The hidden observer as an experimental creation.

Spaños, Nicholas P.

doi:10.1037/0022-3514.44.1.170

Cited by 45 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 6 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…We also ignore analgesia instructions, often given along with hypnosis (e.g., Greene & Reyher, 1972). Such instructions (e.g., think of your hand as insensitive) do not neatly fit with either our definition of distraction or our later discussion of redefinition, and we prefer to avoid the continuing controversy over hypnosis (see Spanos, 1983). 'Throughout this review, occasions arise when comparisons that we wished to make had not been tested statistically.…”

Section: Principle 1: Comparisons Of Distraction To Control Conditionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Distraction and coping with pain.

McCaul¹,

Malott²

1984

Psychological Bulletin

607

273

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Distraction is thought to be an effective strategy for coping with pain-produced distress. The purpose of this article is to offer explicit conceptual explanations of why and when distraction will be effective and to review research related to this conceptual scheme. A theoretical case for the effectiveness of distraction is drawn from assumptions about (a) the importance of cognition in mediating the pain experience, and (b) the limited capacity available for focusing attention on different stimulus events. Combining these assumptions led to four principles that were examined with available data. Principle 1: Distraction will reduce distress as compared with uninstructed and placebo control conditions. Principle 2: Distraction techniques that require more attentional capacity will be more effective. Principle 3: Distraction will have stronger effects on pain stimuli of low intensity. Principle 4: Distraction will be more effective than sensation redefinition for mild pain stimuli, but the reverse will be true for intense pain stimuli. The data supported these principles, and this review discusses implications and research necessary for helping persons to cope with pain.

show abstract

Section: Principle 1: Comparisons Of Distraction To Control Conditionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Distraction and coping with pain.

McCaul¹,

Malott²

1984

Psychological Bulletin

607

273

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The sociocognitive and social-psychological analysis appears to provide an excellent account of what simulators do; but with respect to real hypnotic subjects, it seems to be beside the point. Similar points were made more than 20 years ago, in a comment on some of the original 'flexible observer' studies (Laurence, Perry and Kihlstrom, 1983); although they were disputed (and misunderstood) then (Spanos, 1983), they remain valid today.…”

Section: Anomalous Resultsmentioning

confidence: 68%

“…Coe and Sarbin (1977) argued that hidden observer instructions merely gave subjects permission to report pain that they actually felt all along. Spanos and his associates reported that the direction of covert pain reports could be influenced by the wording of instructions, leading them to conclude that the hidden observer is a product of social influence rather than a reflection of dissociation -an 'experimental creation' rather than an 'experimental discovery' (Spanos and Hewitt, 1980;Spanos, 1983;Spanos et al,1983;Spanos, DeGroot, Tiller, Weekes and Bertrand, 1985). Based in large part on these studies of the 'flexible observer', Kirsch and Lynn (Kirsch and Lynn, 1998: 106) concluded that, far from reflecting a division in consciousness, the hidden observer was 'just one more suggested response'.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

The hidden observer: a straw horse, undeservedly flogged

Kihlstrom

Barnier

2005

Contemporary Hypnosis

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The 'hidden observer' experiment by Green, Page, Handley and Rasekhy is criticized on methodological grounds, especially the inadequate screening of subjects and departure from the canonical principles of both Hilgard's 'hidden observer' technique and Orne's real-simulator design. We also highlight some results of the experiment which appear to undercut the investigators' conclusions -especially the fact that reals and simulators differed markedly in their response to the critical Less Aware instruction. Our principal criticism, however, is conceptual: it is the very nature of hypnosis that the hypnotic subject's behaviours and experiences will be influenced by the wording of suggestions and subjects' interpretations of them. Accordingly, evidence that covert reports are influenced by the wording of suggestions is not evidence that the hidden observer is a methodological artifact, or that it is not a reflection of divided consciousness. Copyright

show abstract

“…Spanos 9,10 suggested that after hypnotic induction and suggestion, subjects cognitively relabel their reports of pain, not because they seem less intense, but because they want to act the role expected of them, that of feeling less pain. Other studies support that a change in state of consciousness is not necessary for hypnotic analgesia; 11e13 comparing subjects who received suggestions of analgesia after induction of a hypnotic state and subjects who received only suggestions for analgesia revealed that both groups had reductions in their pain ratings, showing that a hypnotic state is not fundamental for pain reduction, but that suggestions for analgesia seem necessary.…”

Section: What Is a Hypnotic State?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Hypnosis and Pain in Children

Wood

Bioy

2008

Journal of Pain and Symptom Management

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The development of studies on neuroimaging applied to hypnosis and to the study of pain not only helps to validate the existence of a hypnotic state but also to ratify its therapeutic effects. These studies also enable us to understand how hypnosis is effective on the cortical level. It also helps us see, from another perspective, the mechanisms of pain leading perhaps to a different definition of pain. This article develops the latest knowledge in the domain of hypnosis and pain, and approaches the clinical practices and their applications in the management of pain in children.

show abstract

The hidden observer as an experimental creation.

Cited by 45 publications

References 6 publications

Distraction and coping with pain.

Distraction and coping with pain.

The hidden observer: a straw horse, undeservedly flogged

Hypnosis and Pain in Children

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About