Comparative efficacy of behavioral training, training plus relaxation, and a sleep/trance hypnotic induction in increasing hypnotic susceptibility.

A social-learning-based behavioral training procedure and the same procedure with the addition of progressive relaxation instructions were compared with a traditional sleep/trance eye-fixation hypnotic induction; Ss were 45 adult volunteers who had completed the Standard Hypnotic Susceptibility Scale, Form C. As predicted, the hypothesis that a social-learning training procedure would be more effective than a sleep/trance induction was supported. The hypothesis that the addition of relaxation instructions would further potentiate the social-learning treatment was not supported. Results suggest that for Ss of low and medium hypnotic susceptibility, social-learning procedures are a more effective way of increasing suggestibility than a sleep/trance induction. Changes in Ss' conceptions of hypnosis, particularly in terms of moving toward a self-control viewpoint, are hypothesized to be an intervening variable. (48 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Controlled investigation of the effects of progressive and hypnotic relaxation on insomnia.

37 female college students with insomnia were matched on latency of sleep onset and assigned to 1 of 4 treatment conditions: progressive relaxation, hypnotic relaxation, and waiting-list no-treatment control. After 3 therapy sessions, progressive and hypnotic relaxation groups showed significantly greater improvement than no-treatment controls, while self-relaxation produced nearly equal improvement. Physiological changes during therapy were unrelated to outcome change. Results are discussed in terms of demand characteristics, placebo effects, and attention focusing. (16 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comparison of hypnotic analgesia and hypnotic relaxation during stimulation by a continuous pain source.

Upon completion of training, 5 high school students had their arm immersed in 0– C water during both a hypnotic relaxed-hypnotic analgesic and a hypnotic analgesic-hypnotic relaxed testing sequence. Blood pressure and subjective pain responses were measured during presentation of this continuous pain source, enabling Ss to be compared under the hypnotic analgesic and hypnotic relaxed conditions. Although the analgesic conditions produced far greater effect upon the subjective pain responses than on the blood pressure, each S indicated lower blood pressure scores over the combined analgesic conditions than over the combined relaxed conditions. The reduction of subjective pain responses were in agreement with results of an anonymous questionnaire, providing further confirmation for the obtained analgesia. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The impact of conflicting communications on response to hypnotic suggestion.

Two experiments with 182 Australian undergraduates examined how hypnotized Ss respond when information is presented that conflicts with hypnotic suggestions. Three hypnotic suggestions (hand lowering, finger lock, and hallucination) and 3 levels of conflict communication (low, medium, or high) were used, and real and simulating Ss (as determined by the Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility) were tested in each experiment. In Exp I, the hypnotist presented the suggestion and then the conflicting communication. Increased conflict appreciably lessened the responding of Ss; an appreciable behavioral difference occurred between real and simulating Ss on the hallucination item. In Exp II, the hypnotist presented the conflicting communication and then the suggestion. Increased conflict did not appreciably lessen the responding of Ss on any item. Findings are discussed in terms of the apparent tendency of Ss to respond to the more recent message of the hypnotist. (22 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Uncancelled hypnotic suggestions: The effects of hypnotic depth and hypnotic skill on their posthypnotic persistence.

Conducted 2 experiments to evaluate the degree to which hypnotic depth and hypnotic skill influence the posthypnotic persistence of an uncancelled suggestion. Each experiment employed 24 college students (8 high susceptible, 8 medium susceptible, and 8 low susceptible, based on Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility, Form A, scores). The induction of hypnosis in Exp I was by videotape; in Exp II, an almost identical induction was conducted individually by the experimenter. In both experiments, an arm analgesia item was left uncancelled. Over the 2 experiments, analgesia persisted posthypnotically for 20% of the highly susceptible Ss. These Ss differed from the highly susceptible Ss not manifesting the phenomenon in having significantly better hypnotic analgesia and greater hypnotic depth. Results suggest that posthypnotic persistence of an uncancelled suggestion was confined to a minority of highly hypnotizable Ss. Persistence appears to have affinities with other low-incidence hypnotic phenomena to which only the top 2–3% of Ss in the range of hypnotic susceptibility respond. The majority of highly susceptible Ss either cancelled an uncancelled suggestion themselves, or else the suggestion faded with time. (22 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A comparison of active-alert hypnotic induction with traditional relaxation induction.

Describes the testing of an active-alert induction procedure which sufficiently controlled conditions to permit a comparison between the alterations produced by that procedure and those produced by the traditional relaxation induction technique. Ss were 50 university students. In the active-alert induction the S rode a bicycle ergometer under load, keeping eyes open while exercising and receiving suggestions of alertness. The alternate form, used in random alternation with the same Ss, consisted of the standard eye-fixation and relaxation induction of the Stanford Hypnotic Susceptibility Scale, Form B (SHSS-B). Within each session on 2 days during which each S served, the induction procedure was followed by 8 tests of responses to suggestion, from the SHSS-A and SHSS-B. The mean measured hypnotic responsiveness was independent of the type of induction. The active-alert condition was characterized by an acceleration of the rate of pedaling for the more responsive Ss. Although the subjective alterations differed between the 2 kinds of induction, the highly susceptible reported that in both cases altered states were achieved. (23 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comparative efficacy of hypnotic behavioral training and sleep/trance hypnotic induction: Comment on Katz.

