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- Chapter 4- Consciousness a. Definition, altered state b. Sleep: regulation, theories, stages & types, disorders i. Theories of dreaming c. Hypnosis: steps, theories i. No myths d. Psychoactive drugs: types of dependence and signs i. 4 classes of drugs and major effects on awareness.
- Chapter 5—Learning a. Definition b. Classical Conditioning: what is it? Knowing what UCS, UCR, CS (NS) and CR means and identify in example. i. Concepts: generalization, discrimination, extinction & spontaneous recovery c. Operant Conditioning: +/- reinforcement, +/- punishment, types and schedules of reinforcement i. Concepts: shaping and successive approximation + others ii. Positive punishment: adding something iii. Negative punishment: taking something away d. Observational Learning: Bobo doll experiment, elements of observational learning
- Chapter 6: Memory a. Definition: processes, models, system i. Sensory memory: types, capacity, duration ii. STM: Maintenance rehearsal, capacity, duration, chunking b. LTM: types and subtypes i. Retrieval cues, encoding specificity, processes (recall vs. recognition) and failures (false positives, serial position effect, “tip of the tongue”) ii. Formation (we build form what actually happened and use inferences to build the rest of the puzzle; hindsight bias) iii. Why do we forget? Forgetting curve (we forget within the first hour) a. Amnesia (antero/retrograde) iv. Consolidation
- H.M.
Chapter 4 Notes Consciousness: sleep, dreams, hypnosis and drugs
What sis consciousness?
Consciousness- a person’s awareness of everything that is going on around them at any given moment, which is used to organize behavior. Internal and external activities.
Definition of consciousness
Your thoughts, sensations and feelings are included in your consciousness. Much of people’s time awake is spent in a state called waking consciousness, in which their thoughts, feelings, and sensations are clear and organized and they feel alert. Many times in daily activities and life, people experience states of consciousness that differ from this organized waking state. These variations are known as “altered states of consciousness.” Altered States of Consciousness An altered state of consciousness occurs when there is a shift in the quality or pattern of your mental activity. This includes decreases and increases. Increased alertness - when under the influence of a stimulant (cocaine, ADHD meds, caffeine, etc.) Daydreaming, being hypnotized or achieving a meditative state are considered being altered states. The most common altered state is sleep.
Altered States: Sleep
The Biology of Sleep Biological rhythms are natural cycles of activities that the body must go through.
The restorative theory states that sleep is necessary to the physical health of the body. Most bodily growth and repair occurs during the deepest stages of sleep, when those necessary enzymes are secreted in their highest amounts. Replenish chemicals, repair cellular damage, growth
The Stages of Sleep
There are two kinds of sleep: REM (Rapid Eye Movement) and non-REM (NREM) sleep. REM sleep is a relatively active type of sleep when most of a person’s dreaming takes place. Non-REM sleep is a much deeper, more restful kind of sleep. In REM sleep, the voluntary muscles are inhibited, meaning that the person moves very little. In NREM sleep, the person’s body is free to move around. There are different stages of sleep that people go through each night in which REM and NREM sleep occur. Beta waves: smaller and faster brain waves, typically indicating mental activity. o Sr. Beta = Beta = mental activity o Therefore, if there are beta waves, there is mental activity. Alpha o Brain waves that indicate a state of relaxation or light sleep. o Alpha dogs (guys) are always relaxed. o There, alpha = relaxed. Theta waves: brain waves indicating the early stages of sleep.
Non-Rem Stage 1: Light-Sleep
Theta wave activity increases Alpha wave activity decreases o Alpha dogs never sleep on the job.
Top dogs never sleep on the job o Therefore alpha =/= light sleep. Hypnogogic images or hallucinations may be experienced at this time. Hypnic jerks occur during this time. o The LAX-playing kid from House had this. This stage lasts around 15 minutes.
Non-REM Stage 2: Sleep Spindles
Physiological measures continue to drop Heart rate slows Breathing becomes more shallow and irregular Sleep spindles: brief bursts of activity lasting only a second or two. Spindles = two pieces of string Therefore spindles = stage 2 sleep. o Theta waves are still predominant in this stage; also K-complexes. o K-Complexes are generally in response to a noise. If people are awakened during this stage, they will be aware of having been asleep.
Non-REM Stage 3 and Stage 4: Delta Waves Roll In
Called Slow-Wave Sleep (SWS) During stage 3, delta waves make up only about 20-50% of brain-wave pattern. Once Delta waves account for more than 50% of total brain activity, a person is said to have entered stage 4, the deepest stage of sleep. Growth hormones are released from the pituitary and reach their peak levels. The body is at its lowest level of functioning. Children are harder to wake up when in this state than adults. Boys sleep more deeply than girls do due to testosterone. It takes about 90 mins to cycle through the 4 stages into REM.
