Examining hypnosis legislation: a survey of the practice in Israel

Hypnosis as a therapeutic technique bears potential risks when carried out inexpertly. Because of this, Israel was the first to legislate hypnosis. This study examines the current state of clinical hypnosis practice in Israel. A questionnaire was sent to 470 licensed hypnotists and 1250 unlicensed professionals; 478 (25.7%) of the 1720 potential respondents returned the questionnaires. Of these, 249 (51.8%) were licensed hypnotists, and 232 (48.2%) were unlicensed. Of the unlicensed professionals, 45% reported practicing hypnosis; 50% of them practice hypnosis with adolescents and 41.2% with children. Many of them practice hypnosis in public clinics (71.6%). Of the licensed professionals, 94.4% reported practicing hypnosis in the course of their clinical work. The authors conclude that great number of unlicensed hypnotists carry on clinical practice of hypnosis and suggest steps to increase the efficiency of the law as part of a regulatory system.