Unit 4
States of Consciousness
Textbook Chapter 4
What is Consciousness?
Our awareness of ourselves and our environment
o Includes various cognitive processes, such as sleeping, dreaming,
concentrating, and decision making!
o Behaviorists rejected it completely but technology helped revive an interest in
it- Why??? (next slide)
Waking consciousness
o Encompasses thoughts, feelings, and perceptions that occur when we’re
awake and alert
Altered states of consciousness
o Mental state the differs noticeably from normal waking consciousness
• Naturally occurring:
o Sleep
o Dreaming
o Daydreaming
• Artificially induced altered:
o Hypnosis
o Meditation
o Drug-altered consciousness
Cognitive Neuroscience
• Defined as the branch of psychology that examines the
relationship between the brain and cognitive processes
o Can use fMRI to see what parts of the brain are active when we
are conscious
o Beginning to map out neural patterns to correspond with
conscious processes
• Dual processing
o We seem to have two neural systems at work
o One system is used for conscious processing, the other is for
unconscious processing (autopilot)- function simultaneously
o Writing and typing, Driving and talking- sometimes there is
interference
Part 1: Waking
Consciousness
Selective Attention
• Selective attention is the focusing of
conscious awareness on a particular
stimulus
o we are bombarded with tens of thousands of stimuli per
second
o we only focus on a small fraction of these stimuli
o Take a second to pay attention to how your shoes feel on
your feet or how your back feels against the chair
o Cocktail Party Phenomenon
• Selective attention and accidents
o Cell phones and driving?
o Cell phones and walking!?
Cindy thought she’d call Bambi while
taking Junior out for a stroll across Route
Selective Inattention
• Neisser (1979) Experiment
o When we focus on one thing, we “miss out” on others
o Inattentional blindness occurs when we fail to see things because we are focused
on other stimuli
• Change Blindness (Simons, 1996) occurs when we fail to notice a change in a
the environment when we are focused elsewhere (change deafness exists,
too!)
• Choice Blindness (Johansson, 2005) occurs when we fail to recognize the
choice we have made moments after doing so (and choice-choice
blindness…?)
• In some instances, a stimulus may demand our attention
(e.g. hearing our name in noisy room)
Pop out
• Something we don’t try to pay attention to catches
our attention.
Part 2: Altered States of
Consciousness
Daydreaming
• Effortless, spontaneous shifts in attention away from
the here and now- “a momentary escape”
• Urge surges every 90 minutes- peak between 12
and 2pm
• We spend half of our waking hours daydreaming
• Help us to reflect on our daily dilemmas and our
unfulfilled goals and wishes (relieve or increase
guilt/frustration?)
• TV, Daydreams, and Creativity
o TV increases daydreaming and decreases creativity… Why?
Sleep
• We may not be conscious, but our brain is active
• We continue to process information while we
sleep
• Technology has given researchers a greater
understanding of brain activity during sleep
Why Do We Sleep?
• Protective Value- Sleep to escape harm from
environment
• Restorative Value- Regenerate tissues/ neural
connections and “clean out” memories and
connections we don’t use
• Memory- reinforce what we’ve learned (NO ALLNIGHTERS!)
• Creativity- Solve problems in our sleep?!
• Growth- Growth hormone is released (more so
when we’re younger)
Biological Rhythms and
Sleep
• Circadian Rhythms
o 24-hour cycle of biological functioning
(circa-diem)
o Humans naturally wake with sunlight and
sleep when it gets dark
• Bright lights stimulate the SCN, which
tells the _______________ gland to
decrease production of melatonin and
the adrenal gland to produce
epinephrine (adrenaline)- So we’re
awake in the morning!!!!!!!!!
• Exposure to artificial light and the
circadian cycle?
• Blind people?
• Jet lag?
