Research 046

1985
Olness, Karen N.; Conroy, Mary Margaret (1985). A pilot study of voluntary control of transcutaneous PO 2 by children: A brief communication. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 33, 1-5.

This pilot study took place to determine whether or not children could voluntarily change tissue oxygen as measured by a transcutaneous oxygen monitor. It tested 2 hypotheses: (a) children can voluntarily change tissue oxygen as reflected by a transcutaneous oxygen monitor and (b) children, experienced in use of self-hypnosis exercises, will be able to change tissue oxygen to a greater degree than children unfamiliar with such exercises. 11 children between the ages of 7 and 17 year were studied. 8 children were previously experienced in the use of self-hypnosis; 3 were not. A Novametrix transcutaneous O 2/CO 2 monitoring system provided a constant read-out of PO 1, PCO 1 and local perfusion. After stabilization, children were asked to attempt increases of oxygen. 9 children increased tissue oxygen significantly. Of those, 8 children had previous self-hypnosis training. 1 had not. Only 2 children with no previous self- hypnosis training were unable to change oxygen values. This pilot study upholds both hypotheses; however, it does not conclude that self-hypnosis mediated the changes noted or that self-hypnosis would be essential to success in voluntary control of tissue oxygen.

1984
Hogan, Marjorie; MacDonald, John; Olness, Karen (1984). Voluntary control of auditory evoked responses by children with and without hypnosis. American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis, 27 (2), 91-94.

Reports ability of children to voluntarily change brainstem auditory evoked responses (BAER). Fifteen children were studied. Both control and hypnosis groups showed changes in interwave latencies after verbal suggestions when compared to a normal control group. These findings suggest that children may be able to modify peripheral auditory input into the brainstem through simple suggestion alone. Children in the formal hypnosis group did have more specific control for the task suggested. However, it is possible that children in the control group moved into an altered state of consciousness after listening to a taped story, reading a book, or spontaneously. They may have attained the observed changes in BAER while in a hypnosis-like state. This study encourages additional research in self-regulatory skills of autonomic processes in children.

Kohen, D.; Olness, K.; Colwell, S.; Heimel, A. (1984). The use of relaxation-mental imagery (self-hypnosis) in the management of 505 pediatric behavioral encounters. Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, 5, 21-25.

This report assessed outcomes of hypnotherapeutic interventions for 505 children and adolescents seen by four pediatricians over a period of one year and followed from four months to two years. Presenting problems included enuresis, acute pain, chronic pain, asthma, habit disorders, obesity, encopresis, and anxiety. Using strict criteria for determination of problem resolution (e.g., all beds dry) and recognizing that some conditions were intrinsically chronic, the authors found that 51% of these children and adolescents achieved complete resolution of the presenting problem; an additional 32% achieved significant improvement, 9% showed initial or some improvement; and 7% demonstrated no apparent change or improvement. Children as young as three years of age effectively applied self-hypnosis techniques. In general, facility in self-hypnosis increased with age. There was an inverse correlation (p less than 0.001) between clinical success and number of visits, suggesting that prediction of responsivity is possible after four visits or less.

NOTES
Discusses the treatment of 505 pediatric patients with a variety of problems(enuresis, pain, obesity, anxiety reactions, habit problems, encopresis, headache, fear of pelvic examinations).

Nash, Michael R.; Lynn, Steven Jay; Givens, Deborah L. (1984). Adult hypnotic susceptibility, childhood punishment, and child abuse: A brief communication. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 32, 6-11.

Earlier empirical and theoretical work has suggested that there is a relationship between higher hypnotic susceptibility and severity of childhood punishment. Experiment 1 surveyed the parents of 14 extremely high and 11 extremely low susceptible Ss concerning punishment. Low susceptible Ss were found to be more frequently punished than highs; no significant differences were found on the severity measure. Experiment 2 assessed the hypnotizability of 16 adult Ss who reported being physically abused before the age of 10 and compared these scores to those of 300 adult Ss who had not reported being abused. The mean hypnotizability of abused Ss was greater than that of controls, and the distribution of their scores appeared bimodal. Limitations of both experiments are discussed and suggestions are made for future investigations.

Smith, Mark Scott; Kamitsuka, Michael (1984). Self-hypnosis misinterpreted as CNS deterioration in an adolescent with leukemia and Vincristine toxicity. American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis, 26 (4), 280-282.

