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The hidden observer in hypnotic analgesia: discovery or experimental creation?
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
|December 1, 1980
Summary
Expectations shape hypnotic pain reports. Subjects expecting high "hidden" pain reported more, while those expecting less reported lower pain, suggesting role-enactment over dissociation.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Hypnotherapy
- Pain Management
Background:
- Hilgard's procedures aim to elicit "hidden" pain reports during hypnotic analgesia.
- These procedures involve instructing subjects about differential pain experiences between their "hypnotized" and "hidden" selves.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of subject expectations in generating "hidden" pain reports.
- To test whether "hidden" pain reports reflect dissociation or role-enactment.
Main Methods:
- Eight highly susceptible subjects received training procedures suggesting their "hidden" self would feel high pain.
- A control group of 8 subjects received opposite instructions regarding "hidden" pain levels.
- Pain reports from both "hypnotized" and "hidden" parts were collected.
Main Results:
- Subjects expecting high "hidden" pain reported significantly higher levels.
- Subjects expecting low "hidden" pain reported significantly lower levels.
- Results were unambiguous and directly correlated with experimental expectations.
Conclusions:
- "Hidden" pain reports are not indicative of a dissociated state.
- These reports appear to be a consequence of subjects enacting the role of a "good hypnotic subject."
- Subject expectations, as manipulated by experimental procedures, are a key factor in "hidden" pain reporting.