If deprived of REM sleep, a person will experience greatly increased amounts of REM sleep the next night, which is known as REM rebound. Babies spend nearly 50% of their sleep in REM, compared with adults’ 20%. When infants are engaged in REM sleep, they are not dreaming but rather forming new connections between neurons. The infant brain is high plastic, and much of brain growth & development takes place during REM sleep. As the infant’s brain nears its adult size by age 5/6, the proportion of REM sleep has decreased to a more adult-like ratio of REM to NREM.
Why two kinds of sleep
NREM sleep important for restorative and energy-conserving functions. o Physical demands of day REM sleep important for mental restoration o Emotional demands of day, memory REM sleep necessary o If deprived, will experience REM rebound ( compensation) during next night Increased amount of time spent in REM stages
Sleep Disorders
Nightmares and REM Behavior Disorders
Nightmares: bad dreams occurring during REM sleep. o Children tend to have more nightmares than adults do because they spend more of their sleep in the REM state. REM behavior disorder: A rare disorder in which the mechanism that blocks the movement of voluntary muscles fails, allowing the person to thrash around and even get up and act out nightmares. This is usually seen in men over age 60.
Stage 4 Sleep Disorders
Sleepwalking/somnambulism- occurring during deep sleep, an episode of moving around or walking around in one’s sleep. o Sleepwalking occurs in about 20% of the population. o It is more common in childhood and occurs more frequently in boys. o Many grow out of their sleepwalking by adolescence.
Night Terrors
Night terrors: relatively rare disorder in which the person experiences extreme fear and screams or runs around during sleep without waking fully. o NREM is the domain of night terrors.
Insomnia
Insomnia: the inability to get to sleep, stay asleep or get a good quality of sleep. Some of the psychological causes of insomnia are anxiety, worrying or trying too hard to sleep. Some of the physiological causes are too much caffeine, indigestion, or aches & pains.
Sleep Apnea
Sleep apnea: disorder in which the person stop breathing for nearly half a minute or more. Snoring is often associated with sleep apnea. Sleep apnea can prevent a person from getting a good night’s rest. Sleep apnea can cause heart problems. Many infants who die of SIDS were never diagnosed with sleep apnea.
Narcolepsy
Narcolepsy: sleep disorder in which a person falls immediately into REM sleep during the day without warning. o Affects 1 in every 2,000 people.
o Accounts for why recent real-life experiences can be found in dreams. One reason as to why our dreams don’t make sense is because our frontal cortex is inactive.
Altered States: Hypnosis
Hypnosis: state of consciousness in which the person is especially susceptible to suggestion. Four elements: o The hypnotist tells the person to focus on what is being said. o The person is told to relax and feel tired o The hypnotist tells the person to “let go” and accept suggestions easily o The person is told to use vivid imagination You cannot hypnotize someone who is not willing to be hypnotized. o Only 80% can be and of those, only 40% are “good candidates.”
Theories of Hypnosis Dissociation theory—split consciousness o Immediate conscious mind affected by hypnosis o “Hidden observer” aware of what is going on Social-cognitive theory—acting the part o People who are hypnotized are not in an altered state, but are merely playing the role expected of them in the situation.
Altered States: Psychoactive Drugs
Psychoactive drugs: drugs that alter thinking, perception & memory o Categorized based on predominant action or behavioral effect Physical dependence: body is unable to function w/o the drug o Drug tolerance: larger and larger doses needed to reach initial effects of drug o Withdrawal: symptoms associated with not taking drug
Psychological dependence: belief that drug is needed to function emotionally and psychologically o Any drug can produce psychological dependence (due to positive emotions tied to it) Addiction o Physical or psychological dependence or both. Psychoactive drugs increased dopamine (reward pathways in our brain; pleasure center) levels in brain’s reward pathways.
Psychoactive Drugs: Stimulants
Class of drugs that increases central nervous system activity “Uppers” Examples o Amphetamines o Cocaine o Nicotine o Caffeine
Depressants
Drugs that slow down the central NS “Downers” Examples o Barbituates Nembutal, seconal o Benzodiazepines Valium, Xanax o Alcohol Narcotics Class of opium-related drugs that suppress the sensation of pain Examples
o Discounts importance of mental activity
Types of Learning
Associative Learning & Conditioning o Classic Conditioning Association between 2 stimuli o Operant Conditioning Association between behavior & consequence (what’s in it for me? our behaviors are driven by the consequences of those behaviors.)
Observational Learning o Observing and imitating another’s behavior Learning by watching others Lends to the mental processes Must be able to pay attention to observe Must be able to recall what was observed AMIM (Attention, Memory, Imitation, Motivation)
Classic Conditioning
Ivan Pavlov Learning to elicit an involuntary reflex response ( drooling) to a stimulus other than the original, natural stimulus (to a bell instead of the food itself) You learn to associate a natural stimulus (food) to a neutral stimulus. A stimulus is anything that causes a response.
