States of Consciousness

Question 1

Consciousness

Answer 1

our awareness of ourselves and our environment

Question 2

Biological rhythms

Answer 2

periodic physiological fluctuations

Question 3

Circadian rhythms

Answer 3

the biological clocks; regular bodily rhythms (for example, of temperature and wakefulness) that occur on a 24-hour cycle

Question 4

REM sleep

Answer 4

rapid eye movement sleep, a recurring sleep stage during which vivid dreams commonly occur. Also known as paradoxical sleep, because the muscles are relaxed (except for minor twitches) but other body systems are active

Question 5

Alpha waves

Answer 5

the relatively slow brain waves of a relaxed, awake state

Question 6

Sleep

Answer 6

periodic, natural, reversible loss of consciousness– as distinct from unconsciousness, resulting from a coma, general anesthesia, or hibernation

Question 7

Hallucinations

Answer 7

false sensory experiences, such as seeing something in the absence of an external visual stimulus

Question 8

Delta waves

Answer 8

the large, slow brain waves associated with deep sleep

Question 9

Insomnia

Answer 9

reoccurring problems in falling or staying asleep

Question 10

Narcolepsy

Answer 10

a sleep disorder characterized by uncontrollable sleep attacks. The sufferer may lapse directly into REM sleep, often at inopportune times

Question 11

Sleep Apnea

Answer 11

a sleep disorder characterized by temporary cessations of breathing during sleep and repeated momentary awakenings

Question 12

Night Terror

Answer 12

a sleep disorder characterized by high arousal and an appearance of being terrified; unlike nightmares, night terrors occur during Stage 4 sleep, within two or three hours of falling asleep, and are seldom remembered

Question 13

Dream

Answer 13

a sequence of images, emotions, and thoughts passing through a sleeping person’s mind. Dreams are notable for their hallucinatory imagery, discontinuities, and incongruities, and for the dreamer’s delusional acceptance of the content and later difficulties remembering it

Question 14

Manifest Content

Answer 14

according to Freud, the remembered story line of a dream (as distinct from latent, or hidden, content)

Question 15

Latent Content

Answer 15

according to Freud, the underlying meaning of a dream (as distinct from its manifest content). Freud believed that a dream’s latent content functions as a safety valve.

Question 16

REM rebound

Answer 16

the tendency for REM sleep to increase following REM sleep deprivation (created by repeated awakenings during REM sleep)

Question 17

Hypnosis

Answer 17

a social interaction in which one person (the hypnotist) suggests to another (the subject) that certain perceptions, feeling, thought, or behaviors will spontaneously occur

Question 18

Posthypnotic suggestion

Answer 18

a suggestion, made during a hypnosis session, to be carried out after the subject is no long hypnotized; used by some clinicians to help control undesired symptoms and behaviors

Question 19

Dissociation

Answer 19

a split in consciousness, which allows some thoughts add behaviors to occur simultaneously with others

Question 20

Psychoactive drug

Answer 20

a chemical substance that alters perceptions and moos

Question 21

Tolerance

Answer 21

the diminishing effect of regular use of the same dose of a drug, requiring the user to take larger and larger doses before experiencing the drug’s effect

Question 22

Withdrawal

Answer 22

the discomfort and distress that follow discontinuing the use of an addictive drug

Question 23

Physical dependence

Answer 23

a physiological need for a drug, marked by unpleasant withdrawal symptoms when the drug is discontinued

Question 24

Psychological dependence

Answer 24

a psychological need to use a drug, such as to relieve negative emotions

Question 25

Addiction

Answer 25

compulsive drug craving and use

Question 26

Depressants

Answer 26

drugs (such as alcohol, barbiturates, and opiates) that reduce neural activity and slow body functions

Question 27

Barbiturates

Answer 27

drugs that depress the activity of the central nervous system, reducing anxiety but impairing memory and judgment

Question 28

Opiates

Answer 28

opium and its derivates, such as morphine an heroin; they depress neural activity, temporarily lessening pain and anxiety

Question 29

Stimulants

Answer 29

drugs (such as caffeine, nicotine, and the more powerful amphetamines, cocaine, and Esctasy) that excite neural activity and speed up body functions

Question 30

Amphetamines

Answer 30

drugs that stimulate neural activity, causing speeded0up body functions and associated energy and mood changes

Question 31

Methamphetamine

Answer 31

a powerfully addictive drug that stimulates the central nervous system, with speeded-up body functions and associated energy and mood changes; over time, appears to reduce baseline dopamine levels

Question 32

Ecstasy (MDMA)

Answer 32

a synthetic stimulant and mild hallucinogen. Produces euphoria and social intimacy, but with short-term health risks and longer-term harm to serotonin-producing neurons and to mood and cognition

Question 33

Hallucinogens

Answer 33

psychedelic ("mind manifesting") drugs, such as LSD, that distort perceptions and evoke sensory images in the absence of sensory input

Question 34

LSD

Answer 34

a powerful hallucinogenic drug; also known as acid (lysergic acid diethylamide)

Question 35

THC

Answer 35

the major active ingredient in marijuana; triggers a variety of effects, including mild hallucinations

Question 36

Near-death experience

Answer 36

an altered state of consciousness reported after a close brush with death (such as through cardiac arrest); often similar to drug-induced hallucinations

Question 37

Dualism

Answer 37

the presumption that mind and body are two distinct entities that interact

Question 38

Monism

Answer 38

the presumption that mind and body are different aspects of the same thing