Measures of tolerance, self-reported pain threshold, and overall discomfort of cold-pressor pain were obtained from 114 male subjects in a pretest-training-posttest experiment. Training consisted of brief practice in one of four cognitive strategies: rational thinking, compatible imagery, incompatible imagery, and task-irrelevant cognition. Analyses of covariance indicated (a) that cognitive-imaginal strategies facilitated endurance of pain and raised self-reported threshold, (b) that rational thinking and compatible imagery were generally the most effective treatments, (c) that expectancy alone was not a significant pain-attenuating factor, (d) that treatments did not affect discomfort ratings, and (e) that individual differences in imaginal ability and coping style did not correlation with changes in any of the dependent measures.
Spanos, Nicholas P.; Radtke-Bodorik, H. Lorraine; Ferguson, John D.; Jones, Bill (1979). The effects of hypnotic susceptibility, suggestions for analgesia, and the utilization of cognitive strategies on the reduction of pain. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 88, 282-292.
Subjects previously stratified in terms of hypnotic susceptibility had an arm immersed in ice water for a 60-sec pretest and, afterward, were assigned to one of four treatments: (a) hypnosis plus analgesia suggestion, (b) hypnosis alone, (c) suggestion alone, or (d) no hypnosis – no suggestion. Next, the subjects were retested in ice water and then interviewed about their experiences during the retest. High susceptibles reported the use of more cognitive strategies during the retest and showed greater pretest-to-retest pain magnitude reductions than did low susceptibles. Similar effects occurred for subjects given, as opposed to not given, a suggestion. The hypnosis variable, however, failed to affect either strategy use or pain magnitude. Strategy use facilitated pain reduction only for subjects who did no worry about, and did not exaggerate, the unpleasantness of the situation (i.e., noncatastrophizers). The very few subjects who showed dramatic pretest- to-retest reductions in pain magnitude (50% reduction or more) were all high-susceptible noncatastrophizers who used one or more cognitive strategies.
Turk, Dennis C.; Meichenbaum, Donald H.; Berman, William H. (1979). Application of biofeedback for the regulation of pain: A critical review. Psychological Bulletin, 86 (6), 1322-1338.
The biofeedback literature for the regulation of pain is reviewed and found wanting on both conceptual and methodological grounds. In particular, studies on the use of biofeedback for the treatment of tension and migraine headaches and chronic pain indicate that biofeedback was not found to be superior to less expensive, less instrument- oriented treatments such as relaxation and coping skills training. The relative absence of needed control comparisons was noted, and the need for caution in promoting biofeedback was stressed. Suggestions for future research are offered.
1978
Shipley, R. H.; Butt, J. H.; Horowitz, B.; Farbry, J. E. (1978). Preparation for a stressful medical procedure: Effect of amount of stimulus preexposure and coping style. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 46, 499-507.
Anxiety during the stressful medical procedure of endoscopy was studied as a function of the number of prior viewings of an explicit preparation videotape and of repression-sensitization coping style. Sixty naive patients viewed a videotaped endoscopy either zero, one, or three times. Dependent measures included heart rate, behavioral ratings, tranquilizer required, and self-report. On each dependent measure, three viewings generally resulted in the least distress; one, more distress; and zero, the most distress. Most comparisons reached statistical significance. These results are interpreted as resulting from extinction and/or habituation of anxiety. The repression-sensitization factor interacted with heart rate change. Sensitizers showed a monotonic decrease in heart rate as a function of number of tape exposures. Repressors showed an inverted-U-shaped function, with one viewing producing the highest heart rate; this is interpreted as resulting from a disruption of repressing defenses by one tape exposure followed by extinction of fear by three exposures.
1977
Gatchel, Robert J.; Hatch, John P.; Watson, Paur J.; Smith, Dan; Gaas, Elizabeth (1977). Comparative effectiveness of voluntary heart rate control and muscular relaxation as active coping skills for reducing speech anxiety. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 1093-1100.
The present study investigated whether heart rate biofeedback training is as effective as muscular relaxation training in reducing speech anxiety. Also, a combined muscle relaxation/biofeedback treatment group was included in this study. All treatment groups were compared to a false-biofeedback placebo control group. This investigation also assessed whether the degree of autonomic nervous system awareness significantly influences the treatment process. Ten speech-anxious subjects, half of whom scored high on the Autonomic Perception Questionnaire (APQ) and half of whom scored low on the APQ, were assigned to each group. Results indicated that all four groups demonstrated a decrease in self-reported anxiety. Assessment of physiological measures (heart rate and skin conductance) indicated that the three treatment groups were associated with less physiological responding during the posttreatment assessment of anxiety, relative to the false-biofeedback group. Moreover, among the three treatment groups, the combined relaxation/biofeedback group demonstrated the lowest level of responding. The degree of autonomic awareness was not found to be related to therapeutic improvement.
1976
Gardner, Gail G. (1976). Hypnosis and mastery: Clinical contributions and directions for research. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 24 (3), 202-214.
This paper explores the concept of mastery in relation to hypnotherapy by pulling together clinical observations and suggesting directions for research. It is suggested that a sense of mastery may enhance the effectiveness of hypnosis, either by facilitating induction, or by strengthening hypnotherapeutic suggestions, or by maintaining hypnotherapeutic gains. Moreover, the qustion is raised as to whether hypnotherapy, as compared with other psychotherapeutic approaches, better facilitates the development of a sense of mastery.