A thirteen year-old girl with leukemia was taught self-hypnosis techniques for symptom control. She was hospitalized with probable vincristine toxicity and a superimposed hyperventilation syndrome. Her spontaneous use of the self- hypnosis technique was misinterpreted as central nervous system deterioration until her apparently comatose state resolved with suggestions from the therapist.

1982
Hilgard, Josephine R.; LeBaron, Samuel (1982). Relief of anxiety and pain in children and adolescents with cancer: Quantitative measures and clinical observations. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 30, 417-442.

Children and adolescents with cancer, chiefly forms of leukemia, aged 6 to 19 years, underwent medical treatments which required repeated bone marrow aspirations, normally a painful and anxiety-provoking experience. Data were obtained in baseline bone marrow observations on 63 patients, who were then offered the opportunity to volunteer for hypnotic help in pain control. Of the 24 patients who accepted hypnosis, 9 were highly hypnotizable. 10 of the 19 reduced self-reported pain substantially by the first hypnotic treatment (the prompt pain reducers) and 5 more reduced self-reported pain by the second treatment (the delayed pain reducers) while none of the 5 less hypnotizable patients accomplished this. The latter benefitted by reducing anxiety. Short case reports illustrate the variety of experiences.
Analysis of baseline observations before any therapeutic intervention revealed age and sex differences. The difference between self-reported and observed pain was not statistically significant for patients under age 10 but was significant for the patients age 10 and older (p<.001). There were minor but significant sex differences both in observed pain (p<.01) and in self-reported pain (p<.05), with the females reporting more pain. LeBaron, Samuel; Zeltzer, Lonnie (1982, October). The effectiveness of behavioral intervention for reducing chemotherapy related nausea and vomiting in children with cancer. [Paper] Presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, Indianapolis, IN. Eight children (nine to seventeen years, Mean age 12.1) with cancer received behavioral intervention for chemotherapy related nausea and vomiting. Within three to five days after the administration of each course of chemotherapy, patients rated (1-10 scale; 1 = none, 10 = all the time or maximal amount) their nausea and vomiting and the extent to which chemotherapy bothered them and disrupted their daily routine. After a pre-intervention assessment of 2.5 courses of chemotherapy, patients received intervention (Mean = 2.6 courses). Significant reductions following intervention (Wilcoxon matched- pairs signed ranks test) were found in nausea (Z = 2.37, p<.02), vomiting (Z = 2.52, p<.01), bother (Z = 2.24, p<.02), and disruption of activities (Z = 2.38, p<.02). This preliminary study indicates that chemotherapy side effects can be reduced through behavioral intervention. 1981 Gardner, G. G. (1981). Teaching self-hypnosis to children. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 29, 300-312. Hypnotherapy with children increasingly includes teaching self-hypnosis in order that young patients may make the fullest possible use of their hypnotic talent. This paper discusses indications and contraindications, reviews issues of patient resistance and parental involvement, and describes in detail Gardner's 3-step method of teaching self-hypnosis to children. NOTES 1: Table 1 lists the problems treated by self-hypnosis in children aged 3-20 years as: anxiety, asthma, bleeding disorders (hemophilia), body cast immobilization, burns and burn therapy, depression, drug abuse, enuresis, functional megacolon, hair-pulling, helpless feelings, insomnia, learning difficulties, muscle spasm, nausea, pain, poor self-esteem, psychogenic seizures, stuttering, tension. The author lists references discussing the use of self hypnosis with each of these problem areas. 1978 Porter, J. W. (1978). Suggestions and success imagery for study problems. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 26, 63-75. A procedure is presented for dealing with study problems in cases where patients come with an expectancy of help through hypnosis. Specific suggestions directly related to the study difficulty are given. "Success imagery" is outlined for use under hypnosis and by the student himself in his daily life. Two self-management techniques associated with the relaxation induced by exhalation are given further strength by being made posthypnotic suggestions. A direct posthypnotic suggestion for "concentration and recall" is combined with contingency management to effect more efficient performance when the decision is made to study. Four sessions are shown by clinical experience to be generally adequate to allow a transition from therapy to self-management of the problem aided by the student's own use of self-hypnosis. A general outline of how this is achieved for the first three sessions incorporates both Wolberg's (19656) suggestions to remove barriers preventing progress and Stanton's (1977) Rational-Emotive Therapy suggestions to strengthen the person's belief in himself. 