Examines the claim by N. W. Katz (see record 1979-26454-001) that social-learning hypnotic inductions produce significant gains in hypnotizability relative to a traditional sleep/trance hypnotic induction. His use of a "raw gain-score analysis" is criticized because it fails to identify the significant influences of pretreatment individual differences on posttreatment response. Reanalysis of Katz's data indicates a highly significant pretest effect more potent than the observed treatment effect. Inconsistencies between Katz's findings and those of 6 previous studies are examined. (14 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of active alert and relaxation hypnotic inductions on cold pressor pain.

Contrasted relaxation and active alert hypnotic inductions with or without a specific suggestion for cold pressor pain analgesia. Groups of high (n?=?38) and low (n?=?27) hypnotizable Ss were tested; hypnotizability had been determined from results of the Stanford Hypnotic Susceptibility Scale, Form C. Cold pressor pain data were obtained after counterbalanced exposure to relaxation and active alert inductions. Highly hypnotizable Ss demonstrated lower pain scores than did low hypnotizable ones. Pain reports did not differ between induction conditions. Highly hypnotizable Ss given an analgesic suggestion showed lower pain scores than did those exposed only to hypnosis. The findings, conceptualized within E. R. Hilgard's (1977) neodissociation theory, show that relaxation is not necessary for hypnotic analgesia. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Proactive and retroactive effects of negative suggestion.

The negative effects of false information presented either prior to (proactive interference; PI) or following (retroactive interference; RI) true information was examined with word definitions (Experiment 1) and trivia facts (Experiment 2). Participants were explicitly aware of which information was true and false when shown, and true-false discrimination was evaluated via multiple-choice tests. Negative suggestion, defined as poorer performance on interference items than noninterference (control) items, consistently occurred when the wrong information followed the correct information (RI) but not when it preceded the correct information (PI). These effects did not change as a function of retention interval (immediate, 1 week, or 3 weeks) or number of incorrect alternatives (1 or 3). Implications of this outcome for experiencing incorrect information in both academic and nonacademic situations are considered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of suggestion and distraction on reported pain in subjects high and low on hypnotic susceptibility.

84 18–30 yr old undergraduates high or low in hypnotic susceptibility (the Carleton University Responsiveness to Suggestion Scale) immersed an arm in ice water on 2 separate trials. Within susceptibility levels, Ss were randomly assigned to 3 groups, with an equal number in each group. Between trials, Ss in 1 group were administered a suggestion to imagine their hand as numb and insensitive, those in a 2nd group practiced a distraction task to be used during the 2nd trial (shadowing words), and those in a 3rd group (controls) received no special instructions. The suggestion significantly lowered rated pain in high but not in low susceptibles. Contrary to dissociation accounts of hypnotic susceptibility and suggested analgesia, low-susceptible shadowers showed as much reduction in rated pain as high susceptibles given suggestion. The social psychology of the experimental pain assessment situation is discussed. (27 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effectiveness of biofeedback and relaxation training in reducing the side effects of cancer chemotherapy.

Assessed the effectiveness of electromyograph (EMG) and skin-temperature (ST) biofeedback and relaxation training (RXT) in reducing the aversiveness of cancer chemotherapy (CHEMO). 81 cancer patients (aged 18–75 yrs) were randomized to 1 of 6 groups formed by a 3?×?2 factorial design. Outcome was assessed with physiological, patient-reported, and nurse-reported indices taken over 5 consecutive CHEMO treatments. RXT patients showed decreases in nausea and anxiety during CHEMO and physiological arousal after CHEMO. EMG and ST biofeedback reduced some indices of physiological arousal but had no other effects on CHEMO side effects. RXT may be effective in reducing the adverse consequences of CHEMO. It is suggested that the positive effects found for biofeedback were due to the RXT that was given with the biofeedback, not to the biofeedback alone. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Treatment of insomnia by relaxation training.

16 undergraduates with chronic insomnia were given 2-wk training in a relaxation technique called autogenic training, in an attempt to determine whether this alone would relieve the insomnia. It was hypothesized that tension in large skeletal muscles is the necessary and sufficient condition for insomnia, whatever its origin. 13 Ss were available for the posttreatment interview. Of these, 11 reported improvement. 2 follow-ups, covering a period of almost 1 yr., showed approximately the same results. With 1 discussed exception, no symptom substitution could be found. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Biofeedback and relaxation training with three kinds of headache: Treatment effects and their prediction.