Gatchel, Robert J.; Proctor, Janet D. (1976). Effectiveness of voluntary heart rate control in reducing speech anxiety. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 381-389.
The effects of learned control of heart rate deceleration and therapeutic expectancy set in reducing speech anxiety were investigated in a factorial design employing 36 speech-anxious subjects. Heart rate control training and no heart rate control training were each paired with high-therapeutic-expectancy and neutral- expectancy instructions, in order to assess the individual and combined effects of the two factors. Results demonstrated that learning to control heart rate deceleration led to a significant reduction in self-report, physiological (heart rate and skin conductance level), and overt signs of anxiety, relative to the no-heart-rate control condition. High- therapeutic-expectancy instructions also contributed to a reduction in self-reported anxiety. These results demonstrate that learned heart rate control is an effective therapeutic technique for reducing anxiety.
1974
Chaves, John F.; Barber, Theodore Xenophon (1974). Cognitive strategies, experimenter modeling, and expectation in attenuation of pain. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 83 (4), 356-363.
Verbal reports of pain were obtained from 120 subjects during a base-level pretest and also during a posttest conducted under one of several experimental treatments. The pain stimulus was a heavy weight applied to a finger for two minutes. During the posttest, subjects who had been asked to utilize cognitive strategies for reducing pain (to imagine pleasant events or to imagine the finger as insensitive) showed a reduction in pain as compared to uninstructed control subjects. Subjects led to expect a reduction in pain, but not provided with cognitive strategies, also showed reduced pain during the posttest as compared to control subjects, but the reduction was smaller than for subjects using cognitive strategies. An experimenter modeling procedure, used with one half of the subjects under each experimental treatment, was effective in reducing verbal reports of pain only for subjects with high pretest levels who were asked to imagine pleasant events.
1969
Frankenthal, Kate (1969). Autohypnosis and other aids for survival in situations of extreme stress. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 17, 153-159
Presents case histories where strong autosuggestion was utilized to survive in situations of extreme stress by dissociating unbearable realities. The difference between hypnosis and depersonalization is discussed. (Spanish & German summaries) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2002 APA, all rights reserved)
CREATIVITY/ART
2002
Manmiller, Jessica L.; Kumar, V. K.; Pekala, Ronald J. (2002). Hypnotizability, creative capacity, creativity styles, absorption and phenomenological experience. [Paper] Presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, Chicago.
The study investigated relationships between creative capacity, styles of creativity, hypnotizability, and absorption. Participants were 429 students enrolled in Introduction to Psychology classes. Students first completed questionnaires pertaining to creative capacity, creativity styles, and absorption (Tellegen””s Absorption Scale). They were subsequently hypnotized using the Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility and completed the Phenomenology of Consciousness Inventory. The pattern of results suggests that creative capacity is more closely related to absorption than hypnotizability. The support for P. G. Bowers” assertion that effortless experiencing while engaged in creative tasks and hypnotic tasks is a process that is common to both high creative and high hypnotizable subjects was weak. Hypnotizability was more strongly and negatively correlated with volitional control for suggestions experienced during hypnosis, than both absorption and creative capacity. Creativity styles of belief in unconscious processes, use of techniques, final product orientation (intrinsic/extrinsic) motivation, environmental control and behavioral self-regulation, and supersition were negatively correlated with volitional control (feeling of effortlessness experiencing) during hypnosis, but the correlations were small in magnitude” (Bulletin of Division 30, Psychological Hypnosis, Fall, 2002, Vol. 11, No. 3, P. 14).
2001
Gibbons, Don E. (2001). Experience as an art form: Hypnosis, hyperempiria, and the Best Me technique. San Jose CA: Authors Choice Press. (([available online:] http//www.iuniverse.com/bookstore/marketplace))
NOTES
The Best Me Technique is a procedure for constructing suggestions which incorporates many different dimensions of experience — beliefs, emotions, sensations, thoughts, motives, and expectations — for maximum involvement and effectiveness. Best Me suggestions may be used with either hyperempiria, an alert induction based on suggestions of mind expansion and increased alertness and sensitivity, or with more traditional forms of hypnotic induction.
2000
Gibbons, Don (2000). Applied hypnosis and hyperempiria. New York NY: Plenum Press. ([available online:] http://www.iuniverse.com/bookstore)
NOTES
The book features both traditional hypnotic procedures and hyperempiric inductions based on suggestions of increased awareness, mind expansion, and increased alertness and sensitivity. It contains sections on the use of suggestion as an instrument of personal growth in areas such as improving study skills, taking examinations, achievement motivation, artistic expression, emotional enrichment, aesthetic appreciation and enjoyment, interpersonal effectiveness, musical performance, problem solving, public speaking, salesmanship, sports performance, theatrical performance, and writing ability.
1996
Wallace, Benjamin; Allen, Philip A.; Propper, Ruth E. (1996). Hypnotic susceptibility, imaging ability, and anagram-solving activity. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 44 (4), 324-337.