1977 Lazar, Billie S. (1977). Hypnotic imagery as a tool in working with a cerebral palsied child. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 25 (2), 78-87. Hypnotic imagery ws used with a moderately severe athetoid cerebral palsied 12-year-old boy who was mildly retarded and a poor hypnotic subject. Techniques included imagery, observation of the self, revivification of relaxing experiences, proprioceptive feedback about the athetoid movements, and dealing with feelings and motivation. Athetoid movements were reduced, results extended beyond the treatment situation, and improvement was made in practical skills. Call, Justin D. (1976). Children, parents, and hypnosis: A discussion. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 24, 149-155. Ease of hypnotic induction in children depends on the setting, expectancies and nature of the relationship between the child, parent, and hypnotist. The capacity to center attention seems to be reflected in an increased alpha base rate. The capacity to suspend reality testing and to become subject to the authority of the hypnotist has its counterpart in the child's relationship with idealized authoritarian parents. Hypnotic induction utilizes the child's readiness for regressive object relations in which union of self and idealized parent imago is reactivated leading to high degrees of both suggestibility and feelings of omnipotence in the child. It is hypothesized that the child shares reality testing with the hypnotist as the infant did earlier with the all-powerful parent. The fact that children can easily be hypnotized by the experienced hypnotist tells us nothing about indication for, dangers of, or potential success of treatment. Brief symptomatic improvement of single symptoms means little and proves nothing. Success of hypnotic treatment with children depends on appropriate articulation of hypnotic procedures with total need-systems of child and family. 1976 Cooper, Leslie M.; London, Perry (1976). Children's hypnotic susceptibility, personality, and EEG patterns. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 24, 140-148. 19 boys and 16 girls, aged 7 to 16, were given the EEG and then the Children's Hypnotic Susceptibility Scale, while a parent watched. About 1 week later, after some separate tests and interviews, each child was given a puzzle to solve in the parent's presence, while Es recorded offers and requests for help. Hypnotic susceptibility was positively correlated with the alpha duration with eyes open, but not with eyes closed. Both susceptibility and alpha duratino tended to be negatively correlated with age. Highly susceptible children tended to wait longer than low susceptibles before asking parents for help with the puzzle, and their parents tended to be more strict, anxious, and impatient than did the parents of low susceptible children. Gardner, G. Gail (1976). Attitudes of child health professionals toward hypnosis: Implications for training. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 24, 63-73. A survey of child health professionals -- pediatricians, pediatric nurses, child psychologists, and child psychiatrists -- revealed that they have generally positive attitudes toward hypnosis but little knowledge of its specific advantages or applications. Recommendations are made for designing training opportunities in hypnosis which might enhance the probability that the professional will actually use hypnosis or refer a child else where for hypnotherapy. Gardner, G. G. (1976). Childhood, death, and human dignity: Hypnotherapy for David. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 24, 122-139. Hypnotherapy can be a significant part of the treatment of a dying child. A detailed clinical report illustrates how hypnotherapy was integrated with other treatment modalities to help a terminally ill child and his family cope effectively with problems and enhance their ability to use their own resources for personal growth and mastery throughout the dying process. NOTES: Includes report of a mother's hypnosis work with her son for the three hours before he died. Illovsky, J.; Fredman, N. (1976). Group suggestion in learning disabilities of primary grade children. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 24, 87-97 This study reports the effects of tape-recorded hypnotic suggestions given to 48 hyperactive children between the ages of 6 and 8 from 3 public schools. The children had short attention spans, low frustration and tolerance [sic], and poor learning motivation. They were taught by the same method in class and received remedial instruction as in the previous year. In order to participate in this study, the children were brought from their regular classrooms every morning to listen in groups of 9, 10, or 19 -- according to the available accommodation in the school -- to suggestions of relaxation, to ideas of coping with emotional problems, and to suggestions of modifying attitudes towards learning. The corrective reading teachers conducted these 15-minute sessions. After the session was over, the children were returned to their respective classes. At the beginning and at the end of the school year, the classroom teachers evaluated the children's behavior in class and their attitudes toward learning. The addition of the modified hypnotic technique enabled 45 of 48 children to function better in school. The improvement ranged from decreased hyperactivity to better than average performance in class. Significant correlations were found between percent of relaxation with increased attention span (r = .40) and number of sessions attended with increased self-confidence (r = .46). Laguaite, J. K. (1976). The use of hypnosis with children with deviant voices. