Introduction to Psychology Consciousness

William James (1890): –Consciousness is a constantly moving stream of thoughts, feelings, and emotions Consciousness can be viewed as our subjective awareness of mental events Functions of consciousness: –Monitoring mental events –Control: consciousness allows us to formulate and reach goals Consciousness may have evolved to direct or control behavior in adaptive ways © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Cortex and Consciousness The dorsolateral prefrontal cortex is activated during conscious control tasks –Subjects asked to name the ink color in the Stroop task below have difficulty when the word name and color are different –This color-naming task was associated with activation of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Attention Our conscious awareness is limited in capacity and we are aware of only a small amount of the stimuli around us at any one time Attention refers to the process by which we focus our awareness Three functions of attentional processes: –Orienting function toward the environment –Control of the content of consciousness I will think about this issue but not that one… –Maintaining alertness © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Subliminal Perception Notion that brief exposure to sub-threshold stimuli can influence awareness Study: subjects are shown aggressive (A) or positive (B) stimuli –and then rate a neutral stimulus (C) –Subjects shown panel A first subsequently rated the boy in panel C more negatively © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. (Figure adapted from Eagle, 1959)

Unconscious Cognitive Processes Information-processing view can be extended to analyses of unconscious processes Notion is that many brain mechanisms operate in parallel –Some of these mechanisms operate outside of the level of consciousness Functional significance of unconscious mechanisms: –Are efficient and rapid –Can operate simultaneously –Operate in the absence of consciousness? © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Neurology of Consciousness Consciousness is distributed throughout the brain –Hindbrain and midbrain are important for arousal and for sleep –Damage to the reticular formation can lead to coma –Prefrontal cortex is key for conscious control of information processing © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Sleep and Dreaming © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Behavioral characteristics of sleep –Minimal movement –Stereotyped prone posture –Require a high degree of stimulation to arouse organism Physiological characteristics of sleep –Brain wave activity (seen in the EEG) –Paralysis of muscles (seen in the EMG) –Cardiovascular changes (alternating cycles of arousal)

Function of Sleep Memory consolidation Energy conservation Preservation from predators Restoring bodily functions –Sleep deprivation can alter immune function and lead to early death –Sleep deprivation can also lead to hallucinations and perceptual disorder © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

EEG Stages of Sleep © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. (Figure adapted from Cartwright, 1978)

REM Sleep Characteristics of REM sleep –Presence of rapid-eye-movements –Presence of dreaming –Increased autonomic nervous system activity –EEG resembles that of awake state (beta wave) –Motor paralysis (except for diaphragm) © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Dreaming Psychoanalytic view: Dreams represent a window into the unconscious –The latent content (meaning) can be inferred from the manifest content (the actual dream) Cognitive view: Dreams are constructed from the daily issues of the dreamer Biological view: Dreams represent the attempt of the cortex to interpret the random neural firing of the brain during sleep © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Dreaming Evolutionary view: on-line threat simulation and behavioral rehearsal system Virtual reality training center Problem solving Perspective © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Lucid Dreaming 1)Dream journaling – note dream signs 2)Reality testing 3)Relaxation techniques 4)Pre-sleep suggestions 5)Sleep in a different place or position

Lucid Dreaming Suggested Readings Garfield, P. (1974). Creative Dreaming. New York: Ballantine. LaBerge, S. (1985). Lucid Dreaming. Los Angeles: J. P. Tarcher. LaBerge, S. & Rheingold, H. (1990). Exploring the World of Lucid Dreaming. New York: Ballantine. Zadra, A.L., Donderi, D.C. & Pihl, R.O. (1992) Efficacy of lucid dream induction for lucid and non-lucid dreamers. Dreaming, 2, Zadra, A.L., & Pihl, R.O. (1997). Lucid dreaming as a treatment for recurrent nightmares. Psychotherapy Psychosomatics, 66,

Sleep Disorders Insomnia is the inability to achieve or maintain sleep Many causes for insomnia: –Stress –Depression –Sleeping pills (iatrogenic means physician-caused) Some suggestions for treating insomnia –Only use your bed for sleeping –Avoid physical activity prior to sleep –Avoid consumption of caffeine and alcohol before bed –Keep a regular sleep schedule –Go to bed when you are ready(do not force sleep) –Do not sleep during the day if you have insomnia –Relaxation (PMR), meditation, self hypnosis

Other Sleep Disorders Nightmares are vivid fear-evoking dreams –Occur during REM sleep Night Terrors: are episodes of intense panic –Occur during delta sleep (early in night) Sleep apnea: refers to awakening brought on by cessation of breathing during sleep Narcolepsy: falling asleep during the day © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Altered States of Consciousness Changes in consciousness can be brought on by –Meditation –Hypnosis –Drug ingestion –Religious experiences © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Meditation Focused Breathing Physiological responses Cognitive responses Attentional Focus Quieting the mind (self-talk) Alpha waves (EEG)

Hypnosis Hypnosis is a state of consciousness characterized by –Deep relaxation –Suggestibility Effects observed during hypnotic state: –Age regression –Change in pain perception –Ability to recall memories into consciousness Dissociation? © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.