Lecture 6 - Consciousness PDF

Lecture 6 Consciousness Consciousness Consciousness: person’s subjective experience of the world and the mind Phenomenology: how things seem to the conscious person Mysteries of Consciousness The Problem of other minds: fundamental difficulty we have in perceiving the consciousness of o...

Lecture 6 Consciousness Consciousness Consciousness: person’s subjective experience of the world and the mind Phenomenology: how things seem to the conscious person Mysteries of Consciousness The Problem of other minds: fundamental difficulty we have in perceiving the consciousness of others People judge minds according to Capacity for experience Capacity for The Mind–body problem: Includes how the mind is related to the brain and body Descartes: pineal gland Contemporary view: mental events are intimately tied to brain events Four Basic Principles Consciousness has: 1. Intentionality: being directed toward an object 2. Unity: resistance to division 3. Selectivity: capacity to include some objects but not others 4. Transience: has tendency to change Levels of Consciousness Consciousness ranges in levels from minimal consciousness to full consciousness to self-consciousness. Minimal consciousness Full consciousness Self-consciousness Suppressing Thoughts Mental control: attempt to change conscious states of mind Thought suppression: conscious avoidance of a thought Rebound effect of thought suppression: tendency of a thought to return to consciousness with greater frequency following suppression The Unconscious Mind  Dynamic unconscious: active system encompassing a lifetime of hidden memories, the person’s deepest instincts and desires, and the Freud person’s inner struggle to control these forces; described by Freud Freudian slips found in speech Repression: mental process that removes unacceptable thoughts and memories from consciousness and keeps them in the unconscious  Cognitive unconscious: all mental processes that A Modern give rise to a person’s thoughts, choices, emotions, and behaviour even though they are View of the not experienced by the person Cognitive Dual process theories: two different systems in Unconscious the brain for processing information; used to understand cognitive processes Fast, automatic, and unconscious processing Slow, effortful, and conscious processing Kahneman (2001): Systems 1 and 2 Sleep and Dreaming  Altered state of consciousness: a form of experience that departs from the normal subjective experience of the world and the mind Can be accompanied by Changes in thinking Sleep and Disturbances in sense of time Feelings of loss of control Dreaming Changes in emotional expression Alterations in body image and sense of self Perceptual distortions Changes in meaning or significance Sleep Why do we sleep? Adaptive theory of sleep: sleep is the evolutionary outcome of self-preservation Restorative theory of sleep: sleep allows the brain and body to restore certain depleted chemical resources, while eliminating chemical wastes  Circadian rhythm: Naturally occurring 24-hour cycle Brain shows EEG changes in beta, alpha, theta, and delta waves Sleep Cycle 5 stages of sleep: stages 1 to 4 and REM sleep REM sleep: a stage of sleep characterized by rapid eye movements and a high level of brain activity Dreaming occurs most often in this stage Body immobilized Electrooculograph (EOG): instrument that measures eye movements Sleep Needs and Deprivation Across our lifetime, we get about an hour of sleep for every 2 awake. Memories deteriorate unless sleep occurs. REM sleep deprivation has the most detrimental effects, followed by slow-wave sleep (stages 3 and 4) deprivation.  Insomnia: difficulty in falling asleep or staying asleep Sleep apnea: person stops breathing for brief periods while Sleep asleep Disorders Somnambulism (sleepwalking): occurs when a person arises and walks around during sleep Narcolepsy: a disorder in which sudden sleep attacks occur in the middle of waking activities Sleep paralysis: experience of waking up unable to move Night terrors (sleep terrors): abrupt awakenings with panic and intense emotional arousal  Dream consciousness Dreams Five major characteristics that distinguish dreaming from waking consciousness Intense emotion Illogical thought Meaningful sensation Uncritical acceptance Difficulty remembering dream on waking  Freud’s view: Dreams hold meaning. Dream Manifest content: dream’s apparent topic Theories or superficial meaning Latent content: dream’s true underlying meaning  The activation–synthesis model: The brain imposes meaning on random neural activity. Theory that dreams are Dream produced when the brain attempts to make sense of Theories activations that occur randomly during sleep fMRI scans of brains during dreaming show brain areas involved in emotion and visual imagery, but not the prefrontal cortex (planning) Drugs and Consciousness  Levels of involvement Substance use Drugs and Substance intoxication Addiction Substance abuse Substance dependence Substance tolerance Substance withdrawal Addiction Physical vs Psychological dependence  Slow down or curb the activity of the central Depressants nervous system Reduces feelings of tension and anxiety, slows movement, and impairs cognitive processes In high doses, sedatives can arrest vital functions and cause death  Alcohol is the “king” of depressants. Expectancy theory: idea that alcohol effects can be produced by people’s expectations of how alcohol will influence them in particular Depressants situations Balanced placebo design: study design in which behaviour is observed following the presence or absence of an actual stimulus and also following the presence or absence of a placebo stimulus; test of expectancy theory Alcohol myopia: condition that results when alcohol hampers attention, leading people to respond in simple ways to complex situations  Barbiturates Types of Less popular than alcohol but still widely used and abused Psychoactive Sleeping aids and surgical anesthetics: Drugs Seconal and Nembutal Benzodiazepines Minor tranquilizers/anxiety drugs: Valium and Xanax Toxic inhalants (sniffing or huffing) Easily accessible: glue, hair spray, nail polish remover, gasoline  Stimulants: substances that excite the CNS, Stimulants heightening arousal and activity levels Types include caffeine, amphetamines, nicotine, cocaine, modafinil, and Ecstacy (MDMA, X, E). Stimulants elicit euphoria and confidence/motivation (increase DA and NE in brain). Narcotics Narcotics (opiates): highly addictive drugs derived from opium that relieve pain Types include heroin, morphine, methadone, and codeine. Drug properties are closely related to the endorphins. Hallucinogens Hallucinogens: drugs that alter sensation and perception; often cause visual and auditory hallucinations Types include LSD (or acid), mescaline, psilocybin, PCP, and ketamine. The effects are dramatic and unpredictable.  Marijuana: leaves and buds of the hemp plant that contain a psychoactive drug called tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) Produce an intoxication that is mildly hallucinogenic Marijuana Affects judgment and short-term memory; impairs motor skills and coordination Medicinal uses controversial Schedule I Controlled Substance by U.S. government Marijuana Considered a gateway drug (along with alcohol and tobacco) Gateway drug: a drug whose use increases the risk of the subsequent use of more harmful drugs Harm reduction approach: a response to high- risk behaviours that focuses on reducing the harm such behaviours have on people’s lives