It Takes Two to Tango: Some Thoughts on the Neglected Importance of the Hypnotist in an Interactive Hypnotherapeutic Relationship

The long and winding road from concept to practice:

“…Readers who are familiar with my work know that I am in complete agreement with Baker's intent, particularly as it pertains to examining the interactive nature of hypnosis in the clinical domain (see Diamond, 1984Diamond, , 1987Diamond, , 1988. Likewise, I maintain, along with Baker, that Winnicott's ideas regarding transitional phenomena and space are applicable to a deeper understanding of both trance experience itself and the subject-hypnotist (or client-therapist) interactive matrix.…”

The Withheld Eye-Roll Sign

“…The study of these dimensions and whether they can be modified is the subject of extensive scholarly literature (Diamond, 1974(Diamond, , 1977a(Diamond, , 1977b(Diamond, , 1980(Diamond, , 1984Diamond, Gregory, Lenney, Steadman, & Talone, 1974;Diamond, Steadman, Hareda, & Rosenthal, 1975;Diamond & Taft, 1975;Hilgard, 1965Hilgard, , 1982bPerry, 1973Perry, , 1977Perry, Gelfand, & Marcovitch, 1979;Perry & Laurence, 1980;Perry & Sheehan, 1978;15 Shor, Orne, & O'Connell, 1962). Perry (1977) and Diamond (1977b) have summarized many relevant considerations, the former arguing that claims for modifiability must be treated with caution, and the latter suggesting that a skill-learning model of hypnotizability is plausible, and that the skill may be improvable.…”

“…Clearly, these two views have areas of overlap as well as of divergence. More recently, Diamond (1984) has argued that many apparent discrepancies between laboratory findings (that show a wide spectrum of hypnotic responsiveness) and clinical experiences (which indicate that some clinicians are more successful than others in facilitating what are apparently deeper and more meaningful trance experiences with the majority of their patients), may be due to an interactive dimension that accounts for the skill of the hypnotist in entering an empathic bond with his or her patients, a bond that facilitates patients' entry into hypnosis.…”

Where ericksonian legend meets scientific method: A comment on matthews

“…In addition to a clinical report (Barber, 1977), subsequent empirical investigations of the efficacy of indirect suggestion provided further evidence for the hypothesis that responsiveness, though usually stable, may become more or less accessible, depending upon both context and techniques (Alman & Carney, 1981;Diamond, 1984;Fricton & Roth, 1985;Gfeller, LYM, & Pribble, 1987;Price & Barber, 1987).…”