title: Hypnotically induced emotional numbing: the roles of hypnosis and hypnotizability.
abstract: This study investigated the roles of hypnotizability and hypnosis in suggested emotional numbing. Thirty-two high hypnotizable and 32 low hypnotizable participants were administered either a hypnotic or wake induction and were then presented with emotionally distressing and neutral images during a suggestion for emotional numbing or a control condition. Emotional response was indexed through self-report and EMG corrugator-muscle activity. High hypnotizable participants, in both the hypnosis and wake conditions, reported more diminished emotional responses on self-report and EMG corrugator-muscle activity than low hypnotizable participants during the emotional-numbing suggestion. These findings suggest that elevated hypnotic susceptibility, rather than hypnosis, is an important mediator of emotional numbing. The importance of individual differences in emotional numbing is discussed.
authors.affiliation: University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia. r.bryant@unsw.edu.au
authors.forename: Richard A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Bryant
authors.forename: Amrita
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kapur
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect; D001143:Arousal; D004576:Electromyography; D005152:Facial Muscles / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006990:Hypnosis / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D013404:Suggestion; D014851:Wakefulness