Sleep Stages: General
Trends
• Every 90-Minutes, we cycle through 5
sleep stages several times during the night
(Stages 1, 2, 3, 4, and REM)
• Researchers monitor brain waves, eye
movement, and facial muscle tension to
study these stages
• Generally, as the night progresses, we
experience more REM sleep
• Over a third of people report never
dreaming, though they do – they just do
not recall!
o When these sleepers are awakened during
REM, they can usually remember their
dreams
o We spend 20-25% of our sleeping time in
REM, dreaming away…
The Sleep Stages: Specifics
•
Stage 1 Sleep: slowed breathing, irregular,
larger brain waves (theta waves),
hallucinations (alarm clock becomes part
of dream), feelings of falling, paralysis,
“Hyponogogia”
•
Stage 2 Sleep: deeper sleep, more difficult
to awaken
•
Stage 3 Sleep: even deeper sleep, difficult
to awaken
•
Stage 4 Sleep: very deep sleep,
sleepwalking, sleep talking, bedwettingdecreases with age
•
REM: rapid brain waves, dreaming,
increased heart rate, cortical activity,
sexual arousal, “paradoxical sleep”Infants spend most time here
Alpha/Beta
Theta
Theta
Delta
Sleep Stages
REM is important, and when we are deprived of it, we may experience
REM Rebound. The loss of muscle tone/paralysis that occurs during REM
helps us avoid acting out our dreams. Sleepwalking and talking must
therefore occur during nREM in most people. REM decreases with age.
Sleep Deprivation
• Nearly half of all Americans are sleep
deprived!
• Sleep deprivation is linked with
concentration difficulties, irritability,
unhappiness, fatigue, illness, obesity,
hypertension, and poor motor
performance
• William Dement’s research on sleep:
“Sleep deprivation makes you
stupid!”
• If you need an alarm clock…if you
fall asleep in class…you are sleep
deprived!
• People who report getting enough
sleep also are more likely to report
feeling satisfied with their lives!
Sleep Disorders: Insomnia
1 in 10 adults; 1 in 4 older adults
Inability to fall asleep or remain asleep
Mostly temporary and result of stress
Role of VPN
o “shut offs” brain activity
o Degenerates with age
• Treatments
o Sleeping pills and alcohol?
o Exercise but not before bed
o Avoid caffeine and rich foods before bed;
milk for serotonin instead
o Unwind before bed – dim lights, no TV
o Keep regular sleep schedule with no naps
o Avoid stressors – looking at clock,
ruminating, etc.
•
•
•
•
Sleep Disorders:
Narcolepsy
• Sudden muscle paralysis – fall into sleep, and in
severe cases, REM
• Usually brief – 5 minutes
• Linked to lack of a neurotransmitter linked to
alertness that is produced in hypothalamus.
• Genetic
• Rusty the narcoleptic dog
Sleep Disorders: Sleep
Apnea
• Temporary cessation of breathing during the
night
• Puts great stress on heart
• Irritability, fatigue
• Linked with obesity
• Can be inherited
Sleep Disorders: Night
Terrors
• Uncontrollable
screaming and
arousal without the
ability to be
awakened
• Seen only in children
or adults on drugs
• Occur during stage 4
sleep typically, not
REM like nightmares
• Alfie's Night Terrors
Sleep Disorders:
Sleepwalking and Sleeptalking
• Stage 4 sleep
disorder where
individuals walk and
talk in sleep and do
not recall anything in
the morning
• Seems to run in
families
• Because children
experience longer
stage 4 sleep, it is
more common in
children
• Sleepwalkers
(somnambulists)usuall
y return to bed on
their own
Dreaming
• REM sleep- EVERYONE dreams!
• We spend 6 years of our lives in dreams!
• Average person has 4-5/night- write them down, talk
about them before going back to sleep.
• Manifest Content – actual story line of the dreams –
often reflect our experiences and preoccupations
(e.g. Tetris dreams)
• Sensory stimuli from the outside may intrude – alarm
clock, smells – indicating some level of awareness
even when unconscious
What are dreams?
• Freud’s Wish Fulfillment
o Interpretation of Dreams (1900)
o Manifest vs. Latent Content (i.e. Water =
Emotion)
o Dreams unleash (safely) our unconscious
o Lacks any scientific backing
o Example: Tidal waves often appear in our dreams when are under
a lot of pressure or when significant change is occurring. They may
be a an indication that we feel a little overwhelmed, that maybe
we fear we won’t be able to cope or adjust with what we see in
our own future
What are dreams?
• Information Processing/Cognitive Dev’t
o Manifest Content reflects our waking experiences (we
dream about our lives)
o Think about our day, sort out our experiences
o Improve and organize memories
o Does not explain dreams about places we have never
seen/things never experienced
o Correlation b/w sleep & grades
o Solve problems that happen throughout your day by
looking at them in a different way
What are dreams?
