Dissociation and heterogeneity in high hypnotic suggestibility
(2010)- Abstract
- Individuals who exhibit high hypnotic suggestibility are a heterogeneous population. Although they display uniformity on standard measures of hypnotic suggestibility, such individuals have been repeatedly found to display marked differences in a variety of dimensions of hypnotic responding, in their cognitive and experiential response to a hypnotic induction, and in different cognitive functions germane to hypnotic responding. There is considerable disagreement over how heterogeneity in this population is best explained, with componential models maintaining that highly suggestible individuals are a uniform population and typological models proposing that they consist of discrete subtypes.
This dissertation describes... (More) - Individuals who exhibit high hypnotic suggestibility are a heterogeneous population. Although they display uniformity on standard measures of hypnotic suggestibility, such individuals have been repeatedly found to display marked differences in a variety of dimensions of hypnotic responding, in their cognitive and experiential response to a hypnotic induction, and in different cognitive functions germane to hypnotic responding. There is considerable disagreement over how heterogeneity in this population is best explained, with componential models maintaining that highly suggestible individuals are a uniform population and typological models proposing that they consist of discrete subtypes.
This dissertation describes four studies that tested predictions derived from dissociative typological models, which argue that highly suggestible individuals are comprised of one subtype characterized by a greater propensity for dissociation and a second subtype with superior imagery. Paper I used latent profile analysis to derive discrete profiles of participants on the basis of their spontaneous experiential responses to a hypnotic induction. This analysis yielded evidence for two subtypes of highly suggestible individuals, those who experienced greater distortions in awareness and volition and those with greater endogenously-directed attention and more vivid imagery. Paper II applied the dissociative typological models to individual differences in hypnotic responding, cognitive functioning, and psychopathology among HS individuals. High dissociative highly suggestible participants were more responsive to hallucination suggestions, experienced greater involuntariness during hypnotic responding, and displayed impaired working memory capacity and a greater predisposition to psychopathology, whereas low dissociative highly suggestible participants exhibited superior object visual imagery. Paper III tested the prediction that hypnosis differentially impacts cognitive control in the two subtypes. A hypnotic induction was found to marginally facilitate cognitive control in low suggestible and low dissociative highly suggestible participants but to deleteriously affect cognitive control in high dissociative highly suggestible participants. Paper IV examined the influence of a hypnotic induction on resting state functional connectivity and state dissociation in the same three groups. Counter to the typological models, but in support of the componential model, the two highly suggestible subtypes displayed uniform experiential and neurophysiological response patterns across control and hypnosis conditions. Both low and highly suggestible participants experienced increased state dissociation and exhibited reduced functional connectivity, particularly over anterior cortical regions during hypnosis but these effects were more pronounced in the latter group.
The results of Papers I through III provide robust support for dissociative typological models, whereas those of Paper IV are inconsistent with these models. I conclude by considering how the divergent results can be reconciled and outline different ways of further discriminating between possible models of heterogeneity. Dissociative tendencies appear to play a fundamental role in modulating individual differences in high hypnotic suggestibility and should be afforded greater attention in future research on heterogeneity in this population. (Less) - Abstract (Swedish)
- Cirka 10 till 15 procent av befolkningen visar hög mottaglighet för hypnotiska suggestioner. Dessa personer kan uppleva djupgående förändringar i affekt, kognition och perception till följd av särskilda hypnotiska suggestioner. Även om de påvisar liknande nivåer av mottaglighet för hypnotiska suggestioner på standardiserade mått, så har det vid upprepade tillfällen konstaterats att personer med hög suggestionsmottaglighet uppvisar en markant variation på olika särdrag i hypnotisk respons och relevanta kognitiva funktioner. En rad modeller har försökt ta hänsyn till denna variation genom att föreslå att det finns diskreta undergrupper av personer med hög mottaglighet för suggestioner, som upplever hypnos och hypnotiska suggestioner via... (More)
- Cirka 10 till 15 procent av befolkningen visar hög mottaglighet för hypnotiska suggestioner. Dessa personer kan uppleva djupgående förändringar i affekt, kognition och perception till följd av särskilda hypnotiska suggestioner. Även om de påvisar liknande nivåer av mottaglighet för hypnotiska suggestioner på standardiserade mått, så har det vid upprepade tillfällen konstaterats att personer med hög suggestionsmottaglighet uppvisar en markant variation på olika särdrag i hypnotisk respons och relevanta kognitiva funktioner. En rad modeller har försökt ta hänsyn till denna variation genom att föreslå att det finns diskreta undergrupper av personer med hög mottaglighet för suggestioner, som upplever hypnos och hypnotiska suggestioner via olika mekanismer. Dissociativa typologiska modeller hävdar att gruppen individer med hög suggestionsmottaglighet innefattar en dissociativ undergrupp som karaktäriseras av nedsatt exekutiv funktion efter en hypnotisk inducering, samt en undergrupp som uppvisar överlägsen förmåga till mentala bilder och som upprätthåller flexibel exekutiv kontroll under hypnos.
