Correlates of Hypnotizability in Children: Absorption, Vividness of Imagery, Fantasy Play, and Social Desirability

Abstract

This study examined correlates of hypnotizability in children that had previously been reported for adults. Forty-two children (ages 7–14) completed the Fantasy Questionnaire (FQ), the Children's Social Desirability Questionnaire (CSDQ), the Zeltzer and LeBaron (1984) revision of the Stanford Hypnotic Clinical Scale for Children (SHCS:C-R), and the Children's Fantasy Inventory: Absorption and Vividness Scales (CFI: A & V). The nine-item SHCS:C-R yields separate scores for Observed Behavior (OB), and Realness (R), as well as a Total Score (TS). Results indicated significant correlations between SHCS:C-R scores and those for CFI: A & V, and the FQ (r = .42-.53) but not for the CSDQ. On the SHCS:C-R, correlations between R (involuntariness) scores and the above measures were not appreciably different from those found for OB scores. Observations suggested that attitudes towards hypnosis may influence children's hypnotic responsiveness.