Mental activity from the point of view energy processes Levels of mental activity. Let's consider the levels of mental activity from the point of view of energy processes occurring in the consciousness and the field form of life. Lowered level. Sluggish

At the end of the last century, 3. Freud expressed the opinion that dreams perform a cathartic (censorship) function, being a kind of valve for "motives not regulated in wakefulness." According to the psychoanalytic concept, these motives cannot be "admitted" to the waking consciousness, since "they are in irreconcilable confrontation with the social attitudes (morality of society) of the individual's behavior." In a dream, these motives, according to Freud's concept, reach consciousness in a transformed form due to the fact that the "censorship" of consciousness is weakened. This assumption is very difficult to verify experimentally. However, the concept has not been fully confirmed. For example, no specific effects of each of the periods of sleep (“slow” and “rapid”) on individual mental functions that can be tested using a battery of psychological tests have been found.

Doctors note that the most noticeable effect on the psyche is the total duration of sleep. As shown by special studies of the impact of REM sleep deprivation, this is largely determined by the mental status of the subject's personality, and also significantly depends on the nature of the psychological tests presented.

These data generally do not contradict the concept of 3. Freud, who believed that dreams serve to discharge certain motives (for example, aggressiveness or sexuality). Recent data speak in favor of the fact that dreams can also be in "slow" sleep. From this it is concluded that the need for dreams exists independently of the need for "REM" sleep as such and may even be primary in relation to certain stages of sleep.

In recent years, data have been obtained on changes in the structure of sleep during training or adaptation to new conditions. Research in this direction leads to the conclusion that "REM" sleep and dreams are necessary for adaptation to an informationally significant situation and for the assimilation of only such information that the individual is not ready to perceive. In this concept, the main thing is not defined - what is the “rapid” sleep for? There are several answers to this question. For example, it can be assumed that the stage of "REM" sleep in difficult situations is needed to find new ways of interacting with this situation. Perhaps it is during REM sleep that a creative solution to the problem occurs. Another answer may lie in the assumption that the ways of solving a new situation are found during wakefulness, and the consolidation (consolidation) of the ways of solving a creative problem occurs in the "rapid" phase of sleep. In other words, REM sleep serves to improve mnestic processes. It is possible that REM sleep only promotes consolidation by removing obstacles (for example, in this stage of sleep, incoming information is blocked).

At present, numerous data have been accumulated on the mental activity of a person during various stages of sleep. When falling asleep, the change in the psyche occurs in the following sequence. First comes the loss of volitional control over one's thoughts; then uncertainty in the environment joins, elements of derealization (violation of contact with reality). These changes in the psyche are usually grouped under the name "regressive type of thinking." This is understood as thinking with the following characteristics: the presence of single isolated impressions or isolated images; the presence of incomplete (sketchy) scenes; inadequate, sometimes fantastic representations; dissociation of visual images and thoughts (visual images do not coincide with the direction of thoughts). At the same time, a person does not completely lose contact with the outside world. During the period of falling asleep, mental activity is very diverse. Often there are so-called hypnagogic hallucinations. This type of hallucination is like a series of slides or pictures. In contrast, dreams are more like films. It is noted that hypnagogic hallucinations occur only when the dominant wakefulness rhythm disappears from the EEG.

All researchers agree that mental activity in the stage of "sleep spindles" is similar to "fragmentary thinking", recalling thoughts that preceded falling asleep. There is an opinion that the components of REM sleep and awakening are episodically introduced into "slow" sleep, an accidental coincidence with them leads to dream reports (sleep-talking). Sleep-talking episodes occur in both non-REM and REM sleep, although they are more common in non-REM sleep. Such complex forms of non-verbal behavior correlate with the phases of "slow" sleep, such as somnambulism. Interestingly, the reporting of dreams upon waking from REM sleep is less at 100% (usually 70-95%). It is believed that the frequency of reports depends on several factors: the emotional state of the subject before sleep, personality traits, which is directly related to the degree of psychological protection, and, apparently, on the adaptive capabilities of the dreams themselves (i.e., the dream's ability to cope with the load) .

Thus, the number of dream reports may be due to two opposing factors: 1) the low need for dreams in individuals with high psychological defense, due to the activity of protection by the type of perceptual denial or intellectualization; 2) insufficient adaptive ability of the dreams themselves in the presence of a pronounced need for them in highly sensitive individuals in conditions of intrapsychic conflict. Most dreams are based on auditory, visual, less often olfactory perceptions and speech. From this it is concluded that they are more related to psychosocial life than directly to sensory input. The complexity of the analysis of dreams is also due to the fact that they use the language of figurative thinking, which cannot be fully and adequately recoded into the language of human communication and, consequently, verbal thinking.