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 24, 98-104. Hypnosis was used with 18 children aged 4 years, 7 months to 10 years, 1 month, with a mean age of 6 years, 8 months. All children had deviant voices -- 7 had vocal nodules, 4 had hypertrophy of the vocal bands, 5 had normal larynges, and 2 could not be visualized adequately. All but 1 of the children responded by entering some degree of trance state. The younger children responded better when eye closure was not suggested. Post-therapy judgments of voice quality and laryngeal examinations showed that only 2 had shown no improvement. The 2 were the least responsive to hypnosis. Factors thought to be important in influencing the children's responses are discussed. Lawlor, E. D. (1976). Hypnotic intervention with 'school phobic' children. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 24, 74-86. Case studies are used to illustrate the use of hypnosis in working with children who exhibit symptoms of "school phobia." Responses obtained during and after hypnosis are utilized to uncover underlying conflicts and fears. The literature (Ansbacher, 1956; Friedman, 1959; Johnson, 1957; Johnson, Falstein, Szurek, & Svendsen, 1941: Kessler, 1966; Waldfogel & Gardner, 1961) confirms the findings that a child through his symptoms has fears which he is unable to bring to consciousness and talk about. Typical are fears of abandonment by parents; fears of disaster befalling parents, especially the mother; fears based on destructive wishes toward siblings due to severe rivalry for the mother's love and attention; fears that exhibiting angry feelings will be punished by the parents; and fears of annihilation and starvation. Hypnosis has aided in restoring these children to a school environment more quickly than more traditional methods. One case is reported with excerpts from a session. The perceptions uncovered through the use of hypnosis can be utilized with children in various school settings. 7-12 yr. olds received 2 role-playing tests in 1 session and London''s Children''s Hypnotic Susceptibility Scale (CHSS) 1 wk. later. Performances were compared to a previous sample of 42 children who had received the same tests in reverse order of administration. Means of the role test were essentially the same in both samples. 1 of the role tests, Dramatic Acting, was unrelated to hypnotic susceptibility in both samples; the other, Hypnotic Simulation, was uncorrelated with overall susceptibility in the present sample, unlike the previous one, but seemed to have inhibited 1 aspect (Subjective Involvement scores) of performance on the CHSS. Order of administration of the simulation test and CHSS also differentially affected some Overt Behavior item scores; CHSS functioned as a rehearsal for the subsequent simulation performance of low-susceptibles, and the simulation test had the same function for the CHSS performances of high-susceptibles. (Spanish & German summaries) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2002 APA, all rights reserved) 1969 Nowlis, D. P. (1969). The child-rearing antecedents of hypnotic susceptibility and of naturally occurring hypnotic-like experience. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 17, 109-120. Data pertaining to early and mid-childhood socialization experiences available from a sample of children and their mothers as studied earlier by R. R. Sears, E. E. Maccoby, H. Levin, and others were related to hypnotizability scores and scores of susceptibility to naturally occurring hypnotic-like experiences for a part of the same sample when the children reached late adolescence. As hypothesized by J. R. Hilgard and E. R. Hilgard (see 37:3) after retrospective interviewing with college-age hypnotic Ss, the present study, using a longitudinal method of investigation, indicated some relationship between firm parental discipline in childhood and subsequent susceptibility to hypnosis and hypnotic-like experiences in adolescence. Correlations, however, were low and the overall yield of significant data was judged to be meager. This was particularly true of hypnotizability scores in relation to the other variables available for analysis. (Spanish & German summaries) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2002 APA, all rights reserved) 1968 Long, T. E. (1968). Some early-life stimulus correlates of hypnotizability. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 16, 61-67. 