Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Hypnotic visual illusion alters color processing in the brain.

S M Kosslyn1, W L Thompson, M F Costantini-Ferrando

  • 1Department of Psychology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA. smk@wjh.harvard.edu

The American Journal of Psychiatry
|July 27, 2000
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

A proof-of-principle study of the short-term effects of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) on tinnitus and neural connectivity.

The International journal of neuroscience·2019
Same author

[Clinical evaluation of the optic disc in glaucoma].

Der Ophthalmologe : Zeitschrift der Deutschen Ophthalmologischen Gesellschaft·2016
Same author

Circadian disruption and biomarkers of tumor progression in breast cancer patients awaiting surgery.

Brain, behavior, and immunity·2015
Same author

Receptive field characteristics that allow parietal lobe neurons to encode spatial properties of visual input: a computational analysis.

Journal of cognitive neuroscience·2013
Same author

Visual Mental Imagery Activates Topographically Organized Visual Cortex: PET Investigations.

Journal of cognitive neuroscience·2013
Same author

Individual differences in cerebral blood flow in area 17 predict the time to evaluate visualized letters.

Journal of cognitive neuroscience·2013
Same journal

2026 Annual Meeting: President-Elect Address.

The American journal of psychiatry·2026
Same journal

2026 Annual Meeting: CEO and Medical Director's Address.

The American journal of psychiatry·2026
Same journal

Reports to the Membership.

The American journal of psychiatry·2026
Same journal

Convergent Metabolic Dysregulations But Divergent Contributing Pathways Across Severe Mental Disorders: The Power of Combining Genetics and Metabolomics.

The American journal of psychiatry·2026
Same journal

2026 Annual Meeting: Presidential Address.

The American journal of psychiatry·2026
Same journal

Represcribing Previously Used Antipsychotics: Response to So.

The American journal of psychiatry·2026
See all related articles

Hypnosis can alter brain activity related to color perception in highly hypnotizable individuals. This suggests hypnosis is a distinct psychological state with specific neural correlates, not merely role-playing.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Psychology
  • Cognitive Science

Background:

  • Hypnosis is a complex psychological state.
  • Understanding the neural underpinnings of hypnosis is crucial for elucidating its mechanisms.
  • Color perception offers a unique window into subjective experience and its neural correlates.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate whether hypnosis can modulate human color perception.
  • To identify the neural correlates of hypnosis-induced changes in color perception.
  • To differentiate hypnosis from role-playing by examining distinct brain activity patterns.

Main Methods:

  • Eight highly hypnotizable subjects underwent functional neuroimaging using positron emission tomography (PET) with [(15)O]CO(2).
  • Subjects were instructed to perceive visual stimuli (color or grayscale patterns) as either color or grayscale under hypnosis and during a control condition.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Brain activity in the fusiform/lingual cortex, a known color area, was analyzed in relation to perceptual tasks and hypnotic state.

    • Main Results:

    • Hypnotic suggestions to perceive color activated the visual color areas in both hemispheres, regardless of the actual stimulus presented.
    • Conversely, suggestions to perceive grayscale led to decreased activation in these areas, irrespective of the stimulus.
    • Hemispheric differences were observed: left hemisphere changes were specific to hypnosis, while the right hemisphere responded to instructions regardless of hypnotic state.

    Conclusions:

    • Subjective experiences during hypnosis, such as altered color perception, are mirrored by objective changes in brain function.
    • These findings provide evidence for hypnosis as a distinct psychological state with unique neural signatures.
    • The results challenge the notion that hypnosis is solely a consequence of adopting a social role.