States of Consciousness

Chapter Seven

I. Consciousness

A. Consciousness 1. Consciousness refers to what you are

aware of at any given moment 2. Includes:

– Your awareness to your external events.• “The teacher just asked me a difficult question.”

– Your awareness to your internal events.• “My heart is racing and I’m beginning to sweat.

– Your awareness of your self as the unique being having these experiences.

• “Why me?”

– Your awareness of your thoughts about these experiences.

• “I’m going to make a fool of myself!”

Consciousness is personal awareness

Ballgame

Clean UP

Ballgame

$$$

Stay Awake

Homework

Need Shoes

What’s for lunch?

Wonder what we’re doing next period?

B. Freud’s Role in Consciousness

1. One of the first theorist to recognize that consciousness is not an all-or-none phenomenon

2. The stream of consciousness has depth

Freud’s Levels of Consciousness

CONSCIOUS LEVEL

Perceptions

Thoughts

PRECONSCIOUS LEVEL

Memories Stored knowledge

UNCONSCIOUS LEVEL

Selfish needs Violent motives

Immoral urges Fears

Irrational wishes Shameful experiences

Unacceptable desires

C. Levels of Consciousness1. Nonconscious– Body processes are controlled by

your mind that we are not usually aware of

2. Preconscious— Info about yourself or your environment that you are not currently thinking about but you could be

3. Subconscious—Info that we are not consciously aware of but we know must exist due to behavior

4. Unconscious—Part of mind that houses threatening and anxiety-provoking thoughts, feelings, & desires

5. Altered States of Consciousness– Condition where we see significant changes in mental processes and psychological & behavioral functioning

II. Sleep

Exploring PsychologyIn 1959 New York disc jockey Peter Tripp stayed awake for 200 hours to raise money for charity…After about 50 hours, he started having mild hallucinations, seeing cobwebs in his shoes when there were none there and thinking that specksof dirt were bugs; by 100 hours, he became delirious andsaw a doctor’s tweed suit as a tangle of furry worms; at 120he needed a stimulant to keep him awake. After 150 hours,he was disoriented, not knowing who or where he was, andhe became paranoid – he backed against a wall, letting noone pass behind him; by 200 hours, his hallucinations hadtaken a sinister turn, and he thought a doctor trying toexamine him was an undertake come to burry him.

-from The Human Mind Explained edited by Susan A. Greenfield, 1996

The Question

• What does this feature tell you about the connection between sleep and the mind?

A. Biological Rhythms

1. Body rhythms– Ultradian rhythms – more than once daily

clock– Infradian rhythms – less than daily clock

(seasonal or monthly) – Circadian rhythms – 24-hour clock

• Regulated by day-night cycle• Regulated by melatonin• Marked by peaks and valleys of activity,

sensitivity, physical ability, and alertness• Sleep cycle is included in this

Examples of Human Circadian RhythmsFunction Typical Circadian Rhythm

Peak mental alertness & memory function 2 daily peaks: ~ 9 AM & 9 PM

Lowest body temperature ~ 97 degrees @ 4 AM

Highest body temperature ~ 99 degrees @ 4 PM

Peak physical strength 2 daily peaks: ~ 11 AM & 7 PM

Peak hearing, visual, taste & smell sensitivity

2 daily peaks: ~ 3 AM & 6 PM

Lowest sensitivity to pain ~ 4 PM

Peak sensitivity to pain ~ 4 AM

Peak degree of sleepiness 2 daily peaks: ~ 3 AM & 3 PM

Peak melatonin hormone in blood Between 1 AM & 3 AM

Peak allergic sensitivity to pollen & dust Between 11 PM & 1 AMSource: Campbell (1997); Czeisler & Dijk (2001); Refinetti (2000); M. Young (2000)

B. Reasons for Sleep1. Theories:

• “Charge up their batteries”– Restorative.– To allow the brain to recover from exhaustion and stress.

• A type of primitive hibernation.– To conserve energy.

• Adaptive process.– Sleeping at night keeps us out of harms way (earlier times).

• To clear our minds of useless information.

• To Dream.

