The relationship between hypnotic susceptibility and sex role orientation

Abstract

A sample of 122 undergraduate students were administered the following instruments: Biographical Data Sheet, Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility Form A, (HGSHS), PRF ANDRO Scale, Bem Sex-Role Inventory (BSRI), and Adjective Check List (ACL). A subsample of 37 subjects, the experimental group, were given four practice experiences in hypnosis prior to the administration of the instruments. Two practice experiences used live hypnotic inductions and two used taped hypnotic inductions. The objectives of the study were (1) to determine whether sex role orientation was a predictor of hypnotic susceptibility, (2) to determine if there was a sex difference in hypnotic susceptibility, (3) to determine if practice in hypnosis increased hypnotic susceptibility, and (4) to ascertain whether sex role orientation was a better predictor of hypnotic susceptibility with hypnosis experienced subjects than nonexperienced subjects. Subjects were categorized into four sex role orientation categories: masculine, feminine, androgynous, and undifferentiated from the results of the three sex role instruments (BSRI, ACL, and PRF ANDRO Scale). The statistical analyses were done by use of the programs DISTAT, REGRAN, and AVAR23. The ACL was found to significantly predict hypnotic susceptibility for the total sample. The Femininity scale of the ACL was positively correlated with hypnotic susceptibility for males as well as the total sample. No sex difference in hypnotic susceptibility was found. Those subjects who were given practice in hypnosis did not differ from the control group in hypnotic susceptibility. There was also no difference between the experimental group and the control group in the ability of sex role orientation to predict hypnotic susceptibility. Ancillary analyses indicate that the sample was not evenly distributed across all sex role categories. It was also found that all of the scales correlated with the sex of the subject. Most of the sex role scales correlated with each other, positively between counterparts and negatively between masculinity and femininity scales.