Anagram-solving activity was examined as a function of hypnotic susceptibility level and imaging ability. In Experiment 1, anagrams that were composed of sets of letters that formed actual words (word anagrams), but when unscrambled formed other words, were compared to sets of letters that formed nonwords (nonsense anagrams). Word anagrams required more time to solve than nonsense anagrams. Also, fewer word anagrams were correctly solved compared to nonsense anagrams. Those individuals judged both high in hypnotic susceptibility and vivid in imaging ability demonstrated the best performance. In Experiment 2, anagrams that when unscrambled formed high-imagery words were compared to those that formed low-imagery words. High-imagery-word anagrams were solved more quickly and correctly than low-imagery-word anagrams. Such activity was best demonstrated by individuals who were judged to be both high in hypnotic susceptibility and vivid in imaging ability. These results are discussed in terms of strategies for solving anagrams and the individual differences that appear to be associated with using such strategies. — Journal Abstract
1992
Lynn, Steven Jay; Sivec, Harry (1992). The hypnotizable subject as creative problem-solving agent. In Fromm, Erika; Nash, Michael R. (Ed.), Contemporary hypnosis research (pp. 292-333). Guilford Press.
NOTES
These notes are taken only from the section of this chapter that deals with Hypnotic Responding, Imaginative Activity, and Expectancies, and they treat of the concept of nonvoluntary responding (pp 315-316). Other topics covered in the chapter include: Imagination, Fantasy, and Hypnosis Theories; The Hypnotizable Subject as Creative Problem-Solving Agent; Hypnosis and Subjects’ Capability for Imaginative Activity; Goal-Directed Fantasy: Patterns of Imaginative Activity during Hypnosis; Hypnosis and Creativity; and a Conclusion.
Several studies manipulated expectancies re the relationship between imagination and involuntariness. When Ss were told that “good” hypnotic subjects could (or could not) resist suggestions, “this information affected their ability to resist the hypnotist and tended to affect subjects’ report of suggestion-related involuntariness … [Lynn, Nash, Rhue, Frauman, & Sweeney, 1984]. Furthermore, subjects who successfully resisted suggestions and subjects who failed to do so reported comparable levels of hypnotic depth and imaginative involvement in suggestions.
“Spanos, Cobb, and Gorassini (1985) conducted a similar experiment in which they found that hypnotizable subjects who were instructed that they could become deeply involved in suggestions and yet resist them successfully resisted 95% of the suggestions and rated themselves as maintaining voluntary control over their behavior. Thus, subjects are able to resist nearly all of the suggestions when resistance is facilitated by situational demands. It is worth noting that subjects in this research who resisted hypnotic suggestions rated themselves as just as deeply involved in the suggestions as Ss who failed to resist suggestions after being informed that deeply hypnotized subjects were incapable of resisting suggestions” (pp. 315-316).
Lynn, Snodgrass, et al. (1987). showed that hypnotizable Ss who were just “imagining” along with suggestions but instructed to resist responding to motoric suggestions acted the way hypnotized Ss did in their earlier countersuggestion research: imagining subjects tended to move in response to suggestion (that “good” Ss responded in certain ways), despite being instructed to resist. In this study, with instructions designed to increase the use of goal directed fantasies (GDFs), low and high hypnotizable subjects reported equivalent GDF absorption and frequency of GDFs. However, highs responded more and reported greater involuntariness than lows, even when their GDFs were equivalent.
“A number of other studies have examined the effects of expectancies on imaginings and hypnotic behavior. Spanos, Weekes, and de Groh (1984) informed subjects that deeply hypnotized individuals could imagine an arm movement in one direction while their unconscious caused the arm to move in the opposite direction. Even though subjects so informed moved in the opposite direction, they imagined suggested effects and described their countersuggestion behavior as involuntary” (p. 317).
1991
Crowson, J. Jeffrey, Jr.; Conroy Aileen M.; Chester, Traci D. (1991). Hypnotizability as related to visually induced affective reactivity: A brief communication. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 39 (3), 140-144.
Numerous studies have explored the relationship between hypnotizability and individual differences in imaginative involvement and creativity. Most have assessed imaginative or affective involvement by involving Ss in a variety of imaging tasks. Unlike these earlier studies, however, the present study made no attempt to actively involve Ss in the film viewing task. Rather, individuals assessed as high, medium, or low in hypnotizability were exposed to either a violent film, a neutral film, or no film. Results provided tentative evidence to indicate that the level of negative affect reported was significantly greater for highly hypnotizable Ss. Results were discussed in terms of the limitations of the present study and implications for future studies.
1990
Biasutti, M. (1990). Music ability and altered states of consciousness: An experimental study. International Journal of Psychosomatics, 37, 82-85.