34 MALE COLLEGE SS WERE PLACED INTO 3 HYPNOTIZABILITY GROUPINGS WITH THE USE OF THE PASCAL TECHNIQUE OF HYPNOSIS. THE PASCAL-JENKINS BEHAVIORAL SCALES WERE USED TO INVESTIGATE STIMULUS SITUATIONS PRESENTED BY MOTHER AND FATHER DURING THE 1ST 10 YR. OF SS'' LIVES. THE SPECIFICALLY DEFINED BEHAVIORAL VARIABLES OF ACTIVITIES WITH S AND DISPLAYS OF AFFECTION FOR THE FATHER STIMULUS CATEGORY AND THE VARIABLE VERBAL PUNISHMENT FOR MOTHER SIGNIFICANTLY DIFFERENTIATED THE HIGH HYPNOTIZABLE SS FROM THE COMBINED MIDDLE-LOW HYPNOTIZABLE SS. THE OTHER PHYSICAL CONTACT VARIABLES, WHICH INVOLVE INTIMATE CONTACT BETWEEN S AND THE PARENT, SHOWED CONSISTENT TRENDS IN THE SAME DIRECTION. THUS, EARLY LIFE FAMILY EXPERIENCES OF A MORE POSITIVE AND LESS DEVIANT NATURE SEEM TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH HIGHER SUSCEPTIBILITY TO HYPNOSIS. (SPANISH + GERMAN ABSTRACTS) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2002 APA, all rights reserved) 1966 Cooper, Leslie M.; London, Perry (1966). Sex and hypnotic susceptibility in children. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 14, 55-60. Sex differences in hypnotic susceptibility were investigated in a sample of 240 children. The Children''s Hypnotic Susceptibility Scale was administered to 10 boys and 10 girls at each age level for 5-16 yr. There were no differences between the means of the boys and girls at any age for the 3 scores yielded by the measure. The percentage passing each item at each age for each sex was also computed. Of the resulting 264 comparisons only 1 (Item 10, Eye Catalepsy) was found to be significantly different at 1 age level (7 yr. of age) and was attributed to chance. It was concluded that there were no sex differences for the various items at the ages tested. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2002 APA, all rights reserved) Moore, R. K.; Cooper, L. M. (1966). Item difficulty in childhood hypnotic susceptibility scales as a function of item wording, repetition, and age. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 14, 316-323. THE CHILDREN''S HYPNOTIC SUSCEPTIBILITY SCALE (CHSS) AND A REVISED VERSION FOR CHILDREN OF THE STANFORD HYPNOTIC SUSCEPTIBILITY SCALE, FORM B (REV. SHSS:B) WERE ADMINISTERED TO 26 CHILDREN, AGES 8-16 YR., TO WHOM THE CHSS HAD BEEN ADMINISTERED 3 YR. EARLIER. COMPARISON OF THE RESULTS OF THE 2 ADMINISTRATIONS OF CHSS SHOWED NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES IN MEANS OR STANDARD DEVIATIONS. THE RELIABILITY WAS .72 (P = .001) WHEN 3 ATYPICAL SS WERE ELIMINATED. THE ITEM DIFFICULTIES OF EYE CLOSURE AND ARM IMMOBILIZATION DIFFERED (P = .05) OVER THE 2 ADMINISTRATIONS, BOTH BEING MORE DIFFICULT AT THE EARLIER TESTING. IT IS SUGGESTED THAT THESE CHANGES WERE A RESULT OF BOTH PRACTICE AND AGE EFFECTS. THE COMPARISON OF THE 2 DIFFERENT SCALES USED AT THE LATER TESTING ALSO SHOWED NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES IN MEAN SCORES OR STANDARD DEVIATIONS. THE CORRELATION BETWEEN THE 2 SCALES WAS .77 (P = .01). 3 ITEMS, EYE CLOSURE, ARM IMMOBILIZATION, AND AMNESIA, SHOWED SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES (P = .05) IN THE PERCENT PASSING THE ITEM, THE 1ST BEING LESS DIFFICULT ON THE REV. SHSS:B, AND THE LATTER 2 BEING MORE DIFFICULT. CONTENT AND PROCEDURAL DIFFERENCES ARE SUGGESTED TO EXPLAIN THESE DIFFERENCES IN ITEM DIFFICULTIES. (SPANISH + FRENCH SUMMARIES) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2002 APA, all rights reserved) 1965 Bernstein, Norman R. (1965). Observations on the use of hypnosis with burned children on a pediatric ward. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 13 (1), 1-10. Several cases are described and observations made about the interplay of forces between staff, patient, and therapist, as well as the expectations of the patients to assess how these factors influenced the use of hypnosis. Hypnosis appears to be a particularly useful means for reaching isolated and depressed children with burns and for improving the morale of the staff team working with these children. The results may be along specific lines in terms of pain tolerance and improved eating, or in general improvement of cooperativeness and mood on the part of the child. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2002 APA, all rights reserved) 1962 Kolouch, Fred T. (1962). Role of suggestion in surgical convalescence. Archives of Surgery, 85, 144-155. NOTES The author is a surgeon who has offered hypnosis to many patients in his practice. His inductions were usually rapid (30 seconds to 10 minutes), stressing optimistic expectations. The procedure is described as follows: "Suggestion is then utilized in a purposeful manner to communicate a reality image of the entire surgical procedure to the patient. A frank but optimistic discussion of morbidity and mortality is made. An estimate of the pain to be experienced is offered with the emphasis that this can be controlled in part and it will be temporary. The patients are told that they may use opiates or sedatives if they feel a need for chemical pain relief. Any subconscious fears of surgery are