• Activation-Synthesis
o Hobson and McCarley’s Theory
o REM sleep causes neural activity that the brain
weaves into stories
o Dreams mean nothing
What are dreams?
• Physiological Function
o Preserve neural pathways we use, get rid of the ones we
don’t
o Infants with developing brains spent much time in REM
o Gives no explanation about the meaning of dreams
o “Mental Housekeeping”- clean out the dust in the brain
(info we don’t need) aka “reverse learning”
Lucid Dreaming
• A person is aware that they are dreaming
while the dream is in progress
• A.k.a. conscious dream.
• Dreamer can actively participate in and often
manipulate the imaginary experiences in the
dream environment.
• Lucid dreams can be extremely real and vivid
depending on a person's level of selfawareness during the lucid dream.
Do we need to dream?
• People deprived of REM sleep (and therefore in
overall sleep time) display irritability, fatigue,
increased reaction time, hallucinations
• “The Men Who Did Not Sleep”- Dement
o Cats and REM Deprivation
o 90 Hours- Decrease in sensory acuity, slowed reaction time, decreased
memory ability, hallucinations.
o 201 Hours- Peter Tripp- Mental agility tests were intolerable, visual
hallucinations, conspiring doctors (could’ve been partially caused by
stimulants)
o 11 days- Randy Gardner- decline in concentration, motivation,
perception, analytical abilities, memory, motor control, reaction time,
hallucinations, delusions, forgetting tasks, microsleeps
• Real Life: Exxon Valdez, Chernobyl, Challenger
Hypnosis
• Greek root: hypnos, meaning “sleep”
• Anton Mesmer (1732-1815) and “mesmerism”
as a cure
• Hypnosis is a systematic procedure used to
produce a heightened state of suggestibility
• Not everyone can be hypnotized
o Willingness to be hypnotized
o Those with good imagination and fantasy life, who
are able to concentrate, and who have a
favorable opinion of hypnosis
o Hypnotism
Power of Hypnosis…?
• Age Regression: acting like of
reliving one’s child-state
o Hypnosis may cause hypnotized
people to feel like children, but they
often still have adult abilities
o Memories that have been
“hypnotically refreshed” are often a
combination of fact and suggestion
• Acting against one’s will?
o People do not do this because they
are hypnotized
o They may perform unlikely acts simply
because anyone in authority can
induce people – hypnotized or nor – to
act against one’s will (Milgram,
Zimbardo)
Hypnosis as Therapy
• Hypnotherapists try to help clients heal themselves
o Posthypnotic suggestions: suggestion made to hypnotized
client that influence client’s later behavior
o Posthypnotic amnesia: client told they will not remember
anything that happened while they were hypnotized
o Hypnotherapy as a supplement to therapy has been
shown to be helpful – particularly in managing obesity, but
not for drugs, smoking or alcohol
• Hypnosis has been successful in pain management
o Hypnotized people can endure things from ice baths to
surgery without anesthesia!
o Hypnosis can be used for pain management in lieu of
addictive pain killers
o In Europe, the surgical use of hypnosis is on the rise
Meditation
• Techniques that attempt to focus
attention and promote relaxation
• Deliberate attempt to alter consciousness
• Concentrative Meditation attempts to
focus all attention on ONE thing: a word, a
sound, etc. so that the same information is
cycled through the nervous system
repeatedly.
o Zen: Focused breathing (Buddhism)
o Transcendental: Repetition of a specific,
secret mantra (Maharishi Mahesh Yogi,
1959- Hindu)(Description)
o Sufi: Frenzied dancing and prayer (e.g.
whirling dervishes)
• Can be used for relaxation, suppression of
sympathetic nervous system
Drugs and Consciousness
• Psychoactive drugs are chemicals
that influence the brain, alter
consciousness, and produce
psychological changes
• Recreational Use involves the selfadministration of drugs in ways that
deviate from medical or social
norms
• Drug Abuse – pattern of use that
diminishes fulfillment of
responsibilities at home, work, or
school
Results of Substance
Abuse
• Tolerance refers to a person’s progressively
decreasing responsiveness to a drug, leading to
increased amounts required to produce the same
effect
• Reverse Tolerance- Happens with certain substancesIn the immediate short term, the substance will have
more of an effect
• Withdrawal, the unpleasant physiological symptoms
(head ache, nausea, tremors) that follow
discontinued use may occur, indicating that…
• Physical Dependence has occurred
• Psychological dependence may also prompt the
individual to continue using the drug
• Addiction results when continued use is necessary to
prevent withdrawal
Do Now:
• Jayden is a graduate student who began drinking
alcohol in college. When he first started drinking, 34 shots of vodka would cause him to display signs of
intoxication. Now, however, he has to drink at least
a half of a bottle of alcohol to feel the effects.
