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Updated: May 23, 2026
05:22
Dissociation of the Confounding Influences of Expectancy and Integrative Difficulty Residing in Anomalous Sentences in Event-related Potential Studies
Published on: May 9, 2019
Can expectation enhance response to suggestion? De-automatization illuminates a conundrum
Michael Lifshitz1, Catherine Howells, Amir Raz
1Department of Psychology, McGill University, 3775 University Street, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Consciousness and Cognition
|March 27, 2012
Summary
Hypnotic suggestibility is not primarily determined by expectations. This study found that manipulating expectations did not significantly impact participants' actual hypnotic response, suggesting suggestibility is more complex than just beliefs.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Cognitive Neuroscience
Background:
- Hypnotic suggestibility is viewed as either a stable trait or a flexible skill influenced by attitudes.
- Previous research offers conflicting evidence for both perspectives.
Purpose of the Study:
- To reconcile differing theories of hypnotic suggestibility by examining the role of expectancy modification.
- To investigate whether manipulating expectations influences hypnotic suggestibility.
Main Methods:
- Participants underwent a procedure designed to heighten expectations of hypnotic response through controlled stimuli.
- Hypnotic suggestibility was measured using the McGurk effect, an audiovisual phenomenon.
- Expectations and actual responses to hypnotic suggestions were recorded.
Main Results:
- The experimental procedure successfully increased participants' expectations of hypnotic response.
- However, these heightened expectations showed minimal correlation with actual hypnotic suggestibility.
- Expectancy modification had little impact on performance on the McGurk effect task.
Conclusions:
- Expectations do not appear to be a primary determinant of hypnotic suggestibility in this context.
- Hypnotic suggestibility may be less influenced by attitudinal factors like expectation than previously thought.
- Further research is needed to fully understand the complex factors underlying hypnotic suggestibility.
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