R. Zachariae et al., Autonomic and psychological responses to an acute psychological stressor and relaxation: The influence of hypnotizability and absorption, INT J CE HY, 48(4), 2000, pp. 388-403
Citations number
40
Categorie Soggetti
Psycology
Journal title
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL HYPNOSIS
This study examined the influence of hypnotizability and absorption on psyc
hological and autonomic responses to an experimental stressor and a relaxat
ion procedure of 13 high and 13 low hypnotizable subjects. Heart-rate varia
bility was the measure of autonomic reactivity. Absorption was found to be
the only significant predictor of autonomic reactivity in both experimental
conditions. Expectation and previous relaxation training, but not absorpti
on or hypnotizability, predicted perceived relaxation in the relaxation con
dition. The results suggest that in a nonhypnotic context the influence of
hypnotizability on responses to experimental conditions may be less promine
nt than the influence of absorption. Absorption may be associated with grea
ter awareness of internal physical and psychological processes, and the res
ults support previous clinical findings of positive correlations between ab
sorption, subjective perception of autonomic arousal, and somatic symptom r
eporting.