Denna avhandling består av fyra studier som testade prediktioner vilka härrör från de dissociativa typologiska modellerna. I studierna användes en rad olika metoder såsom latent variabel modellering av självrapporteringsdata, beteendemått på hypnotiska responser och kognitiv funktion, samt elektrofysiologiska index för funktionell konnektivitet. Resultaten från tre av studierna ger ett stabilt stöd för antagandet att gruppen med hög suggestionsmottaglighet består av två olika undergrupper. Under hypnos var den högt dissociativa högt suggestionsmottagliga undergruppen mer mottaglig för hallucinationssuggestioner, upplevde en starkare icke-viljemässighet under hypnotisk respons, rapporterade större spontana förändringar i viljemässighet, och påvisade sämre kognitiv kontroll än den lågt dissociativa högt suggestionsmottagliga undergruppen. I ett icke-hypnotiskt sammanhang uppvisade den lågt dissociativa undergruppen överlägsen förmåga till mentala bilder, medan den högt dissociativa undergruppen uppvisade sämre arbetsminneskapacitet och en större benägenhet för psykopatologi. I en fjärde studie skilde sig inte de två undergrupperna sig åt i deras neurofysiologiska eller fenomenologiska respons till hypnotisk inducering. Båda undergrupper uppvisade under hypnos en större minskning av funktionell konnektivitet, särskilt över frontala regioner i cortex, och samtidig ökning av dissociativa tillstånd än lågt suggestionsmottagliga individer individer. Det sistnämnda resultatet överensstämmer med ståndpunkten att förändringar i medvetenhet och varseblivning under hypnos bland högt suggestionsmottagliga individer är associerade med en minskning av funktionell koordination av neurala församlingar i cortex. Sammantaget tyder resultaten på att en hypnotisk inducering enhetligt minskar funktionell konnektivitet i högt suggestionsmottagliga individer, men att olika kognitiva och erfarenhetsmässiga profiler mellan olika högt suggestionsmottagliga undergrupper bidrar till olika mönster av hypnotisk respons i denna population. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/1662100
- author
- Terhune, Devin LU
- supervisor
-
- Etzel Cardeña LU
- Magnus Lindgren LU
- opponent
-
- Doctor Jamieson, Graham, University of New England
- organization
- publishing date
- 2010
- type
- Thesis
- publication status
- published
- subject
- pages
- 176 pages
- publisher
- Lund University
- defense location
- Palaestra hörsal nedre, Paradisgatan 4, Lund
- defense date
- 2010-09-22 14:15:00
- ISBN
- 978-91-978718-6-0
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- a91f9460-5015-4964-a0a2-c8bbd1198baa (old id 1662100)
- date added to LUP
- 2016-04-04 13:56:01
- date last changed
- 2021-11-24 17:00:53
@phdthesis{a91f9460-5015-4964-a0a2-c8bbd1198baa,
abstract = {{Individuals who exhibit high hypnotic suggestibility are a heterogeneous population. Although they display uniformity on standard measures of hypnotic suggestibility, such individuals have been repeatedly found to display marked differences in a variety of dimensions of hypnotic responding, in their cognitive and experiential response to a hypnotic induction, and in different cognitive functions germane to hypnotic responding. There is considerable disagreement over how heterogeneity in this population is best explained, with componential models maintaining that highly suggestible individuals are a uniform population and typological models proposing that they consist of discrete subtypes. <br/><br>
<br/><br>
This dissertation describes four studies that tested predictions derived from dissociative typological models, which argue that highly suggestible individuals are comprised of one subtype characterized by a greater propensity for dissociation and a second subtype with superior imagery. Paper I used latent profile analysis to derive discrete profiles of participants on the basis of their spontaneous experiential responses to a hypnotic induction. This analysis yielded evidence for two subtypes of highly suggestible individuals, those who experienced greater distortions in awareness and volition and those with greater endogenously-directed attention and more vivid imagery. Paper II applied the dissociative typological models to individual differences in hypnotic responding, cognitive functioning, and psychopathology among HS individuals. High dissociative highly suggestible participants were more responsive to hallucination suggestions, experienced greater involuntariness during hypnotic responding, and displayed impaired working memory capacity and a greater predisposition to psychopathology, whereas low dissociative highly suggestible participants exhibited superior object visual imagery. Paper III tested the prediction that hypnosis differentially impacts cognitive control in the two subtypes. A hypnotic induction was found to marginally facilitate cognitive control in low suggestible and low dissociative highly suggestible participants but to deleteriously affect cognitive control in high dissociative highly suggestible participants. Paper IV examined the influence of a hypnotic induction on resting state functional connectivity and state dissociation in the same three groups. Counter to the typological models, but in support of the componential model, the two highly suggestible subtypes displayed uniform experiential and neurophysiological response patterns across control and hypnosis conditions. Both low and highly suggestible participants experienced increased state dissociation and exhibited reduced functional connectivity, particularly over anterior cortical regions during hypnosis but these effects were more pronounced in the latter group.<br/><br>
<br/><br>
The results of Papers I through III provide robust support for dissociative typological models, whereas those of Paper IV are inconsistent with these models. I conclude by considering how the divergent results can be reconciled and outline different ways of further discriminating between possible models of heterogeneity. Dissociative tendencies appear to play a fundamental role in modulating individual differences in high hypnotic suggestibility and should be afforded greater attention in future research on heterogeneity in this population.}},
author = {{Terhune, Devin}},
isbn = {{978-91-978718-6-0}},
language = {{eng}},
publisher = {{Lund University}},
school = {{Lund University}},
title = {{Dissociation and heterogeneity in high hypnotic suggestibility}},
year = {{2010}},
}