The relationship between music and altered states of consciousness was studied with 30 subjects divided into hypnosis and control groups. The “Test di abilita musicale” was applied. The hypnosis group did the retest after posthypnotic suggestions and the second in waking conditions. The hypnosis group had better results than the control group, especially in the rhythm test (p < 0.0001). Freeman, William B., Jr.; Kessler, Marc; Vigne, Jeffery (1990). Random number generation, absorption, and hypnotizability: A brief communication. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 38, 10-16. Graham and Evans (1977) found that a measure of random number generation (RNG) was related to hypnotizability. In 2 studies, the relationship between hypnotizability and Graham and Evans' RNG (1977) index was examined. In Study 1 Evans' (1981) measures of controlled and automatic absorption were also evaluated. In Study 1 no relationship was found between the measures of absorption or RNG and hypnotizability. Since Study 1 was carried out primarily to evaluate methods for modifying hypnotizability, Study 2 was designed to evaluate RNG measure directly. Study 2 found no consistent relationship between RNG and hypnotizability, or between RNG and measures of the experience of hypnotic depth and nonvolition. 1989 Zamore, Neal; Barrett, Deirdre (1989). Hypnotic susceptibility and dream characteristics. Psychiatry Journal of the University of Ottawa, 14 (4). This study examined the relationship of hypnotic susceptibility to a variety of dream characteristics and types of dream content. A Dream Questionnaire was constructed synthesizing Gibson's dream inventory and Hilgard's theoretical conceptions of hypnosis. Several dream dimensions correlated significantly with hypnotizability as measured by the Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility and the Field Inventory. For Ss as a whole, the strongest correlates were the frequency of dreams which they believed to be precognitive and out-of-body dreams. Ability to dream on a chosen topic also correlated significantly with hypnotic susceptibility for both genders. For females only, there was a negative correlation of hypnotizability to flying dreams. Absorption correlated positively with dream recall, ability to dream on a chosen topic, reports of conflict resolution in dreams, creative ideas occurring in dreams, amount of color in dreams, pleasantness of dreams, bizarreness of dreams, flying dreams, and precognitive dreams. 1988 Lynn, Steven Jay; Rhue, Judith W. (1988). Fantasy proneness: Hypnosis, developmental antecedents, and psychopathology. American Psychologist, 43 (1), 35-44. This article presents a summary of the findings of our ongoing research program on the fantasy-prone person. In seven studies, nearly 6,000 college students were screened in order to obtain five samples of 156 fantasy-prone subjects. Fantasy- prone subjects (fantasizers) were selected from the upper 2%-4% of the college population on a measure of imaginative involvement and contrasted with nonfantasizers (lower 2%-4%), and medium fantasy-prone subjects (middle range). General support was secured for Wilson and Barber's construct of fantasy proneness: Fantasizers were found to differ from nonfantasizers, and in many cases also from medium-range subjects, on measures of hypnotizability, imagination, waking suggestibility, hallucinatory ability, creativity, psychopathology, and childhood experiences. Differences in hypnotizability were most reliable when subjects participated in a multisession study and were screened not only with the screening inventory, but also with an interview that substantiated their fantasy-prone status. However, our findings indicated that less correspondence between fantasy proneness and hypnotizability exists than Wilson and Barber suggested. Hypnotic responsiveness is possible even in the absence of well-developed imaginative abilities, and not all fantasizers were highly hypnotizable. Fantasizers recollected being physically abused and punished to a greater degree than other subjects did and reported experiencing greater loneliness and isolation as children. Many fantasizers appeared to be relatively well-adjusted; however, a subset of fantasizers were clearly maladjusted based on self- report, Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), and Rorschach test data. Because of the diversity inherent in the fantasy-prone population, it is misleading to think of individuals at the extreme end of the fantasy-proneness continuum as conforming to a unitary personality type. 1987 Lynn, Steven Jay; Rhue, Judith W. (1987). Hypnosis, imagination, and fantasy. Journal of Mental Imagery, 11, 101-112. Considers three questions pertaining to the relationship between hypnotic responsiveness and imaginative processes: Are subjects' nonhypnotic imaginative involvements related to hypnotic susceptibility? Do some fantasy prone subjects share a unique constellation of personality attributes and experiences, including an ability to respond to hypnotic suggestions? What are the childhood developmental antecedents of persons who score at the extremes of hypnotic ability and measures of fantasy and imagination? Reviews literature. 1886 Cole, Ronald William (1986, February). Posthypnotic suggestion and the production of creative imagination imagery (Dissertation, Mississippi State University). Dissertation Abstracts International, 47 (8), 2953-A. This investigation assessed the effect of posthypnotic suggestions in facilitating creativity in persons highly susceptible to hypnosis. Fifty college-age subjects from educational psychology and psychology classes at Mississippi State University who scored 9 or above on the Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility were used. Groups of 10 subjects were randomly assigned to one of five conditions: a) hypnosis/creative learning set instructions b) relaxation/creativity learning set instructions c) hypnosis only d) relaxation only e) posttest only "Subjects in the hypnosis/creative learning set instructions group received 25 min. of hypnosis and creativity instruction. The relaxation/creative learning set instructions group received 25 min. of relaxation and creativity instructions. The hypnosis-only group received 25 min. of hypnosis and then completed mazes. The relaxation-only group received 25 min. of relaxation and then completed mazes. And lastly, the control group received the posttest only. All groups were given the Torrance Test of Creative Thinking (TTCT), Verbal and Figural Forms A, 1 week after receiving their treatment conditions. The results indicated that the combination of hypnosis and creativity instructions produced significantly higher mean scores on the Verbal Form A -- fluency, flexibility, and originality subtests, and Figural Form A elaboration subtest, and lend support to the contention that posthypnotic suggestions can increase creativity (as measured by the TTCT) in high susceptible subjects. The components of both hypnosis and creativity instruction had to be present to increase creative performance. There was a tendency for relaxation combined with creativity instructions to show decreases in creativity scores. "The hypnotic state was seen as necessary for the unconscious acceptance of creativity instructions (low volitional control), while the relaxed state produced conscious contamination of suggestions for creativity (high volitional control). It was postulated that it was the difference in volitional control which produced the positive responses to posthypnotic suggestions to be more creative in the group receiving hypnosis and creativity instructions" (p. 2953). Lynn, Steven Jay; Rhue, Judith W. (1986). The fantasy-prone person: Hypnosis, imagination, and creativity. