Hypnos and psyche: How hypnosis has contributed to the study of consciousness.

Abstract

The field of hypnosis anticipated the current interest in consciousness and has contributed in many ways to its conceptualization and research. This paper is divided into 3 sections. The first describes how hypnosis has enriched the study of alterations of consciousness, considered as dynamic processes subject to important individual differences. This section also considers how hypnosis offers an expanded but cautious view of human potentialities, including the possibility of anomalous cognition. The second section argues that descriptions of alternative selves or sets of mental processes, central to the hypnosis literature, provide insights into contemporary discussions of dissociative and nonconscious processes and the constructive nature of identity. The final section focuses on how hypnosis has emphasized sociocultural interactions, helping illuminate the intersubjective construal of conscious experience. Far from being an outdated set of theories, techniques, and data, hypnosis has much to offer to our understanding of consciousness.

Can hypnotic suggestibility be measured online?

“…Hypnosis and hypnotic suggestions have been shown to be useful experimental tools to test theories of cognitive neuroscience (Oakley & Halligan, 2013;Raz, 2011), especially theories related to consciousness (Cardeña, 2014;Terhune, Cleeremans, Raz, & Lynn, 2017). For instance, hypnotic suggestions can evoke changes in the feeling of voluntariness (Weitzenhoffer, 1974(Weitzenhoffer, , 1980 or modify one`s sense of agency (Haggard, Cartledge, Dafydd, & Oakley, 2004;Lush et al, 2017;Polito, Barnier, & Woody, 2013).…”

A tudat fenomenológiája kérdőív magyar változatával szerzett tapasztalatok

“…Klaszteranalízissel végzett vizsgálatunkból inkább az élmények komplementer jellegére következtethetünk (Józsa, 2012a). Harmadsorban, a hipnózis fenomenológiájának és interakciós elemeinek tanulmányozása más pszichológiai jelenségek megértésében is fontos kutatási eszköz lehet (Cox és Bryant, 2008), amelyek között kiemelten fontos terület a tudat működése (Cardeña, 2014).…”

Hypnosis in palliative care: from clinical insights to the science of self-regulation

“…This disparity introduces a tension between the desire to develop a science that generalizes to an entire population and the need to develop personalized therapeutic tools adaptable to single cases. While this issue permeates the clinical realm as a whole, it remains particularly pervasive in the case of hypnosis where individuals are capable of using a wide variety of mental strategies to generate the hypnotic response (31,42,43). Hence, the rigor imposed by the scientific method does not correspond to the adaptability of clinical approaches.…”

“…The principle of equifinality, which applies to hypnotic phenomena, states that different means can lead to the same end state. In other words, distinct cognitive strategies may lead individuals to achieve similar hypnotic responses (42). Supporting this view, mounting evidence highlights heterogeneity amongst individuals who are highly susceptible to hypnosis, thereby implying that reliable hypnotic responses may occur through several cognitive and phenomenological profiles (63)(64)(65)(66).…”