VCE Psychology Unit 4 summary notes, Jacaranda textbook 8E,
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Course
Psychology
Institution
12th Grade
Detailed summary notes of a 49 study-scorer for Unit 4 of VCE Psychology from the Jacaranda 8th Edition textbook. Covers chapters 6 through 10 with defined keywords in coloured text, and is good for refreshing/consolidating your memory of the topics.
Enjoy!
6.1 Overview
- Psychological construct is a concept that describes psychological activity that cannot be observed
6.2 Consciousness
CONSCIOUSNESS
- Consciousness is the awareness of something internal or external to oneself
o Contents of consciousness refers to what we are aware of
- States of consciousness are the levels of awareness of internal and external environments
o Normal waking consciousness (NWC) is when one is awake and aware of stimuli in the
external world as well as sensations, mental experiences and own existence
o Altered states of consciousness (ASC) is any state that is distinctly different from NWC in
terns of awareness and experience
Naturally-occurring: happens in the course of every day
Induced: intentionally or unintentionally
6.3 Measuring sleep
SLEEP
- Sleep is a regularly occurring ASC that is natural and characterised by partial or total suspension of
awareness
ELECTROENCEPHALOGRAPHY
- EEG detects, amplifies and records the electrical activity of the neural communication in the cerebral
cortex
- Uses electrodes on the scalp
- Records and interprets brain waves
o Beta: high frequency, low amplitude, NWC and REM
o Alpha: high frequency, low amplitude, NWC, relaxed
o Theta: medium frequency, mixed amplitude, early sleep
o Delta: low frequency, high amplitude, deep sleep
ELECTROMYOGRAPHY
- EMG detects, amplifies and records the electrical activity of the muscles
- Uses electrodes typically around the jaw, leg, torso, etc.
- Records and interprets muscle tone to determine sleep stage
ELECTRO-OCULARGRAPHY
- EOG detects, amplifies and records the electrical activity of the muscles that control eye movement
- Uses electrodes around the eyes
- Records and interprets eye movement
,SLEEP DIARIES
- Sleep diaries are self-report records of an individual’s sleep and waking time activities
- Subjective due to individual interpretation and feelings
- Encompasses activities that may influence sleep and details of their sleep/awakenings
VIDEO MONITORING
- Video monitoring involves using cameras to visually record a person’s sleep
- Records the individual’s behaviours, used in conjunction with grams
6.4 Regulation of sleep-wake patterns
- Biological rhythms are naturally occurring cycles of physiological, psychological and behavioural
changes
- Biological clock is an innate timing that regulates biological rhythms
CIRCADIAN RHYTHMS
- Circadian rhythms involve physiological, psychological and behavioural changes that occur in 24 hours
- The sleep-wake cycle is an endogenous circadian rhythm
o Controls sleepiness and alertness
o Endogenous is to originate within the organism
Exogenous is to originate outside the organism
o Influenced by environmental cues to maintain synchronisation
Allows sleep-wake cycle to shift (e.g. moving time-zones)
ULTRADIAN RHYTHMS
- Ultradian rhythms involve physiological, psychological and behavioural changes that occur in less than
24 hours
o E.g. heartbeat, respiration, hunger
- Sleep is an endogenous ultradian rhythm
o Has multiple stages
o Sleep cycles last around 90 minutes
, SUPRACHIASMATIC NUCLEI (SCN)
- SCN is the master biological clock that regulates timing and activity of the sleep-wake cycle
- Two pin-sized structures above the optic chiasm (where optic nerves cross)
o Uses light level to control secretion of melatonin
o Communicates with peripheral biological clocks
o Initiates rises in temperature and stimulates hormones like cortisol to regulate arousal
MELATONIN
- Melatonin is a hormone that influences drowsiness and the sleep-wake cycle in response to light
levels
- Secreted by the pineal gland, which is stimulated by the SCN
- Secreted after sunset and inhibited after sunrise
6.5 REM and NREM sleep
- Occur in almost all birds and animals
- Hypnograms are sleep graphs showing sleep cycles and stages in relation to time
o REM sleep becomes longer and closer together towards the second half of sleep
o N2 begins to replace N3 in the second half of sleep
- Average healthy adults have 5 sleep cycles per night, with each cycle lasting 90 minutes
- Sleep latency is the amount of time taken for sleep onset to occur
- Arousal threshold is how difficult it is for a person to be awoken
o Low: easy to awaken
o High: hard to awaken
NREM SLEEP
- Non-rapid eye movement sleep
- Some dreaming occurs
o Bizarre, short, less frequent, less vivid, less structured
- Body repairs itself
- Mind is relatively inactive, body is active
NREM STAGE 1
- Breathing, heartrate, body temperature and muscle tone decrease
- Slow rolling eye movements
- Brain waves slow down
- Hypnic jerks occur, where muscles twitch as they relax
- Usually lasts for 5 minutes
- Low arousal threshold
NREM STAGE 2
- Continued slowing of breathing, heartrate, body temperature and muscle tone
- No eye movement
- Brain waves continue to slow
- Sleep spindles occur
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