Swinburne University of Technology (SUT
)
Psychology 100 (PSY10003)
Alle Dokumente für dieses Fach (1)
Verkäufer
Folgen
jlh07
Inhaltsvorschau
● Brain injuries can impair consciousness and reveal ways in which mental processing can occur
without conscious awareness.
● A person’s consciousness state is constantly changing
● When the changes are particularly noticeable, they are called altered states of consciousness
● Examples include sleep, hypnosis, meditation and some drug-induced conditions
● Cultures vary considerably in the value they place on different consciousness states
Sleeping and dreaming
● Sleep is an active and complex state
● Different stages of sleep are defined on the basis of changes in brain activity (as recorded by an
electroencephalograph, or EEG) and physiological arousal
● Sleep normally begins with stage 1 sleep and progresses gradually to stage 4 sleep
● Sleep stages 3 and 4 constitute slow-wave sleep, which is part of non-REM (NREM) sleep
● After passing back to stage 2, people enter rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, or paradoxical sleep
● The sleeper passes through these stages several times each night, gradually spending more time in
stage 2 and REM sleep later in the night
● The cycle of waking and sleeping is a natural circadian rhythm, or human biological rhythm
● Jet lag can be one result of disrupting the normal sleep–wake cycle
● Sleep disorders can disrupt the natural rhythm of sleep
● Among the most common is insomnia, in which persistent difficulty in falling asleep or staying
asleep at night results in feelings of fatigue during the day
● Dreaming is the experience of storylike sequences of images, sensations and perceptions that
occur during sleep, most commonly during REM sleep
● According to activation–synthesis theory, dreams are the meaningless by-products of brain
activity, but they may still have psychological significance
WEEK 9 - LECTURE
Altered states of consciousness: hypnosis and drugs
Definition of hypnosis
● “Altered state of awareness resulting in changes (physical and physiological) in which there may
by distortion of emotion, sensation, image and time” (adapted from
Waxman, 1981)
● A state where critical powers decrease and responsiveness to
suggestion increases
What does hypnosis involve?
● Reduction of awareness
● Narrowing and intensification of concentration
● Suspension of critical belief and reality testing
● Absorption
● Imagination
● Increased suggestibility
● Suspension of planning ability
Hypnotisability
● Subject must know they are being hypnotised, not possible to hypnotise someone against their
will
● People differ in their hypnotic susceptibility
- Ability to form vivid visual images is an indicator of susceptibility
- Becoming readily absorbed in fantasy, daydreams, and movies is another indicator
Levels of hypnotic trance
● Hypnoidal state
- Lightest trance, achieved by everyone
, ● Light trance
- Achieved by 95% of people
● Medium trance
- Achieved by 70% of people
● Deep trance
- Achieved by 25% of people
● Somnambulism
- Achieved by 2% of people
Theories to explain hypnosis (1)
● There are two main competing explanations of how hypnosis works
● The first group are known as
- Dissociation/Neo-dissociation theories
➢ Hypnosis an altered state of consciousness
➢ Ernst Hillgard (1978,1991) - multiple systems of control not necessarily
conscious at the same time
➢ Two streams of consciousness experienced at the same time, independently: one
being under hypnosis and the second a ‘hidden observer’
➢ Pain experiments
Theories to explain hypnosis (2)
● Social-cognitive/role theories of hypnosis
- Deny altered states occur as a result of hypnosis
- Expectations play primary role - involuntary readiness to respond to
suggestions
- Orne, M.T. (1959). The nature of hypnosis: Artifact and essence.