Food Unconditioned Stimulus
Salivation Unconditioned Response Neutral + Food (UCS) Unconditioned Response --
Conditioned Stimulus - Salivation = conditioned Response
Reflex: Automatic, without prior learning
Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS) Unconditioned Response (UCR)
Neutral Stimulus
Learning: Association, after pairing of stimuli
Conditioned Stimulus
Classic Conditioning
UCS (Ice Cream) - UCR (Pleasure)
CS (Ice Cream truck song) - UCS (Ice cream) -- UCR (Pleasure)
CS (Ice cream truck song) ------------------ CR (Pleasure)
Conditioned Stimulus must come before UCS CS & UCS must be close together in time NS must be paired with UCS several times CS should be distinctive for best effect
It Makes Your Mouth Water: Classical Conditioning
Reflex: an involuntary response, one that is not under personal control or choice. o The dog drooling Ivan Pavlov, a Russian psychologist who pioneered the empirical study of the basic principles of a particular kind of learning.
Pavlov and the Salivating Dog
Stimulus generalization: the tendency to respond to a stimulus that is only similar to the original conditioned response with the conditioned response. o Little Albert hates white furry things now. Stimulus discrimination: the tendency to stop making a generalized response to a stimulus that is similar to the original conditioned stimulus because the similar stimulus is never paired with the unconditioned stimulus. Extinction o Weakening/disappearance of CR after removal of UCS Spontaneous Recovery o Reappearance of CR following CS after extinction has occurred. o Tends to be a very weak response o If Pavlov was on vacation and no one did the experiment, the dogs would still be able to salivate when they finally do hear the bell. o Anything positive is going to drive us to increase that behavior. o Anything negative associated with that behavior causes us to not engage in it as much. o Positive outcomes = increases in behavior o Negative outcomes = decreases a behavior Consequences are what drive our behaviors o Reinforcement (positive; strengthening something) o Punishment (negative; decrease behavior; negative outcomes.) Principles of Reinforcement
Reinforcement increases probability of behavior o Positive (giving you dog a treat when it performs a trick) o Negative (when a buzzer goes off because you did not put on your seatbelt.) Types o Primary Reinforcer Innately satisfying (Getting praise, getting food, etc.)
o Secondary Reinforcer
Acquires positive value through experience
What’s in it for me? Operant Conditioning
Operant Conditioning: the learning of voluntary behavior through the effects of pleasant and unpleasant consequences to responses. Law of effect: law stating that if an action is followed by a pleasurable consequence, it will tend to be repeated, and if followed by an unpleasant consequence, it will tend not to be repeated. Operant: any behavior that is voluntary. Reinforcement: any event or stimulus, that when following a response, increases probability that the response will occur again. Reinforcers: any events or objects that, when following a response, increase the likelihood of that response occurring again. Primary reinforcer: any reinforce that is naturally reinforcing by meeting a basic biological need, such as hunger, thirst, or touch. Secondary reinforcer- any reinforcer that becomes reinforcing after being paired with a primary reinforcer, such as praise, tokens or gold stars. Positive reinforcement: the reinforcement of a response by the addition or experiencing of a pleasurable stimulus. Negative reinforcement: the reinforcement of a response by the removal, escape from or avoidance of an unpleasant stimulus.
Schedules of Reinforcement
Continuous Reinforcement (short term) o Reinforcer follows behavior every time it occurs Partial Reinforcement (long term) o Reinforcer follows behavior only some of the time
Reinforce as soon as possible after the behavior occurs Only reinforce the desired behaviors.
Punishment
Punishment decreases likelihood of behavior Positive punishment (speeding tickets, spanking) o Positive = giving you something Negative Punishment (Taking away your car after a DUI) o Negative = taking it away
How to Make Punishment More Effective
Punishment should immediately follow the behavior it is meant to punish Punishment should be consistent Punishment of the wrong behavior should be paired, whenever possible, with reinforcement of the right behavior.
Other OCC Concepts
Discriminative stimulus o Signal that behavior will or will not be reinforced Shaping o Using successive approximation Generalization o Performing reinforced behavior to similar stimulus Extinction o Behavior no longer reinforced decreases in frequency o If you aren’t paying me, why should I get good grades? Spontaneous Recovery o Performing old behaviors that were reinforced when learning new behaviors.
Discriminative stimulus: any stimulus that provides an organism with a cue for making a certain response in order to obtain reinforcement.
Other Concepts in Operant Conditioning
Shaping o Shaping: the reinforcement of simple steps in behavior that lead to a desired, more complex behavior. o Successive approximation: small steps in behavior, one after the other, that leads to a particular goal behavior. Extinction, Generalization and Spontaneous Recovery in Operant Conditioning o Extinction involves the removal of the UCS. o Instinctive drift: tendency for an animal’s behavior to revert to genetically controlled patterns.
Observational Learning
Observational Learning: learning new behavior by watching a model perform that behavior. Learning/performance distinction: referring to the observation that learning can take place without actual performance of the learned behavior.
The Four Elements of Observational Learning Attention o Pay attention to the model Memory o The learner must be able to retain the memory of what was done. Imitation o The learner must be capable of reproducing or imitating the actions of the model. Motivation o The learner must have the desire or motivation to perform the action.
Chapter 6: Memory
