© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Chapter 5: States of Consciousness

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Consciousness The awareness of sensations, thoughts, and feelings being experienced at a given moment –Waking consciousness –Altered states of consciousness

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Stages of Sleep Stage 1 –The stage of transition between wakefulness and sleep that is characterized by relatively rapid, low voltage brain waves Stage 2 –Characterized by a slower, more regular wave pattern and momentary interruptions of sharply pointed spiky waves called sleep spindles

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Stages of Sleep Stage 3 –Waves become slower, with higher peaks and lower valleys in the wave pattern Stage 4 –Waves are even slower and more regular, and people are least responsive to outside stimulation

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. The Sleep Cycle

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. REM Sleep: The Paradox of Sleep Sleep that occupies a little over 20% of adult’s sleeping time and is characterized by Rapid eye movement Increased and irregular heart rate Increase in blood pressure Increase in breathing rate Erections in males Usually accompanied by dreams Person’s body is typically “paralyzed”

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. REM Sleep: The Paradox of Sleep

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. The Function and Meaning of Dreaming Unconscious wish fulfillment theory (Freud 1900) –Proposed that dreams represented unconscious wishes that dreamers desire to see fulfilled Latent content refers to the “disguised” meaning of the dream Manifest content refers to the actual story line of the dream

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. The Function and Meaning of Dreaming Dreams-for-survival theory –Dreams permit information that is critical for our daily survival to be reconsidered and reprocessed during sleep

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. The Function and Meaning of Dreaming Activations-synthesis theory –The brain produces random electrical energy during REM sleep that stimulates memories lodged in various portions of the brain which are put together to make a logical story line

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Sleep Disturbances Insomnia Sleep apnea Sudden infant death syndrome Narcolepsy Sleepwalking

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Therapy For Insomnia Exercise during the day Choose a regular bedtime Don’t use your bed as an all purpose area Avoid caffeine after lunch Drink a glass of warm milk at bedtime Avoid sleeping pills Try not to sleep Talk yourself into sleeping

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Circadian Rhythms: Life Cycles Biological processes that occur repeatedly on a 24-hour cycle –Seasonal affective disorder –Jet lag Daydreams

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Hypnosis –Originated by Franz Mesmer in the 18 th century, it is described as being in a trance-like state of heightened susceptibility to the suggestion of others Applications –Control pain, reduce smoking, treating psychological disorders, assisting law enforcement, improving athletic performance

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Meditation –A learned technique for refocusing attention that brings about an altered state of consciousness Mantra –Repetition of a word, a sound, or a syllable

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Drug Use: The Highs and Lows of Consciousness Psychoactive drugs –Influences a person’s emotions, perceptions, and behavior Addictive drugs –Produce a biological or psychological dependence in the user, and withdrawal from them leads to a craving for the drug that, in some cases, may be nearly irresistible –Biologically and psychological based

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Stimulants: Drug Highs Affect the central nervous system by causing a rise in heart rate, blood pressure, and muscular tension –Caffeine –Nicotine –cocaine –Amphetamines Methamphetamine– most dangerous street drug

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Stimulants: Drug Highs How much caffeine do you consume?

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Depressants: Drug Lows Impede the nervous system by causing neurons to fire more slowly –Alcohol Rohypnol Binge drinking –Barbiturates Nembutal Seconal Phenobarbital

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Depressants: Drug Lows

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Narcotics: Relieving Pain and Anxiety Increase relaxation and relieve pain and anxiety Heroin –Methadone treatment Morphine

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Hallucinogens: Psychedelic Drugs Drugs that are capable of producing hallucinations, or changes in the perceptual process –Marijuana –MDMA (Ecstasy) –LSD