When he ceases to drink, Jayden experiences
tremors, sweating, and slight nausea. It has come to
the point where he has been slacking on his
graduate studies and missing class. What are some
effects of drug use that Jayden is experiencing? Is
he dependent?
Dependence
(4 of the following 7 symptoms)
• Developing a
tolerance
• Experiencing
withdrawal
• Using substance for a
longer period or in
greater quantities than
intended
• Presence of a desire or
repeated attempts to
cut back on use
• Spending a lot of time
using/obtaining the
substance
• Reduction or cessation
of usual activities
• Continued use despite
awareness of drug’s
harmful effects
Depressants
aka “Sedative-Hypnotic Drugs”
• Depress the functioning of the CNS, reduce neural
activity and slow body functions
• Withdrawal: tremors, nausea, sweating, restlessness,
irritability, anxiety, possibly death (stroke, heart
attack)….Why???
• Long term: Addiction, Tolerance
Depressants: Alcohol
o Increases Serotonin, GABA, Dopamine, causing:
• mild euphoria, relaxation, lowered inhibitions
(misperceived as stimulant)
• Slowed neural processing (don’t drive!)
o Perception, motor processes, judgment, visual
acuity, cognitive functioning are impaired
• Memory disruption (“black outs”)**
Depressants: Alcohol
Behavioral tolerance?
Promiscuity/Driving and alcohol?
Highly physically and psychologically addictive
~14 million Americans abuse alcohol (NIAAA)
• 1 in 13 adults, or 7% of adult population
o Men are 3x more likely to become alcoholics
than women
o
o
o
o
• Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
Depressants: Barbiturates
• Sleeping pills and Tranquilizers
o Bind to GABA (inh.) receptors and block Glutamate (Exc.)
o Calming, sedative effect – reduce inhibitions
o e.g. Nembutal (Exorcism of Emily Rose)
Depressants:
Benzodiazepine
• Like Barbiturates, they enhance the effects of GABA
(inhibitory neurotransmitter)
• Used to treat anxiety, insomnia, agitation, seizures,
muscle spasms, alcohol withdrawal
• Tolerance and physical dependence result after
time
• Ex: Diazepam (Valium), Lorazepam, Xanax
Depressants: Propofol
• Increases effects of GABA
• Blocks Sodium Channel (Think back to neural firing!)
• Short term: mild euphoria, hallucinations, and
disinhibition; Used as sedative for anesthesia
Michael Jackson: This Is It
In conclusion….
• What are some reasons for why people use
depressants?
• How do they work? (Mechanisms and effects)
• Why are they so dangerous?
• Alcohol poisoning kills 79,000/year (College Stats)
• Some celebrities who have overdosed at least
partially as a result of depressants:
Marilyn Monroe:
Acute Barbiturate
Poisoning (Nembutal)
Jimi Hendrix:
Acute Barbiturate
Poisoning
Elvis Presley:
Sedatives
Anna Nicole Smith:
Clonazepam, Lorazepam,
Diazepam, Sleeping pills
Heath Ledger:
Diazepam
Stimulants
• Increase central nervous system activity and
speed up body functions; arousal response
Stimulants: Meth
• Methamphetamine (Speed)
o Euphoria, triggers release of dopamine
o Irritability, insomnia, seizures, depression,
violence, psychosis
o HIGHLY addictive
Stimulants: Nicotine
Euphoria, triggers epinephrine and norepinephrine release
Suppresses hunger and increases alertness
Stimulates release of dopamine: highly addictive!
