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Hypnosis Research Paper

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Hypnosis Research Paper
What is hypnosis? Hypnosis is a hyper-attentive and hyper-responsive state. When a subject is put into a hypnotic trance, the subject is in a state of selective, focused attention. While in this state of selective, focused attention, subjects are said to only focus on doing what they are told and focus on the environment without the ability to ask questions and reason why they are doing it. Ultimately, this gives a hypnotist the ability to control and maneuver the subject in whatever ways possible. This control is what pleases and entertains crowds and audiences during a hypnotist’s performance. Could this ability to gain control of a person’s mind be used for other significant reasons? Imagine all the possibilities if hypnotists used hypnosis to control another person’s mind! Wars could be prevented, murders stopped, workers super-efficient, and countless other seemingly great possibilities! If hypnotists have been able to control the minds of other people, then how have they not succeeded in stopping wars and murders? Ultimately this leads to the question, “Can someone actually gain the control of another person’s mind through hypnosis? When a volunteer at a hypnosis show raises their hand, chances are they want to experience being hypnotized. The participant is more likely to focus and really try to become hypnotized, which can lead to them actually …show more content…
How does the cult leader keep the people following and in extreme cases get them to do exactly what he wants them to? Once again, it goes back to selective, focused attention. A manipulative leader can keep the attention of the group focused on rewards and to decrease focus on what the group is actually doing and repercussions. During this method of selective, focused attention, the cult leader is conditioning the brain to focus on the rewards and ignore all other effects. However, it is still the person who is making the decisions as to what they do and do not

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