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51, 404-408. Experimenters selected subjects who ranged along the continuum of fantasy proneness and assessed hypnotizability, absorption, vividness of mental imagery (QMI; Sheehan, 1967), response to waking suggestion (Creative Imagination Scale), creativity, and social desirability (Crowne & Marlowe). Fantasy-proneness was evaluated with the Inventory of Childhood Memories and Imaginings (Wilson & Barber, 1981). Strong support was secured for J. R. Hilgard's construct of imaginative involvement and Wilson and Barber's contention that fantasy prone persons can be distinguished from others in terms of fantasy and related cognitive processes. Fantasizers were found to outscore subjects in both comparison groups on all of the measures of fantasy, imagination, and creativity, with social desirability used as a covariate. Low fantasy-prone subjects were no less creative or less responsive to hypnosis than their medium fantasy-prone counterparts. 1985 Ashton, M.A.; McDonald, R.D. (1985). Effects of hypnosis on verbal and non-verbal creativity. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 33 (1), 15-26. 60 female volunteers, 30 hypnotizable and 30 unhypnotizable, screened on 2 measures of hypnotizability, were assigned to a hypnosis, simulation, or waking motivated treatment condition to assess whether hypnosis has a differentially enhancing effect upon verbal and non-verbal creativity test performance. Verbal and figural components of the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking (Torrance, 1974) and the Sounds and Images Test (Cunnington & Torrance, 1965) were the principal dependent variables. Postexperimental measures of absorption and effortless experiencing were also obtained. A 2 x 3 independent groups ANOVA did not sustain the prediction of an interaction effect between S hypnotizability and the presence of hypnosis on 3 composite measures of verbal and nonverbal creativity. Although there was an absence of treatment effects, hypnotizable Ss consistently achieved higher scores on the Torrance scoring categories, and their performance was statistically superior on a composite index of overall creativity. Absorption and effortless experiencing measures were also significantly higher for hypnotizable Ss than for unhypnotizable Ss. Kerry Buhk; Rhue, Judith; Henry, Stephanie; Lynn, Steven Jay (1985, November). Fantasy proneness: Are their word associations richer?. [Paper] Presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, Asheville, NC. NOTES: Experimenters screened 7000 students to get 6 samples of fantasy prone Ss (top 2.4% on Wilson and Barber's ICMI). They found less association between fantasy proneness and hypnotizability than did Wilson and Barber. They had fantasizers hallucinate a second cup next to a first styrofoam cup. Results were that 87% of High fantasizers, < 50% Medium fantasizers, < 25% Low fantasizers could do it, but they didn't describe seeing the hallucinated cup "as real as real" as Wilson and Barber said they did. Experimenters were concerned about context effects (expectancy) because the Creativity and Fantasy Proneness tests were run proximal in time, so they separated in time the administration of Fantasy Prone and Creativity tests and also looked at word associations. 23 High and 20 Low fantasy prone students selected by ICMI, which was administered to Subjects 18 mos before the creativity study. At the time of the creativity study, Ss were informed they were randomly picked. There were two 90' sessions, counterbalanced. Sessions: 1. Hallucinate image of R.A. and of styrofoam cup. Other tests were administered for intelligence and personality: Shipley-Hartford, MMPI, Crowne-Marlowe, etc. 2. Creativity tests (Revised Art Scale, Hilgard's Alternate Uses; story production which was scored on detail, imagery and fantasy and on imagery nouns.) Results of this study which was independent of context (i.e. the tests being correlated were administered independently of each other, separated by time). 1. Fantasizers were more creative than low fantasizers on both Creativity Scales. 2. Fantasizers show more divergent thinking on Hilgard Alternate Uses test, but relationship between fantasy proneness and creativity were not strong, r = .30. 3. Fantasizers and non fantasizers did not differ on the story measures! This diverges from Wilson and Barber's results. Fantasizers may have more vivid images, but storytelling does not capture that. 1984 Kearns, John S.; Zamansky, Harold S. (1984). Synthetic versus analytic imaging ability as correlates of hypnotizability. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 32, 41-50. It was hypothesized that synthetic imaging ability, but not analytic imaging ability, is positively related to hypnotizability. The correlation of scores on a paired- associates task, used as a measure of synthetic imaging ability, with scores on the Stanford Hypnotic Susceptibility Scale, Form C (SHSS:C) of Weitzenhoffer and Hilgard (1962), indicated a statistically nonsignificant trend in the predicted direction. 