Primary process, hypnotic dreams, and the hidden observer: Hypnosis versus alert imagining

Abstract

Previous research indicated that high-hypnotizable participants reported more primary-process mentation in hypnotic dreams than low-hypnotizable participants instructed to simulate hypnosis. Differences in primary process were not evidenced in response to instructions for a “hidden part” of the participant to report on the hypnotic dream. This research replicated and extended these findings by showing that high-hypnotizable participants (n = 20) passing the dream suggestion reported more primary process in their dreams than high-hypnotizable participants instructed to remain alert and think and imagine along with suggestions (n = 20). Differences in primary process were not evidenced in response to hidden-observer suggestions, and the frequency of dream (87% hypnosis vs. 96% imagining) and hidden-observer responses (100% in both groups) was equivalent across hypnotic and nonhypnotic groups. The results provided qualified support for a psychoanalytic model of hypnosis: Differences in primary process were apparent in response to the dream but not the hidden-observer suggestion.