investigated using ideomotor questioning. These are ventilated by the patient and put in the proper perspective in relationship to the realities of the forthcoming surgical procedure. If the patient is capable, he is taught glove anesthesia of the hand and given a posthypnotic suggestion for the transference of this to his operative site. He is asked to visualize himself at the conclusion of his convalescence, free of his pathology, alive and well and rehabilitated to normal productivity. It is emphasized to him that by judicious application of his subconscious thoughts to relaxation, pain control, normal respiratory, gastrointestinal, and urinary functions, he may rapidly accomplish his own preconceived notion of his convalescence. "He is given a posthypnotic suggestion that he will never respond to hypnosis without his consent. ... "A posthypnotic suggestion is given to establish a simple signal as a trance inducer for future hypnosis or to enable him to use autohypnosis. "The patient who is to have a general anesthetic is given the suggestion that while asleep he will not listen to any conversation in the operating room except that which is directed toward him by name. "In the patients undergoing minor outpatient surgery, hypnosis is frequently induced in the operating room during the scrub time. "Patients undergoing general or regional anesthesia are frequently placed in a trance before the anesthetic period. ... "During the surgery care is taken to keep discussion at a level unrelated to the surgical procedure. ... "At the conclusion, consistent with an honest appraisal of the situation, optimistic, purposeful suggestions are offered the patient while he is still asleep or in hypnosis" (p. 305. The author evaluated the outcome for 100 surgical patients who had received this procedure, using subjective measures (confidence, well-being, freedom from fear and anxiety) and two objective measures (needs for postoperative pain-relieving drugs, and postoperative hospitalization). Seventy-five patients aged 6-80 had 81 different procedures (breast biopsies, tenorrhaphies, orchiopexies, herniorrhapies, thyroidectomies, a radical neck dissection, radical mastectomies, cholecystectomies, gastrectomies, rectal surgery, etc.); the remaining 25 patients had minor outpatient procedures under local or hypnoanesthesia. The author compared the dosage of medications needed by patients he judged to have benefitted from hypnosis and those who didn't benefit. He did the same analysis for length of stay. Based on his own observations, he judged that 75% of the hospitalized patients and nearly all of the OPD patients benefitted and experienced a simplified convalescence. Laparotomy patients required more medications than the other patients. The author compared the hospitalized patients who received hypnotic suggestion to a similar group who were not subjected to such suggestion, on needs for opiates and postoperative hospitalization. There was a reduction in drug needs in most categories of cases, but equal needs in the biliary cases. Patients subjected to thyroidectomy or herniorrhaphy left the hospital sooner if they had been given hypnosis, but the patients undergoing biliary and gastric surgery still required the usual hospital care. Herniorrhapy patients benefitted in terms of catheretization: only was catheterized in the hypnosis group compared to 7 in the nonhypnosis group. The author attributed this outcome to a combination of suggestion and local anesthesia. Postoperative complications were rare in the patients utilizing hypnosis. The economic advantages of suggestion are illustrated in a comparison of the costs of hospitalization of the series of patients undergoing herniorrhaphy and thyroidectomy with and without hypnosis: average cost of thyroidectomy with hypnosis used effectively ($196) and without hypnosis ($311); of herniorrhaphies with hypnosis used effectively ($125) and without hypnosis ($181). N.B. These costs are presumably from the time period of approximately 1959-60, inasmuch as the paper was read at the Annual Session of the Western Surgical Association on December 1, 1961. "Probably the most pleasure for the surgeon results from the observation of the responses of children to suggestion in hypnosis. A degree of cooperation and freedom from fear is exhibited that is nearly unbelievable. With hypnosis in children one may utilize local anesthesia in situations which previously required general anesthetics" (p. 310). 1961 Klopp, Kirk K. (1961). Production of local anesthesia using waking suggestion with the child patient. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 9, 59-62. NOTES Author describes the use of waking suggestion with children, as opposed to hypnosis. The technique "is simply the presentation of an idea which is sold to the child with such emphasis that when it is communicated to him, he accepts it with conviction. As children reason for the most part paralogically, the absence of logical grounds for the acceptance of the idea is arrived at easier than with the more mature mind of the adult" (p. 59). 