Studies have been examining the relationship between personality of individuals and hypnotic susceptibility. However, this area of research remained without convincing results for over a few decades due to inadequate tools for collecting personality data. Only after some several attempts in later studies did researchers find a relationship between hypnotizability and willingness to undergo the experience.
For example, in a study by Zhang et al. (2017), low and high hypnotizable Chinese subjects were examined, where it was determined that highly hypnotizable individuals were more open to the experience than the low hypnotizable participants were. Other studies have also found a relationship between various personality traits with hypnotizability. Highly hypnotizable individuals score higher in studies that use Magical Ideation Scale and Creative Experiences Questionnaire as measures of personality traits, thereby indicating a relationship between hypnotizability and these personality traits. Characteristics such as magical thinking, fantasy proneness, and the ability to transcend personal space are related to hypnotizability.
According to Peter & Böbel (2020), in past studies that have been using the Personality Styles and Disorders Inventory (PSDI), the researchers found higher values for the personality styles optimistic-rhapsodic and charming-histrionic for the highly hypnotic individuals. Highly hypnotizable individuals also had higher values of in the personality style of intuitive-schizotypal. Thus, these studies have been focusing on the association between hypnotic susceptibility to hypnosis and personality. These studies were conducted in University settings, hence excluding the general population where similar or dissimilar characteristics can also be observed. It means that the previous studies offer limited knowledge in this area.
Peter & Böbel (2020) examined whether people who are interested in hypnosis differ from those who are not interested, and the type of personality traits that account for those differences. The researchers focused on three main characteristics, including intuitive-schizotypal, charming histrionic, and optimistic-rhapsodic. The researchers found that women interested in hypnosis were more intuitive-schizotypal than hypno-neutral women were. The same result was also found among hypnosis-prone men. The study revealed that women in general were more intuitive-schizotypal than men. The results indicate that women’s elevated intuitive schizotypal levels is likely due to their hypnosis-proneness as opposed to their gender.
In the optimistic-rhapsodic personality style, the researchers came up with inconsistent results. It was determined that hypnosis prone men, just like the hypnosis-prone women, tend to be more optimistic-rhapsodic than hypno-neutral participants are. However, comparisons of individuals with hypnotherapy training with psychotherapists reveal that women are also more optimistic-rhapsodic under Hypnotherapy conditions and non-hypnotherapy conditions. It was also determined that hypnosis-prone women show higher charming-histrionic personality values compared to hypno-neutral women. The hypno-neutral women also show higher charming-histrionic values than the hypno-neutral men do (Peter & Böbel, 2020).
Thus, these studies have tried to determine whether there are people who are generally interested in hypnosis, which the researchers refer to as homo hypnoticus. Based on the findings of this study and the previous ones, there appears that such individuals exist. The researchers determined that such people are often intuitive schizotypal, charming histrionic, and are rhapsodic-optimistic.
References
Peter, B., & Böbel, E. (2020). Does the homo hypnoticus exist? Personality styles of people interested in hypnosis. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 68(3), 348-370.
Zhang, Y., Wang, Y., Shen, C., Ye, Y., Shen, S., Zhang, B., Wang, J., Chen, W., & Wang, W. (2017). Relationship between hypnosis and personality trait in participants with high or low hypnotic susceptibility. Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment, 13, 1007–1012.
Melvin S. Marsh is a certified hypnotherapist serving Augusta GA and Statesboro GA. He performs hypnotherapy appointments both in person and worldwide virtually. He can be reached at www.afterhourshypnotherapy.com .