Journal of Abnormal of Social Psychology, 58 (3), pp. 277-299
Drug-induced states of altered consciousness
● Drug effects on consciousness depend on
- Biological actions of the drug
➢ Operate on the nervous system to alter mental functioning
➢ Neurotransmitter agonists; action on the synthesis release,
reuptake or breakdown
- Expectations of drug effect
Learning and drug tolerance
● Conditional drug tolerance
- Tolerance effects are only strong in familiar situation
- Overdose
- Role of exteroceptive and interoceptive stimuli
CNS depressant drugs
● Depress or slow down CNS function
● Barbiturates and benzodiazepines (antianxiolytics such as
Valium and Xanax)
● Alcohol
- Appears to enhance neurotransmitter GABA
- Most commonly used substance due to its anxiety
reduction and pleasure enhancing qualities
- Effects due to interaction with cultural expectations
- Abuse also common and associated with a range of
negative effects (physical and social)
, CNS stimulating drugs
● Increase behavioural and mental activity
● Examples
- Amphetamines: increase release and decrease removal of norepinephrine and dopamine
- Cocaine: increases norepinephrine and dopamine activity
- MDMA (‘Ecstasy’): increases the activity of dopamine-releasing neurons and stimulates
serotonin receptors
- Caffeine
- Nicotine
Hallucinogenic drugs
● Hallucinogens
- LSD, Mescaline, Magic mushrooms, Ketamine
- Alter sensory data and distort perceptions
- In some cultures used in cultural or religious rituals
- LSD, PCP, Mescaline, “Magic” mushrooms
- Effects often very powerful and often associated with long term
effects on neural function
- Chronic use a risk factor for psychosis
● Marijuana
- Acts on the dopamine system; effects vary individually
- Long term use associated with effects on attention, working memory
and motor abilities
- Can trigger psychosis in vulnerable individuals
Marijuana and psychosis
● Definite association between use of cannabis and incidence of psychosis
● Some research has demonstrated a causal effect
● Likely that cannabis interacts with other factors to ‘cause’ psychosis
Predisposing factors in addition
● Genetic inheritance
● Social factors
- Learning
- Peer pressure
- Advertising
● Personality factors
- Sensation seeking
- Neuroticism
- Rebelliousness
READING - CHAPTER 4
Hypnosis
● Hypnosis is a well-known but still poorly understood phenomenon
● Tests of hypnotic susceptibility suggest that some people cannot be hypnotised
● Hypnotised people tend to focus attention on the hypnotist and passively follow instructions
● According to state theories of hypnosis, hypnosis is a special state of consciousness
● Non-state theories of hypnosis, such as role theory, suggest that hypnosis creates a special social role that
gives people permission to act in unusual ways
● Hypnosis is useful in the control of pain and the reduction of nausea associated with cancer chemotherapy.
Its use as a memory aid is open to serious question
Psychoactive drugs
● Psychoactive drugs affect the brain, changing consciousness and other psychological processes
● Psychopharmacology is the field that studies drug effects and their mechanisms
Alle Vorteile der Zusammenfassungen von Stuvia auf einen Blick:
Garantiert gute Qualität durch Reviews
Stuvia Verkäufer haben mehr als 700.000 Zusammenfassungen beurteilt. Deshalb weißt du dass du das beste Dokument kaufst.
Schnell und einfach kaufen
Man bezahlt schnell und einfach mit iDeal, Kreditkarte oder Stuvia-Kredit für die Zusammenfassungen. Man braucht keine Mitgliedschaft.
Konzentration auf den Kern der Sache
Deine Mitstudenten schreiben die Zusammenfassungen. Deshalb enthalten die Zusammenfassungen immer aktuelle, zuverlässige und up-to-date Informationen. Damit kommst du schnell zum Kern der Sache.
Häufig gestellte Fragen
Was bekomme ich, wenn ich dieses Dokument kaufe?
Du erhältst eine PDF-Datei, die sofort nach dem Kauf verfügbar ist. Das gekaufte Dokument ist jederzeit, überall und unbegrenzt über dein Profil zugänglich.
Zufriedenheitsgarantie: Wie funktioniert das?
Unsere Zufriedenheitsgarantie sorgt dafür, dass du immer eine Lernunterlage findest, die zu dir passt. Du füllst ein Formular aus und unser Kundendienstteam kümmert sich um den Rest.
Wem kaufe ich diese Zusammenfassung ab?
Stuvia ist ein Marktplatz, du kaufst dieses Dokument also nicht von uns, sondern vom Verkäufer jlh07. Stuvia erleichtert die Zahlung an den Verkäufer.
Werde ich an ein Abonnement gebunden sein?
Nein, du kaufst diese Zusammenfassung nur für 29,79 €. Du bist nach deinem Kauf an nichts gebunden.