2 measures of analytic imaging ability, as well as Sheehan's (1967) revision of the Betts (1909) Questionnaire Upon Mental Imagery, a measure of vividness of imagery, did not correlate significantly with SHSS:C. The results are discussed in terms of their relation to studies of creativity and goal-directed fantasy. NOTES The authors review the literature on imagery and hypnotizability and propose that an important variable in hypnosis is an ability to expand imaginatively upon a given verbal input (synthetic imaging ability), akin to Spanos' (1971) concept of goal-directed fantasy. They cite studies relating creativity ("essentially a synthetic process") to hypnotizability, and predict that skill in solving spatial relations problems (analytic imaging ability) is not correlated with hypnotizability because it involves "accurately scanning visual images and converging on solutions to specific problems," (p. 42) rather than creative fantasy characteristic of hypnotic behavior. Forty Subjects had two sessions each: imagery tests in #1 and SHSS:C in #2. Imagery tests included, in this order: 1. Paired Associates (Paivio, 1972; a test of synthetic imaging), in which paired words are learned and later recalled; Experimental Ss were to learn them by combining them into an image, while Control Ss were to simply try to learn them. The nouns differed in imagery strength (potential for stimulating images). 2. Nonsense Forms (a test of analytic imaging), in which Subjects trace with their fingers an irregularly shaped Masonite form, blindfolded, and then choose one of 5 drawings that best matches the form. 3. Cube Visualization (a test of analytic imaging), in which Ss imagine a 2" wooden cube painted red on all faces, that had been sawed into 1" cubes; they are to say how many of the smaller cubes would be red on 3 faces, 2 faces, one face, and none of the faces. 4. Betts QMI. The Paired Associates (PA) scores were a ratio of high imagery words recalled to low imagery words recalled, intended to reflect the impact of imagery availability on memory. There was a trend for hypnotizability to correlate with PA ratio scores, regardless of whether intermediate or low imagery nouns were used as baseline (rho = .37 and .34, p <.10) in the experimental group ("Use imagery to learn."), a trend that was not found in the control group (no imagery instructions). Neither measure of analytic imaging ability (Nonsense Forms, Cube test) correlated with hypnotizability. In their Discussion, the authors write, "The common factor in successful performance of both imagery-mediated paired associates learning tasks and hypnotic suggestions appears to be the ability to expand imaginatively upon a given verbal input" (p. 47). They cite the literature relating hypnotizable and creative performance (p. 47). "The present findings with the Nonsense Forms Test and the Cube Visualization Test, both of which failed to correlate significantly with SHSS:C, support the hypothesis that hypnotizability is not related to analytic, spatial-imagining skills" (p. 47). "The nonsignificant correlation between Betts QMI and SHSS:C adds to the growing body of inconsistent findings observed with Betts QMI" (p. 47). "Given the complex nature of hypnotic susceptibility and of imagery (Monteiro et al., 1980), it is perhaps not surprising that studies attempting to relate the two variables directly frequently yield only modest relationships. Very likely, the inclusion of appropriate mediating variables would serve to clarify and, in particular instances, augment the relationships observed between hypnotic responsiveness and imaging ability. One such variable may be the capacity to become fully involved in everyday nonhypnotic experiences, commonly called absorption. This variable has been shown in numerous studies to be related to hypnotizability (e.g. Tellegen & Atkinson, 1974), as well as to creativity and vividness of imagery (P. Bowers, 1978, 1979; Monteiro et al., 1980). Even more relevant to the present study is the possible interaction between level of hypnotic susceptibility and the relationship between synthetic imaging ability and SHSS:C scores. It may be, for example, that the contribution of synthetic imaging ability becomes more critical in eliciting hypnotic behavior from Ss who are only moderately susceptible to hypnosis. Such an analysis was not possible in the present experiment, since the number of high, medium, and low susceptible Ss was approximately equal, and, therefore, the number of Ss at each level was insufficient for an adequate subgroup analysis. Clearly, however, future studies of the role of imaginal skills in hypnotic responsivity must move in directions such as these" (p. 48). 1982 Crawford, Helen J. (1982). Cognitive processing during hypnosis; much unfinished business. Research Communications in Psychology, Psychiatry and Behavior, 7, 169-179. Studies of cognitive processing during hypnosis per se are reviewed suggesting that hypnotically responsive individuals not only experience subjective changes during hypnosis that are seen as often being discontinuous from their normal consciousness but also may exhibit measurable cognitive changes. Evidence (ego functioning changes, enhanced creativity, enhanced imagery processing, etc.) is presented to support the hypothesis that hypnosis may involve a shift in cognitive functioning away from a verbal, detail-oriented strategy towards a more imaginal, non-analytic, holistic- oriented strategy. Limitations of present research and potentially valuable research areas are discussed. NOTES The author reviews evidence for cognitive changes during hypnosis--evident especially in high hypnotizables but also to some degree in moderate hypnotizables. She concludes that there may be changes in ego functioning, imagery functioning, creativity, and strategy preferences and that high hypnotizables are more flexible in cognitive processing . "The question remains whether or not there are accompanying objectively measurable cognitive changes during hypnosis" (p. 170). "In normal waking consciousness, the hypnotically responsive individual is typically found to be more involved in nonhypnotic imaginative activities and experiences (Hilgard, 1979; Tellegen & Atkinson, 1974), more able to image things (for review, see Sheehan, 1979) and daydream vividly and positively (Crawford, 1982), more able to perceive gestalt closure figures (Crawford, 1981), more able to divert attentional process (e.g., Karlin, 1979), and more creative on certain tasks (e.g., P. Bowers, 1979). Experiential reports indicate that it is these very cognitive processes, amongst others, which are perceived to be enhanced or changed during the hypnotic state" (p. 170). "Levin and Harrison (1976) found that hypnosis ego changes occurred most in those individuals who also demonstrated good capacity for adaptive regression in the waking state" (p. 171). "Dave (1979) compared hypnotically induced dreams with rational-cognitive treatment as to their effects on creative problem solving of the problems or projects. 