1956 McCord, Hallack (1956). Hypnosis as an aid to the teaching of a severely mentally retarded teenage boy. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 4 (1), 21-23. (Abstracted in Psychological Abstracts 57: 3729) NOTES A 16 year old boy with I.Q. measured at 55 was hypnotized for 20 minutes daily for one month. During each session he was given material to learn (multiplication tables, spelling words, reading recognition, and general information -- only one presented during each hypnosis session). "At the end of 90 days, the subject was stil retaining amost 100 percent of all material presented except for the multiplication tables which showed about 50 percent loss" (p. 22). "As a result of routinely introduced hypnotic suggestions for well-being, happiness, desire to learn, and assurance of acceptance, Ben's motivation to learn in the classroom situation took a sharp surge upward. (It was for this reason that giving him parallel material in the normal state to be used to measure comparative learning rates promptly became scientifically unsound as a control in this study.)" (p. 22). Although he was not given material to study in between sessions, "it was known that he _mentally_ reviewed the material while working and playing in the school program" (p. 23). COGNITION 1994 Freeman, R.; Barabasz, A.; Barabasz, M. (1994, October). EEG topographic differences between dissociation and distraction during cold pressor pain in high and low hypnotizables. [Paper] Presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, San Francisco. NOTES: Hilgard once said we should study what is going on inside the skull when we study hypnotic behavior. Theta EEG was studied, in 3.5 and 5.5-7.5 band widths, based on Crawford's research (no differences between high and low hypnotizables in low range but significant differences in waking state, eyes closed condition). Also employed new type of distraction procedure. Previously used as comparison conditions things like imagine a pleasant scene, do whatever you can do to reduce pain, or imagine an instructor giving a lecture. Barabasz theorized that highs, given the opportunity, may spontaneously get involved in imagery; so distraction used in some experiments may actually become hypnosis. Here, distraction involved using a storage box, with plexiglass covering front, and 3 lights--subjects were to recall sequence of light changes that occurred during 60 sec when arm was in the cold water. Cold pressor pain. 3 immersions with simultaneous pain reporting and EEG monitoring. --Waking State --Light array distraction --Hypnotic induction and suggested analgesia (Distraction and hypnosis with analgesia were presented in a balanced design) Pain Ratings ranged from 0 = no pain, 10 = level would very much like to remove arm from water (rating could exceed 10 however). After removing arm, subjects were to report the maximum amount of pain that they had felt. Pain Scores were obtained at 30 seconds and 60 seconds after immersion in the cold water. Also got qualitative data. During recovery period after each arm immersion, Subjects were asked what if anything they had done to reduce the pain felt. 30 second pain scores: Waking 7.60 vs 7.50 Distraction 8.60 vs 6.80 Hypnotic analgesia 7.80 vs 4.10 (Significantly different). 60 second pain scores: Showed same trend There was no difference whatsoever for the lows. Results for the 2 EEG sites: P3 left hemisphere parietal in waking and hypnotic analgesia, high theta, had significantly different activity O1 left hemisphere in waking and hypnotic analgesia, was significantly different between highs and lows (same as above). Results for two theta ranges: Low theta range, T4 temporal right hemisphere, for lows in waking and [missed words] condition--hard to interpret this finding. RESULTS. Highs demonstrated pain reduction in hypnotic analgesia compared to waking and distraction conditions and compared to lows. Lows had no differences in any condition. Enhanced EEG theta in left parietal area differentiated highs and lows. This suggests that highs generate enhanced disattention that may be controlled by these areas. P3 area regulates the integration and association of somatic perceptions. The O1 area controls processing of visual imagery. Perhaps high hypnotizables have more ability to alter afferent sensory information through focused attentional processes. Also, the ability to alter the suffering portion of pain experience may involve visual imagery activity. State and trait differences are apparent. The low theta range may be more closely related to slower delta range 0-3.5 that is associated with sleep and drowsiness. High theta = low arousal and attention capacity. That's why theta seems associated with wide range of behaviors that appear contradictory The qualitative data shows highs reported they spontaneously preferred strategies that were more than distraction (associating colors with warmth, thinking of warm water) and the most frequent responses of lows were "nothing" or "told myself it would be over soon." Highs in analgesia condition used no specific strategy: 8/10 reported the arm simply felt more numb. 1993 