What is the psychological significance of dreams? One of the hypotheses is the assumption that information received during daytime wakefulness can activate unacceptable motives and unresolvable conflicts, i.e., perform the function of psychological protection. Indirect evidence in favor of this hypothesis can be the data that during sleep deprivation, adaptation to stressful influences is sharply disturbed. According to another hypothesis, non-verbal-figurative thinking is used in dreams to solve problems that cannot be solved during wakefulness. Perhaps during dreams there is a search for ways of mutual reconciliation of conflicting motives and attitudes. From this position, dreams are an independent mechanism of psychological defense. In this case, the conflict is eliminated not on the basis of its logical resolution, but with the help of images. Thanks to this, neurotic and unproductive anxiety is repressed. Thus, it is argued that dreams are a return to the figurative type of thinking. Moreover, during the “rapid” phase of sleep, the brain switches to a mode of operation similar to wakefulness, but at the same time, external information is blocked, i.e., the brain performs the function of psychological protection.

Questions

1. Reticular formation brain stem and its role in the functions of the cerebral hemispheres.

2. Stages of human sleep and their frequency in night sleep.

3. Changes in human sleep phases in postnatal development.

4. Mental activity in a dream.

Literature

Magun G. Awake brain. M.: Mir, 1965.

Rossi J. A., Zanchetti A. Reticular formation of the brain stem. M.: IL, 1960.

Shulgovsky V.V. Physiology of the central nervous system. M.: Publishing House in Moscow. un-ta, 1987.

General functional states of mental activity

The most common basic mental condition –state of vivacity represents a state of optimal clarity of consciousness, ability of the individual to conscious activity. The optimal organization of consciousness is expressed in the consistency various parties activities, increased attention to its conditions. Various levels of care As already noted, this is different levels of organization of consciousness.

The level of optimality of human mental activity depends on the internal and external factors both terrestrial and cosmic. The state of health, emotional cycles, the time of the guide, days, different phases of the moon, the opposition of planets and stars, the level of solar activity - all these are essential factors in our mental activity.

physiological basis mental activity are the optimal interaction of the processes of excitation and inhibition, the functioning of the focus of optimal excitability (in the terminology of I. P. Pavlov), the dominant (in the terminology of A. A. Ukhtomsky), the excitation of a certain functional system(according to the terminology of P.K. Anokhin). The energy potential of the brain is provided by the reticular (network) formation located at the base of the brain, where the primary analysis of the influences coming from the external environment takes place. The activation of higher, cortical centers is determined by the signal significance of these influences.

Mental activity consists in constant analysis of the significance of incoming information and finding an adequate behavioral response to them. Wakefulness is a state of active mental interaction of an individual with the environment.

The level of wakefulness is determined by the content of a person's activity, his attitude to this activity, interests, enthusiasm. Thus, the view of a pine grove is perceived differently by a farmer, an artist, and an engineer who has to lay a highway in it. Most high levels mental activity associated with the state of inspiration, meditation, ecstasy. All these states are associated with a deep emotional experience of the most significant phenomena for a given individual.

The waking state is the state of conscious activity. However, the levels of conscious activity can be different - from ecstasy and inspiration to a state of drowsiness.

A person reacts to various significant situations by modifying (originality) of his mental state. He evaluates the same situations in different ways depending on his actualized needs and the possibilities of their implementation.

The degree of psychoenergetic mobilization depends on the significance and complexity of the situation for a given person, on the characteristics of his motivational state. The level of motivation should be optimal: the effectiveness of behavior decreases both with very low motivation and with excessive motivation.

AT critical conditions for many people, an adequate relationship with the outside world is weakened - a person can plunge into the subjective world of "narrowed consciousness".

The greatest working capacity appears in a person 3 and 10 hours after waking up, and the smallest - in the interval between 3 and 7 o'clock in the morning. The general mental state of a person is affected by the comfort or discomfort of the environment, the ergonomic * organization of the environment, the motivation of the activity and the conditions for its implementation.

* Ergonomics is the science of optimizing the means and conditions of human activity.

Mental stress for a long time leads to a state fatigue- temporary decrease in working capacity due to the depletion of the mental resources of the individual. The accuracy and speed of performed operations, sensitivity, meaningfulness of perception are sharply reduced, there are shifts in the emotional-volitional sphere. The state of fatigue also occurs with monotonous influences. In these cases, specially organized external stimulation is needed, aimed at overcoming the monotony in human activity (up to the use of functional music, color and dynamic change visually perceived object environment).