Lecture Overview
• Understanding Consciousness
• Sleep & Dreams
• Psychoactive Drugs
• Healthier Ways to Alter Consciousness
© John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2010
Understanding Consciousness
• Consciousness: an organism’s awareness of
its own self & surroundings
• Alternate States of Consciousness (ASCs):
mental states, other than ordinary waking
consciousness, found during sleep,
dreaming, psychoactive drug use, hypnosis,
etc.
© John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2010
© John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2010
Sleep & Dreams: Circadian Rhythms
• Circadian Rhythms: biological changes
occurring on a 24-hour cycle
– Our energy level, mood, learning, & alertness all
vary throughout the day.
– Sections of the hypothalamus called the
suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) & the pineal gland
regulate these changes.
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Brain’s Role in Circadian Rhythms
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Sleep & Dreams:
Disrupted Circadian Rhythms
• Disrupted circadian rhythms from shift
work, jet lag, & sleep deprivation may
cause alterations in mood,
concentration, motivation, attention, &
motor skills.
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Sleep & Dreams: Stages of Sleep
(NREM Sleep)
• NREM sleep
(Non-RapidEye-Movement):
– includes Stages 1 through 4
– involves lower-frequency brain waves,
decreased pulse & breathing,& occasional,
simple dreams
– serves a biological need (NREM needs met
before REM needs)
© John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2010
Sleep & Dreams: Stages of Sleep
(REM Sleep)
• REM (Rapid-Eye-Movement) Sleep:
– light sleep (also called paradoxical sleep)
– also known as paradoxical sleep
– involves high-frequency brain waves, increased
pulse & breathing, large muscles
– serves a biological need
– may play a role in learning & consolidating new
memories
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Sleep graphed for 3 minutes
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Sleep & Dreams:
Stages of Sleep in a Typical Night
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© John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2010
Pause & Reflect:
Assessment
•
Can you label
the three key
areas of the
brain involved in
circadian
rhythms?
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Pause & Reflect:
Assessment
•
Judging by the
cat’s posture,
which cat is in
NREM sleep and
which is in REM
sleep?
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Sleep & Dreams: Research
• The EEG,
EOG, & EMG
are common
tools for
sleep
research.
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Sleep & Dreams:
Stages of Sleep & Brain Waves
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Sleep & Dreams: Over the Life Span
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Sleep & Dreams: Average Daily Hours of
Sleep for Different Mammals
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Sleep & Dreams: Why Do We Sleep?
• Repair/Restoration Theory: sleep helps
us recuperate from daily activities
• Evolutionary/Circadian Theory: sleep
evolved to conserve energy & as
protection from predators
© John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2010
Sleep & Dreams: Why Do We Dream?
• Psychoanalytic Theory: dreams are disguised symbols
(manifest versus latent content) of repressed desires
& anxieties
• Biological View (activation-synthesis hypothesis):
dreams are simple by-products of random
stimulation of brain cells
• Cognitive View: dreams are a type of information
processing
© John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2010
Sleep & Dreams: Sleep Disorders
Two major categories:
1. Dyssomnias: problems in amount,
timing, & quality of sleep
2. Parasomnias: abnormal disturbances
during sleep
© John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2010
Sleep & Dreams:
Three Forms of Dyssomnias
• Insomnia: persistent
problems
in falling
asleep, staying
asleep,
or awakening too
early
• Sleep Apnea: repeated interruption of
breathing during sleep
• Narcolepsy: sudden & irresistible onsets of
sleep during normal waking hours
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Sleep & Dreams: Narcolepsy in Dogs
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Sleep & Dreams: Two Forms of
Parasomnias
• Nightmares: anxiety-arousing dreams occurring
near the end of sleep, during REM sleep
• Night Terrors: abrupt awakenings from NREM
sleep accompanied by intense physiological
arousal & feelings of panic
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Psychoactive Drugs
• Psychoactive Drugs: chemicals that
change conscious awareness, mood, or
perception
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Psychoactive Drugs:
Important Terms
•
Drug Abuse: drug taking that causes
emotional or physical harm to the individual
or others
•
Addiction: compulsion to use a specific drug
or to engage in a certain activity
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Psychoactive Drugs:
Important
Terms (Continued)
• Psychological Dependence: desire or
craving to achieve effects produced by
drug
• Physical Dependence: changes in bodily
processes that make a drug necessary
for minimal functioning
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Psychoactive Drugs:
Important Terms (Continued)
• Withdrawal: discomfort & distress
experienced after stopping the use of
addictive drugs
• Tolerance: bodily adjustment to higher
& higher levels of a drug leading to
decreased sensitivity
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Psychoactive Drugs: How Drugs Work
• Agonist Drug: mimics a neurotransmitter’s
effect
• Antagonist Drug: blocks normal
neurotransmitter functioning
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Drug effects (cont.)
• Indirect Agonist : mimics neurotransmitter
pre-synaptically
• Direct Agonist: mimics neurotransmitter postsynaptically
• Indirect Antagonist: blocks neurotransmitter
pre-synaptically
• Direct Antatgonist: blocks neurotransmitter
post-synaptically
© John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2010
How Psychoactive Drugs Work
(Agonists vs. Antagonists)
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© John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2010
Psychoactive Drugs: Four Categories
1.
Depressants: act
on the CNS to
suppress bodily
processes (e.g.,
alcohol, valium)
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© John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2010
Psychoactive Drugs:
Depressants (Continued)
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Psychoactive Drugs: Stimulants
2. Stimulants:
act on the CNS
to increase
bodily processes
(e.g., caffeine,
nicotine,
cocaine)
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© John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2010
Psychoactive Drugs: Opiates
3. Opiates: act as an
analgesic or pain
reliever (e.g.,
morphine, heroin)
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Psychoactive Drugs: Hallucinogens
4. Hallucinogens:
produce sensory or
perceptual
distortions called
hallucinations
(e.g., LSD,
marijuana)
© John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2010
Psychology at Work: Club Drug Alert!
• Popular “Club Drugs”:
– Date Rape Drug (Rohypnol)
– MDMA (Ecstasy)
– GHB (Gamma-Hydroxybutyrate)
– Special K (Ketamine)
– Crystal Meth (Methamphetamine)
– LSD (Lysergic Acid Diethylamide)
© John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2010
Other Ways to Alter Consciousness
• Meditation: group of
techniques designed
to refocus attention,
block out all
distractions, &
produce an ASC
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Healthier Ways to Alter Consciousness
• Hypnosis:
trancelike state
of heightened
suggestibility,
deep relaxation,
& intense focus
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Healthier Ways to Alter Consciousness
• Hypnosis is used to treat chronic
pain, severe burns, dentistry,
childbirth, psychotherapy.
© John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2010