After a 4-wk baseline period during which daily ratings of headache activity were made and all participants took several psychological tests, 91 18–68 yr old patients with chronic headache (tension, migraine, and combined tension and migraine) were given a 10-session relaxation-training regimen. Ss who did not show substantial reductions in headache activity from the relaxation therapy were given a 12-session regimen of biofeedback (thermal biofeedback for vascular headaches and frontal EMG biofeedback for tension headaches). Relaxation therapy alone led to significant improvement for all groups, with a trend for the tension headache group to respond the most favorably. Biofeedback therapy led to further significant reduction in headache activity for all who received it, with a trend for combined migraine and tension headache patients to respond the most favorably. Multiple regression analyses revealed that approximately 32% of the variance in end-of-treatment headache diary scores could be predicted after relaxation and that 44% of the variance after biofeedback could be predicted using standard psychological tests. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Applied relaxation as training in self-control.

81 test-anxious (Sarason's Test Anxiety Questionnaire) undergraduates who were high or low in general anxiety (the Trait form of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory--T-STAI) were treated with 1 of 4 procedures: applied relaxation, systematic desensitization, relaxation only, or no treatment (control). The effectiveness of each procedure both in reducing test anxiety and in generalizing to other fears was assessed with 3 measures of test anxiety (Suinn Test Anxiety Behavior Scale, Wonderlic Personnel Test, and the State form of the STAI) and 3 measures of general anxiety (T-STAI, Institute for Personality and Ability Testing Anxiety Scale, and Geer's Fear Survey Schedule). Results indicate that applied relaxation was more effective in reducing anxiety than both relaxation only and no treatment on 2 of the measures of general anxiety and 2 of the measures of test anxiety, although significant differences between applied relaxation and systematic desensitization were limited to only 1 measure. (32 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Meditation versus relaxation: An examination of the physiological effects of relaxation training and of different levels of experience with transcendental meditation.

Three groups of meditators with varying amounts of experience (averages of 7 days, 14 mo, and 5 yrs), a group trained in relaxation, and a pseudomeditation group were tested for changes in heart rate, respiration, skin temperature, and skin conductance during meditation or relaxation. Each group consisted of 7 Ss. The 2 more experienced groups of meditators showed decreases in heart rate during meditation while the relaxation group showed increases in skin temperature. There were no significant changes in skin conductance or respiration before, during, or after the meditation or relaxation periods. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Experimental designs, expectancy effects, and hypnotic analgesia.

40 undergraduates who scored high on the Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 groups. Each group received 3 60-sec immersions of cold-pressor pain stimulation. Immersions were associated with either hypnotic, waking, or no analgesia (control) instructions. The treatments and their order were varied across groups to induce different expectations about the efficacy of hypnotic and waking analgesia. Magnitude estimates and category scale ratings of pain indicated that hypnotic analgesia was more, less, or equally as effective as waking analgesia, depending on the expectations induced by varying treatment order. Pain ratings were also related to the type of cognitive activity (e.g., imaginative coping) engaged in during an immersion. (46 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of various forms of relaxation training on physiological and self-report measures of relaxation.

Examined the relative effectiveness of 4 types of relaxation training using electromyograph (EMG) and self-report measures of relaxation as dependent measures. Ss were 50 undergraduates. The experimental groups were (a) classic Jacobson-Wolpe instructions, (b) EMG feedback, (c) EMG feedback plus Jacobson-Wolpe instructions, and (d) EMG feedback plus a monetary reward. These groups were compared with each other and a no-treatment control group over 3 baseline and 12 training periods. All groups reported increased relaxation, but EMG measures showed that in speed of learning and depth of relaxation the EMG groups were superior to the Jacobson-Wolpe group, and the control group did not master relaxation at all. (20 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Physiological effects of hypnosis.

There are many studies indicating that sensory, circulatory, gastrointestinal, and cutaneous functions can be altered by means of hypnosis. There also are many studies indicating that similar physiological effects can be produced by symbolic stimulation without hypnosis. The assumption that hypnotic behavior is a function of the trance state is open to question. From Psyc Abstracts 36:01:3II90B. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Pseudomemory effects over time in the hypnotic setting.

Highly (n?=?36), moderately (n?=?26), and low (n?=?48) susceptible Ss were administered either hypnosis or waking instruction to examine the hypothesis that pseudomemory will occur for hypnotic Ss as long as 2 wks after suggestions are given for accepting false events. Accuracy and confidence of memory were measured for all Ss, and memory was examined for free recall, structured recall, and recognition. Results indicated persistence of pseudomemory for the 2-wk period for both highly and moderately susceptible Ss. Data highlighted the multifaceted operation of skill, contextual, and state instruction factors, and a hypothesis that ambiguity of communication when suggestion is delivered plays a part in the maintenance of pseudomemory over time is offered for further testing. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The effects of pre-sleep suggestion upon REM sleep.

8 university students who spent 7 consecutive nights in a sleep lab were given presleep instructions on the 4th and 6th nights to either increase or decrease their dreaming time depending upon the order in which they were to receive the treatment conditions. Sleep records showed no changes from baseline sleep stage percentages, but the number of rapid eye movements (REMs) and eye movement density measures indicated increases (but not decreases) which were in accordance with the suggestions. Results cast further doubt on the equivalence of the REM state and dreaming and are in support of the notion that REMs themselves may be better indicators of dreaming than is the REM state. (French summary) (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)