The most Common Misconceptions of Hypnosis

Frequently asked Questions About Hypnosis:

Is Hypnosis Safe?

Hypnosis is not a dangerous procedure. ( Lynn,Martin, & Frauman, 1996)

Does Hypnosis Only Work on the Weak Willed?

The ability to experience hypnotic phenomena does not indicate gullibility or weakness (T.X. Barber, 1996)

Is Hypnosis Dreaming?

Hypnosis is not a sleep like state ( Banyai, 1991)

Will I Feel Out Of It?

Most Hypnotized participants do not describe their experience as a trance but as a focused attention on suggested events (McConkey, 1986)

Who Is The Best Hypnotherapist?

Hypnosis depends more on the efforts and abilities of the subject than on the skill of the hypnotist(Hilgard, 1965)

Do Hypnotherapist really use a swinging pendulum?

Suggestions can be responded to with or without hypnosis, and the function of a formal induction is primarily to increase suggestibility to a minor degree (see T.X. Barber 1969; Hilgard, 1965)

Do I have to feel drowsy afterwards?

A wide variety of hypnotic inductions can be effective (e.g., inductions that emphasize alertness can be just as effective as inductions that promote physical relaxation; Banyai, 1991)

What types of suggestions are the best?

Direct, traditionally worded hypnotic techniques appear to be just as effective as permissive, open-ended, indirect suggestions (lynn, Neufeld, & Mare, 1993)

Do I have to be put into a trance for it to work?

All of the behaviors and experiences occurring in hypnosis can also be produced by suggestions given without the prior induction of hypnosis ( reviewed in Kirsch, 1997b)

Am I going to do anything silly that I do not want to do?

Participants retain the ability to control their behavior during hypnosis, to refuse to respond to suggestions, and even to oppose suggestions (see Lynn, Rhue, & Weekes, 1990)

Can I use Hypnosis for Memory Recall?

Hypnosis does not increase the reliability of memory (lynn, Lock, Myers, & Payne, 1997) or foster a literal reexperiencing of childhood events (Nash, 1987)

Can I use Hypnosis to forget a part of my life?

Spontaneous amnesia is relatively rare ( Simon & Salzberg, 1985) and can be prevented by informing patients that they will be able to remember everything they are comfortable remembering.

Sources

Lynn, S. J. Martin, D., & Frauman, D.C. (1996). Does hypnosis pose special risks for negative     effects? International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 44, 7-19.

Banyai, E. I. (1991). Toward a social-psychobiological model of hypnosis. In S. J.  Lynn & J.W. Rhue (Eds.), Theories of hypnosis:Current models and perspectives (pp.564-598).New York: Guilford Press.

McConkey, K.M. (1991). The Construction and resolution of experience and behavior in hypnosis. In S. J. Lynn & J.W. Rhue (Eds.), Theories of hypnosis: Current models and perspectives (pp. 542-563). New York: Guilford Press.

Hilgard, E.R. (1965). Hypnotic susceptibility. New York:Harcourt, Brace &World.

Barber, T. X. (1969). Hypnosis: A scientific approach. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold.

Banyai, E. I. (1991). Toward a social-psychobiological model of hypnosis. In S. J. Lynn & J.W. Rhue (Eds.), Theories of hypnosis: Current models and perspectives (pp. 564-598). New York:Guilford Press.

Lynn, S. J., Neufeld, V.R., & Mare, C. (1993). Direct versus indirect suggestions: A conceptual and methodological review. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 41, 124-152.

Kirsch, I. (1997b). Suggestibility or hypnosis:What do our scales really measure? International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 45, 212-225.

Lynn, S. J., Rhue, J. W., & Weekes, J.R. (1990). Hypnotic involuntariness: A social-cognitive analysis. Psychological Review, 97, 169-184.

Lynn, S. J., Lock, T., Myers, B., & Payne, D. (1997). Recalling the unrecallable: Should hypnosis be used for memory recovery in psychotherapy? Current Directions in Psychological Science, 6, 79-83.

Nash, M.R. (1987). What, if anything, is regressed about hypnotic age regression? A review of the empirical literature. Psychological Bulletin, 102, 42-52.

Simon, M.J., & Salzberg, H.C. (1985). The effect of manipulated expectancies on posthypnotic amnesia. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 33, 40-51.