'Conditional support' was given to the significantly stronger effect form the hypnotically induced dreams" (p. 172). There are many investigations of the effect of hypnosis on imagery, with a number of methodological problems. "Self-reports can be criticized on the grounds that they are easily subject to demand characteristics, subject expectations, and social desirability influences. Coe et al. (1980) found order of condition influenced their findings, while Crawford (1979) found that imagery rating scales suffered from a low ceiling effect among high imagers" (pp. 172-173). "Surprisingly, while the field of cognitive psychology has devoted extensive attention to the study of the enhancing effects of imagery upon memory, few of their paradigms have been applied to the study of hypnotic processing of information. Germaine to the field of hypnosis are three operational approaches to the investigation of imagery: (a) the manipulation of the availability of imagery as a coding device, such as varying the degree to which stimuli may evoke imagery, (b) the manipulation of the processing strategy in cognitive performance, such as asking subjects to use imagery in the mediation of stimuli information, and (c) the comparing of information processing strategies and performance in subjects who are low and high in imagery ability (Paivio, 1971)" (p. 173). "Several studies (Nomura, Crawford, & Slater, 1981; Walker, Garrett, & Wallace, 1976; Wallace, 1978) found that a very few high hypnotizables can successfully produce eidetic imagery, using nonfakable stereograms, during hypnosis even though they cannot during waking. Spanos, Ansari, & Stam (1979) were unable to replicate these findings. It was only self-reported childhood eidetikers who exhibited eidetic imagery during hypnosis, and then only a few. This research suggestions that hypnosis permits certain individuals to access the "lost" ability to image eidetically, possibly through a shift in cognitive strategies" (p. 174). "An underlying emphasis of this paper is the need for hypnotic investigators to integrate findings form cognitive psychology into their research, as well as apply the many new approaches to understanding brain functioning which are now being developed, inn their search for a better understanding of what occurs during hypnosis" (p. 176). NOTES The author reviews evidence for cognitive changes during hypnosis--evident especially in high hypnotizables but also to some degree in moderate hypnotizables. She concludes that there may be changes in ego functioning, imagery functioning, creativity, and strategy preferences and that high hypnotizables are more flexible in cognitive processing . "The question remains whether or not there are accompanying objectively measurable cognitive changes during hypnosis" (p. 170). "In normal waking consciousness, the hypnotically responsive individual is typically found to be more involved in nonhypnotic imaginative activities and experiences (Hilgard, 1979; Tellegen & Atkinson, 1974), more able to image things (for review, see Sheehan, 1979) and daydream vividly and positively (Crawford, 1982), more able to perceive gestalt closure figures (Crawford, 1981), more able to divert attentional process (e.g., Karlin, 1979), and more creative on certain tasks (e.g., P. Bowers, 1979). Experiential reports indicate that it is these very cognitive processes, amongst others, which are perceived to be enhanced or changed during the hypnotic state" (p. 170). "Levin and Harrison (1976) found that hypnosis ego changes occurred most in those individuals who also demonstrated good capacity for adaptive regression in the waking state" (p. 171). "Dave (1979) compared hypnotically induced dreams with rational-cognitive treatment as to their effects on creative problem solving of the problems or projects. 'Conditional support' was given to the significantly stronger effect form the hypnotically induced dreams" (p. 172). There are many investigations of the effect of hypnosis on imagery, with a number of methodological problems. "Self-reports can be criticized on the grounds that they are easily subject to demand characteristics, subject expectations, and social desirability influences. Coe et al. (1980) found order of condition influenced their findings, while Crawford (1979) found that imagery rating scales suffered from a low ceiling effect among high imagers" (pp. 172-173). "Surprisingly, while the field of cognitive psychology has devoted extensive attention to the study of the enhancing effects of imagery upon memory, few of their paradigms have been applied to the study of hypnotic processing of information. Germaine to the field of hypnosis are three operational approaches to the investigation of imagery: (a) the manipulation of the availability of imagery as a coding device, such as varying the degree to which stimuli may evoke imagery, (b) the manipulation of the processing strategy in cognitive performance, such as asking subjects to use imagery in the mediation of stimuli information, and (c) the comparing of information processing strategies and performance in subjects who are low and high in imagery ability (Paivio, 1971)" (p. 173). "Several studies (Nomura, Crawford, & Slater, 1981; Walker, Garrett, & Wallace, 1976; Wallace, 1978) found that a very few high hypnotizables can successfully produce eidetic imagery, using nonfakable stereograms, during hypnosis even though they cannot during waking. Spanos, Ansari, & Stam (1979) were unable to replicate these findings. It was only self-reported childhood eidetikers who exhibited eidetic imagery during hypnosis, and then only a few. This research suggestions that hypnosis permits certain individuals to access the "lost" ability to image eidetically, possibly through a shift in cognitive strategies" (p. 174). "An underlying emphasis of this paper is the need for hypnotic investigators to integrate findings form cognitive psychology into their research, as well as apply the many new approaches to understanding brain functioning which are now being developed, inn their search for a better understanding of what occurs during hypnosis" (p. 176). 1981 Hilgard, Ernest R.; Sheehan, Peter W.; Monteiro, K. P.; Macdonald, Hugh (1981). Factorial structure of the Creative Imagination Scale as a measure of hypnotic responsiveness: An international comparative study. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 29, 66-76. The factor structure of the Creative Imagination Scale (CIS) of Wilson and Barber (1978) was investigated in two studies by correlating scores on it with scores on the Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility, Form A (Shor & E. Orne, 1962), the Absorption scale of Tellegen and Atkinson (1974), and Sheehan's (1967) revision of Betts' (1909) imagery scale. One of the studies was conducted at the University of Queensland in Australia (N = 237), the other at Stanford University in California (N = 92). The major finding, consistent in both investigations, was that two factors accounted for the major portion of the variance, one factor designated as a Hypnotic Performance factor, the other designated as an Absorption/Imagination factor. The CIS was weighted highly on both factors, the data bearing on earlier claims that CIS represents a single-factor scale. 