Hypnos and Psyche: How Hypnosis Has Contributed to the Study of Consciousness

The field of hypnosis anticipated the current interest in consciousness and has contributed
in many ways to its conceptualization and research. This paper is divided into 3
sections. The first describes how hypnosis has enriched the study of alterations of
consciousness, considered as dynamic processes subject to important individual differences.
This section also considers how hypnosis offers an expanded but cautious
view of human potentialities, including the possibility of anomalous cognition. The
second section argues that descriptions of alternative selves or sets of mental processes,
central to the hypnosis literature, provide insights into contemporary discussions of
dissociative and nonconscious processes and the constructive nature of identity. The
final section focuses on how hypnosis has emphasized sociocultural interactions,
helping illuminate the intersubjective construal of conscious experience. Far from being
an outdated set of theories, techniques, and data, hypnosis has much to offer to our
understanding of consciousness.