Consciousness
Ch 3
Forms of Consciousness
AP Photo/ Ricardo Mazalan
Stuart Franklin/ Magnum Photos
Christine Brune
Bill Ling/ Digital Vision/ Getty Images
Consciousness, modern psychologists believe, is
an awareness of ourselves and our environment.
Selective Attention
http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/
Take this attention test
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJG69
8U2Mvo
Daniel Simons, University of Illinois
Inattentional Blindness
Another attention test
http://blogs.howstuffworks.com/2009/12/14/
how-change-blindness-works-simpletests-show-that-humans-tend-to-beclueless-about-very-large-changes/
Change Blindness
Change blindness is a form of inattentional
blindness
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBPG_O
BgTWg
© 1998 Psychonomic Society Inc. Image provided courtesy of Daniel J. Simmons.
Cocktail-party phenomenon
Sleep & Dreams
Biological Rhythms and Sleep
Circadian Rhythms occur on a 24-hour cycle and
include sleep and wakefulness.
What other cues can affect our circadian rhythm?
Measuring Sleep
Hank Morgan/ Rainbow
Sleep Stages
REM Sleep
A person during this sleep exhibits
Rapid Eye Movements (REM)
and reports vivid dreams.
Sleep cycles
How much sleep do we need?
Sleep Deprivation
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Fatigue.
Impaired concentration.
Emotional irritability.
Depressed immune system.
Greater vulnerability to
disease.
6. Impaired creativity.
7. Impaired physical strength and
endurance.
Why do we need sleep?
1.
2.
3.
4.
Sleep Protects
Sleep Helps us Recover
Sleep Helps us Remember
Sleep may play a role in the growth process
Sleep Disorders
1. Insomnia
How can we sleep better?
2. Narcolepsy
3. Sleep apnea
Sleep Disorders
Children are most prone to:
 Night terrors
 Sleepwalking
 Sleeptalking
The Function and Meaning of
Dreams
•
•
•
•
Unconscious Wish Fulfillment Theory
Dreams-for-Survival Theory
Activation-Synthesis Theory
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/body/stickgol
d-dreams.html
Review questions
Carrie is in a pretty deep stage of
sleep? Which one of these stages is
she in?
A.
B.
C.
D.
stage 1
stage 2
stage 3
REM
Alex complains of chronic insomnia. He
has had a medical check-up and is
healthy, yet he has difficulty falling
asleep. What is the best advice you can
give in this situation?
A. Have a glass of wine right before bedtime.
B. Go to the doctor and get a prescription for sleeping
pills.
C. Go to bed at the same time every evening and wake
up at the same time in the morning.
D. Do some strenuous exercise right before going to
bed.
Your young child wakes up a few nights per
month seemingly in a panic. She sits up in
bed screaming and crying. You rush in to
calm her and to see what is happening. The
child usually returns to sleep and doesn’t
remember this happening at all. What is the
best explanation for this behavior?
A. She may be exhibiting symptoms of early onset
epilepsy.
B. She has excessive anxiety during the day.
C. She has too much sugar in her diet.
D. She is probably experiencing night terrors, a
fairly common event in early childhood.