1978 Bowers, Patricia G. (1978). Hypnotizability, creativity and the role of effortless experiencing. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 26, 184-202. Creative people and highly hypnotizable people describe their experience of finding creative solutions or responding to hypnotic suggestions as "effortless." It is suggested that receptiveness to subconscious work accounts for the experience of effortlessness in both tasks. An experiment using 32 high and low hypnotizable men and women was designed to explore the hypothesis that the aptitude for such effortless experiencing accounts for the relationship found between creativity and hypnotizability. Analyses of variance indicate highly significant effects of level of hypnotizability on composite scores reflecting effortless experiencing of several tasks and creativity. Intercorrelations of these indices are about .60. As predicted, effortless experiencing accounts for much of the relationship between high versus low hypnotizability and composite creativity. The role of imagery vividness and of absorption in both hypnotizability and creativity were also explored. Sanders, Shirley (1978). Creative problem-solving and psychotherapy. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 26, 15-21. The techniques described comprise a creative problem-solving approach to short-term individual psychotherapy which appears effective in conjunction with hypnosis. The techniques include describing and visualizing the client's problem, imagining alternative reactions, dreaming about new solutions, and trying the solutions in real life. The method is illustrated by 2 clinical examples. The discussion focuses on a comparison of the techniques used with individuals versus with small groups, the fostering of regression in the service of the ego, and the redirection of attention from the physically out of control to the recognition of the possibility of obtaining control. This shift of attention fosters active coping on the part of the client. 1977 Krippner, Stanley (1977). Research in creativity and psychedelic drugs. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 25, 274-308. The influence of psychedelic drug experience upon varous aspects of the creative process has been studied by very few researchers over the years. Although no conclusive statements can be made, it appears possible that these substances may be associated with original ideation and imagery, especially in the case of professional artists. There is no evidence that LSD-type drugs can evoke creativity on the part of individuals who are not known to be talented before drug ingestion. Creativity involves transforming fantasy into reality; the study of psychedelic experience, hypnotic experience, and other alterations in consciousness may help science to understand this process. 1976 Gur, R. C.; Reyher, J. (1976). Enhancement of creativity via free-imagery and hypnosis. American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis, 18, 237-249. Thirty-six male, highly susceptible subjects, divided into hypnosis, simulation and waking groups, were given the Torrance Test of Creativity with modified instructions requiring them to wait passively for visual images in response to the test stimuli. Twelve waking subjects received the same test under standard instructions. The hypnotized group scored higher than all control groups on over-all creativity and on Figural creativity, but not on Verbal creativity. The results seem to support the application of the ego-analytic concept of 'adaptive regression' to both hypnosis and creativity. They also seem to confirm the association found between hypnosis and the activation of the non-verbal cerebral hemisphere. Raikov, V. L. (1976). The possibility of creativity in the active stage of hypnosis. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 24, 258-268. Creative capacity was studied by means of suggestions given to Ss under the condition of active hypnosis. In deep hypnosis it was suggested to S that he was a famous person with a specific talent. In a series of experiments Ss performed under active hypnosis such tasks as drawing, playing musical instruments, and playing chess. The results ilustrated that creative processes can be facilitated in Ss capable of deep hypnosis and there is a carry-over of the creative achievements from hypnosis to the waking state. Low hypnotic Ss and control groups did not show improvements in the tasks. A particular significant increase in creativity was observed when Ss capable of deep hypnosis performed several successive creative tasks while hypnotized. The theoretical and experimental definitions of several new approaches to active hypnosis are also discussed. 1968 Bowers, Kenneth S. (1968). Hypnosis and creativity: A preliminary investigation. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 16, 38-52. 24 HIGHLY SELECTED, HYPNOTICALLY TRAINED COLLEGE STUDENTS WERE CAST INTO HYPNOTIC AND HYPNOSIS SIMULATING GROUPS AND GIVEN SUGGESTIONS TO BEHAVE CREATIVELY ON THE CONSEQUENCES TEST OF ORIGINALITY. NO DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE 2 GROUPS APPEARED. THEY DID APPEAR, HOWEVER, ON A CONCEPT FORMATION TASK AS A FUNCTION OF TASK-INVOLVEMENT INSTRUCTIONS, IRRESPECTIVE OF WHETHER SS WERE HYPNOTIZED OR SIMULATING HYPNOSIS. MOREOVER, AWARENESS OF RESPONSE REINFORCEMENT CONTINGENCIES WAS STRONGLY INFLUENCED BY THE INVOLVING SUGGESTIONS. THE NEGATIVE FINDINGS ON THE CREATIVITY TEST WERE ATTRIBUTED TO THE EXCELLENT PERFORMANCE OF THE SIMULATOR SS. IT IS SUGGESTED THAT PERHAPS SUSCEPTIBILITY PER SE INTERACTS WITH ROLE PLAYING INSTRUCTIONS IN GENERATING MORE REGRESSIVE MODES OF THINKING. (SPANISH + GERMAN ABSTRACTS) (2 P. REF.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2002 APA, all rights reserved) 1966 Bowers, Margaretta K. (1966). Experimental study of the creative process by means of hypnoanalytic associations to a painting done in occupational therapy: The magic ring of Walter Positive. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 14 (1), 1-21. Drawings, executed in free association to an uninteresting painting, were secured through the technique of mirror gazing in hypnotic trance. They provided an unexpectedly rich source of the life history, traumatic experiences, and hopes and expectations of recovery in a patient who was with all other techniques, both conscious and hypnotic, most unproductive. The drawings also demonstrate the dynamic development of the life history and the integrative process by which the patient expects to make and actually has made his recovery. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2002 APA, all rights reserved)