Withdrawal leads to insomnia, anxiety, irritability and
weight gain
o Philip Morris- “Death saves $$”
o Depression, divorce, disabilities
o
o
o
o
Stimulants- Caffeine
• Caffeine
o Wakefulness, increased metabolism (3-4 hours)
o Withdrawal leads to fatigue and headaches
Stimulants- Cocaine
Fast euphoria – fast crash
Blocks _________ reuptake (pleasure)
HIGHLY addictive
Withdrawal leads to fatigue, irritability,
increased appetite, depression
• Blow (Johnny Depp)
•
•
•
•
Stimulants- Ecstasy
• Ecstasy (MDMA)
o Stimulant and mild hallucinogen
o Triggers release of serotonin and prevents its
reabsorption
o Destroys serotonin-producing neurons –
permanent depression
o Suppresses immune system
• Romeo and Juliet (4:30)
• Ecstasy and Death article
Though Ecstasy may not be as deadly in the long run as alcohol, cocaine or
heroin use, the drug "has the potential to cause death," said Washington state
toxicologist Barry Logan. "Some people are more sensitive to it than others.“
Marissa Ann Napier was one of them.
Doctors who treated her and the medical examiner who performed her autopsy
think the Ecstasy in Marissa's system -- .87 milligrams of MDMA per liter -- caused
seizures. The convulsions in turn caused labored and irregular breathing, which
eventually caused her oxygen-starved brain to shut down.
Marissa was brain dead, though her heart was just barely beating, when she
arrived at Harborview, said Shawn Skerrett, the doctor who treated her there.
She was unconscious and breathing ineffectively, Skerrett said. Her pupils had
become fixed and dilated. A pink frothy foam was coming out the side of her
mouth, consistent with pulmonary edema, or lungs that are filled with water.
"This was a horrible case, and not one you easily forget," said Skerrett.
Though Marissa's friends later told sheriff's deputies that she also had taken
hallucinogenic mushrooms at the party, medical examiners found only caffeine
and MDMA in her system.
Hallucinogens
• Drugs that alter perceptions of reality and
distort sensory and perceptual experiences
Hallucinogens: LSD
• Albert Hofmann, Timothy Leary
• Hours of mild euphoria, hallucinations, sensory
distortion, and “mind expansion”
• Non-addictive, but can produce “bad trips” and
flashbacks
• Can result in psychosis, memory loss, paranoia,
panic attacks, nightmares and aggression
• Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds
Marijuana
• THC, the active ingredient in
marijuana, produces
symptoms such as
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
Mild hallucinations
Euphoria
Enhanced sense of well-being
Relaxation
Distortion of time
Memory disruption
Brain shrinkage
Intensified sensory
experiences(munchies)
• Some users may experience
anxiety and paranoia
Narcotics
• Used to relieve pain and induce
sleep – also called opiates
• Opium, morphine, heroin
• Oxycodone
• Stimulate endorphin receptors to
produce euphoric numbness
• Highly addictive
• Withdrawal symptoms include
chills, sweating, anxiety,
diarrhea, spasms
Influences on Drug Use
• Biological Influences
o Hereditary tendencies: twin and adoptive studies
• Predisposed to addiction
o Dopamine deficiencies may provoke usage
• Psychological Influences
o Feeling life is meaningless
o People under stress or experiencing depression
• Social Influences
o Peer pressure
o Teenage rebellion and thrill-seeking
o Seeking social networks with similar interests can
perpetuate usage or help to quit
o Expectations, social setting, and cultural beliefs and values
can affect usage patterns
o Attitudes and beliefs about drug use may come from
family environment
Near Death Experiences
• Altered state of
consciousness
• Oxygen deprivation
induced “tunnel
vision”
• “hallucinatory
activity of the
brain?”
• No way to really
know…
Intervention
• http://www.hulu.com/search?query=intervention&s
t=0&fs=null
Analyze this!!
Describe the following dream using Freud’s Theory,
Information Processing Theory, and Activation Synthesis.
• As I was walking down the hallway of school, I noticed
that my best friend was wearing a red shirt and was
walking next to my ex. Feeling overwhelmed with
anger, I began running through the hall away from them,
but I didn’t seem to get any further. I suddenly came
across a large puddle of water that I slipped on.
• Later on in another dream, I found myself in a dark
parking garage being pursued by someone. I tried
running but the person pulled out a gun and shot in me
in the back. I tried calling out but it turns out the person
who shot me was a close friend, but I couldn’t tell who
specifically it was.