PHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF RELAXATION TRAINING AND HYPNOTIC SUGGESTION

Evaluated the comparative effects of hypnotic suggestion and brief relaxation training with regard to reduction of subjective tension and distress(anxiety differential) and physiological arousal (heart rate, respiratory rate, tonic muscle tension, skin conductance). 3 groups (N = 20 each) of undergraduate females participated individually for 2 sessions, 1 wk. apart, receiving: (1) abbreviated progressive relaxation training as used in systematic desensitization therapy; (2) a hypnotic induction emphasizing direct suggestions of relaxation, heaviness, warmth, drowsiness, and sleep; or (3) a self-relaxation control procedure, included to evaluate the effects of merely resting quietly for an equal period of time with instructions to relax. Both relaxation training and hypnotic suggestion produced significantly greater effects than controls, and relaxation training resulted in significantly greater effects than hypnotic suggestion. The superiority of relaxation training was most pronounced in response systems not under direct voluntary control. (37 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved). © 1969 American Psychological Association.