Atkinson, Richard P. (1993, October). Shifts in Muller-Lyer Illusion difference thresholds: Are high hypnotizables more sensitive than lows in hypnosis?. [Paper] Presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, Arlington Heights, IL. NOTES Refers to Wallace (1979) finding that hypnotizability correlates with afterimage persistence. Atkinson showed highs perform better than lows in perceptual tasks in hypnosis only. Also studies indicate highs are more susceptible to illusions. Our study showed difference in threshold and point of subjective equality for highs and lows. 32 undergraduates had Harvard and Group Stanford Form C, were 9-12 or 0-3 on both scales. Counterbalanced conditions of waking and hypnosis. Used computer monitor to compare length of lines. Waking condition Ss had to close eyes for 15 minutes before the trials, same length of time as for hypnosis condition. Significant interaction between hypnotizability and sessions was observed: highs had significantly decreased difference thresholds in hypnosis compared to waking, and significantly decreased difference thresholds compared to lows in hypnosis. Thus they had greater sensitivity than lows. The point of subjective equality ANOVA did not yield significant effects. Highs show higher sensitivity to illusion in hypnosis than in waking, and more than the lows. NOTES Refers to Wallace (1979) finding that hypnotizability correlates with afterimage persistence. Atkinson showed highs perform better than lows in perceptual tasks in hypnosis only. Also studies indicate highs are more susceptible to illusions. Our study showed difference in threshold and point of subjective equality for highs and lows. 32 undergraduates had Harvard and Group Stanford Form C, were 9-12 or 0-3 on both scales. Counterbalanced conditions of waking and hypnosis. Used computer monitor to compare length of lines. Waking condition Ss had to close eyes for 15 minutes before the trials, same length of time as for hypnosis condition. Significant interaction between hypnotizability and sessions was observed: highs had significantly decreased difference thresholds in hypnosis compared to waking, and significantly decreased difference thresholds compared to lows in hypnosis. Thus they had greater sensitivity than lows. The point of subjective equality ANOVA did not yield significant effects. Highs show higher sensitivity to illusion in hypnosis than in waking, and more than the lows. NOTES Author is developing Ernest Hartman's Mental Boundaries Questionnaire. Hartman does research on chronic nightmare sufferers. He says they have thin mental boundaries, defined in various ways. Art students have thin boundaries, Navy officers thick boundaries. The questionnaire has 145 items, less 7 that are scored zero. Item Groups: Sleep/wake/dream Unusual experiences (e.g., deja vu) Thoughts, feelings, moods Child, Adolescent, Adulthood feelings Sensitivity Neat, exact, precise Edges, lines, clothing (flexible space) = Personal score Opinions about children about organizations about people, nations, groups, about beauty, truth = World total Sumbound (personal + world total) Hypnotizability should relate to Personal score more than World total. Also used: 2. Field's Inventory 3. Kirsch's Inner subjective experiences (of the Harvard Scale) 4. Tellegen's Absorption Scale 5. Harvard Hypnotizability Scale Gave the measures in different contexts from the hypnotizability measures. The Absorption scale (different subscales) correlated best with the Hartman's scale, but subjective scales also correlated with "Personal Score." The lack of significant correlation between Harvard and Thinness of Boundaries questionnaires may be due to differences in voluntariness experience on the Harvard. Or Woody and others suggest hypnotic response may be due to compliance in some samples. Barrett had found a correlation of .19 with hypnotizability; and Robert Kunzendorf found a similar correlation. 1993 Dabic-Jeftic, Mirjana; Barnes, Graham (1993). Event-related potentials (P300) during cognitive processing in hypnotic and non-hypnotic conditions. Psychiatria Danubina, 5 (1-2), 47-61. In this study authors investigated to find out if there were any specific changes of event related potentials in subjects before hypnosis, entering hypnosis, in deep hypnosis and leaving hypnosis, and to compare mental activities of subjects such as capability of correctly calculating and remembering the exact number of unexpected stimuli delivered by stimulator with their verbal or nonverbal reports during any of the conditions investigated. The methodology was of testing the cognitive evoked potentials elicited by auditive stimuli, using the oddball paradigm. Obtained results show that the most constant values of shortest latency and highest amplitudes of the cognitive waves, especially P300 were found during deep hypnosis. All five subjects in the investigation answered with the exact number of delivered target stimuli only after deep hypnosis. Conversely, in all other conditions their answers were approximate to the correct number of delivered target stimuli. (Author abstract.) NOTES: