• Feelings of pleasure in high doses• Pill, injected in veins• Crash after long period of high, sleep or depression, even

suicide• Too much: restlessness, insomnia, loss of appetite, irritability• Hallucinations: perception of object or sound that seems to be

real but is not, bugs crawling on them is common• Delusions: false ideas that seem real, you can fly, being chased

Drugs & Consciousness• Stimulants Continued

• Methamphetamine, meth, crystal meth, ice?: smoked, injected or snorted– Euphoria, loss of appetite, increased alertness, hyperactivity, false sense of

confidence, risky behavior– Health Issues: gum damage, tooth decay “meth mouth,” permanent brain,

kidney, and liver damage, death– Extremely addictive, tolerance develops quickly– Labs are dangerous, poisonous gas, toxic chemicals, highly explosive

• Cocaine: stimulant from leaves of the coca plant, in South America– Feelings of pleasure, reduction in hunger, deadens pain, boosts confidence– Raises blood pressure, decreases oxygen, speeds up heart, serious heart– Used as pain killer since 1800’s, Freud used it to overcome depression but

knew dangerous & addictive– Overdoses: restlessness, insomnia, trembling, nausea, headaches,

convulsions, hallucinations, delusions, death– Crack, more powerful & dangerous b/c impure, extra strain on heart

Drugs & Consciousness• Hallucinogens: drugs that produce hallucinations– May also cause relaxation, feelings of pleasure, or feeling of

panic– Marijuana: leaves of cannabis sativa plan, grows wild in many

parts of world• Feelings of relaxation & mild hallucinations• Hashish or hash is from the sticky part of the plant and is stronger than

marijuana– Apparently it burns differently, like oily?

• Impairs perception & coordination, makes it difficult to operate machines, impairs memory & learning, can cause anxiety & confusion, can increase heart rate to 140-150 beats per minute, can raise blood pressure, visual hallucinations

• Affects consciousness, people think time passes more slowly than usual, increased consciousness of bodily sensations

• Some say it is frightening, confused, lose sense of self, rapid heart beat

Drugs & Consciousness• Hallucinogens Continued:

– LSD: lysergic acid diethylamide, acid• Much stronger than marijuana, intense hallucinations, some very bizarre• Some say it expands their consciousness & opens a new world• Effects are not predictable, frightening, panic, confusion, maybe accidentally hurt

themselves, accidental suicide• Lasting side effects: memory loss, violent outbursts, nightmares, panic

– Mushrooms: compound psilocybin, similar to LSD• Eaten raw or with food• Alters sight, sound, taste, smell & touch• Effects: confusion, anxiety, panic, flashbacks, death

– Peyote: cactus plant native to Mexico, alkaloid mescaline in cactus• Religious rituals of Indian groups in southwest US & Mexico

– Ecstasy: club drug or X• Popular at clubs or parties b/c pill & easy to take• Hallucinations, increased energy, loss of judgment• Side effects: nausea & high blood pressure

Drugs & Consciousness• Treatment depends on type of drug– Detoxification: removal of harmful substance from body,

weans addict off drug while restoring health• Common for alcohol & narcotics

– Maintenance: narcotics addicts, • Controlled amounts of drug or less addictive substitute• Never completely free of drug, controversial

– Counseling: individually or a group– Support Groups: people have shared common

experiences, concerns or problems• Emotional & moral support• AA, Narcotics Anonymous