C. Basics of Sleep 1. A state of altered consciousness,

characterized by certain patterns of brain activity and inactivity

2. Includes five cycles– Each cycle lasts 90 minutes– Complete about 4 to 6 cycles per night

3. Sleep cycle begins as we start to feel drowsy– Signals are sent from the hypothalamus to the

pineal gland to release melatonin into the bloodstream to induce drowsiness

– Reticular activating system decreases its level of activity

D. The Four Stages of Sleep-- NREM (75% of time)1. Awake- Our brain emits beta waves (short, quick, high-frequency electrical

impulses)

2. Stage 1 (5 mins)- Emits alpha waves (less intense, but still very quick electrical impulses)– Alertness decreases, muscles relax, breathing slows, & body temperature

begins to drop – Brain will continue to register stimuli from environment – Easily awakened– Can experience floating & falling

3. Stage 2 (20 mins)- Theta waves are emitted by brain (slower, less intense waves) – Still see brief bursts of electrical activity called sleep spindles – Brain might still register external stimuli, but it is not likely to respond to

stimulation– Sleeptalking can occur here

4. Stage 3- Emits delta waves (large, slow waves of electrical activity)– Hard to wake a person up in this stage (if so, they will be disoriented) – Less delta waves we have, the more we will be sick and physically tired

5. Stage 4- Deepest and most relaxed stage of sleep– Heart rate, breathing & brain activities slow & brain closes itself off to

external stimulation– Brain is not likely to register information – Difficult to wake up someone in this stage (if done, they will be dazed &

confused) – Sleep-walking, bed-wetting, night terrors occur here

***Progress backwards through stages 3, then 2, then REM sleep***

E. REM Sleep (25% of time)

1. Means rapid eye movement

2. Where dreaming occurs

3. If awakened during this stage, people report vivid, detailed, story-like thoughts and events

4. Body & brain activities greatly increase– Called paradoxical sleep: since our brain waves appear as

active & intense as they do when we are awake

5. Muscle control is inhibited to the point that individuals are said to be in a state of partial sleep paralysis

6. When we are deprived of REM sleep, it interferes with our memory

7. More stress we experience during the day, the longer our period of REM sleep will be

Sleep Stage

Brain Waves

Common Characteristics

Frequency Type

1(SWS or NREM)

4 to 8alpha,theta

•transition state between sleep and wakefulness •eyes begin to roll slightly •consists mostly of theta waves (high amplitude, low frequency (slow)) •brief periods of alpha waves, similar to those present while awake •lasts only for a few minutes before moving on to next stage

2(SWS or NREM)

8 to 15theta,

spindles,k-complexes

•peaks of brain waves become higher and higher (sleep spindles) •k-complexes (peaks suddenly drastically descend and then pick back up) follow spindles •again, only lasts for a few minutes

3(SWS or NREM)

2 to 4delta,theta

•also called delta sleep or deep sleep •very slow brain waves, called delta waves (lower frequency than theta waves) •20 to 50% of brain waves are delta waves; the rest are theta waves

4(SWS or NREM)

0.5 to 2delta,theta

•again, also called delta sleep or deep sleep •more than 50% of brain waves are delta waves; the rest are theta waves •last (and deepest) of the sleep stages before REM sleep; stages reverse and then REM sleep begins

5(REM)

> 12 beta•beta waves have a high frequency and occur when the brain is quite active, both in REM sleep and while awake •frequent bursts of rapid eye movement, along with occasional muscular twitches •heart may beat faster and breathing may become shallow and rapid •most vivid dreaming occurs during this stage

What happens during sleep?

EEG brain wave measurements

during sleep

What happens during sleep?

We move from wakefulness to sleep rather quickly.

What happens during sleep?

The sleep cycle

during a typical night’s sleep.

What happens during sleep?

The sleep cycle

during a typical night’s sleep.

What happens during sleep?

The relationship between Stage 4 &

REM cycles in a normal night’s

sleep.

What happens during sleep?

How nightmares & night terrors relate

to sleep stages.

What happens during sleep?

Amount of sleep people

get during

the lifespan.

F. How Much Sleep is Needed

1. As we get closer to the morning (or whenever we naturally awake), we spend more time in stages 1 & 2 and in REM sleep and less in stages 3 & 4.

2. Newborns – 16+ hours (spend more time in REM sleep)

3. 16 year olds – 10-11 hours

4. 22 years old (grad students) – 8 hours

5. 70 years old – 5 +/- hours

6. As we age, our total need for sleep declines as does the

amount of time we spend in REM sleep.