The Cold Control theory of Hypnosis

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The Cold Control theory of Hypnosis
Zoltán Dienes, Conscious and unconscious mental
processes
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1. Higher order thought theory and conscious
awareness 2. Types of control 3. Cold control
theory of hypnosis
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Higher order thought theory of Rosenthal a
mental state is conscious if we are conscious of
being in that mental state we are conscious of
being in a mental state when we have a thought
that we are in that mental state in sum, a
mental state is a conscious mental state in
virtue of the person having a higher order
thought that they are in that mental state.  
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Similarly for intentions First order mental
state Lift the arm! This is unconscious unless
you are aware of having that intention by a
second order thought I intend to lift my
arm This second order thought is itself
unconscious, unless you are aware of it I think
I am intending to lift my arm This third order
thought renders one introspectively aware of
intending to lift ones arm.
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Norman Shallice (1986) Supervisory Attentional
System (SAS) (attention demanding, conscious
control)
contention scheduling selects according to level
of activation, which is determined by trigger
conditions of the schema and lateral
inhibition/excitation between schemata.
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SAS can bias activation values and is needed
for 1) planning or decision making 2)
Troubleshooting 3) learning new actions 4)
technically difficult actions 5) overcoming
strong pre-existing response
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Hierarchy of voluntary action -
Non-intentional the lower system produces an
action not set by the higher system. -Intentional
higher system sets up the lower system when
appropriate conditions are met, the schema
executes the appropriate action.  -
absent-minded intentional action lower system
runs unmonitored, producing actions appropriate
to plan. - fully executive-controlled
intentional action Higher system triggers and
continuously monitors execution of action schema,
over-riding when necessary.
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fully executive-controlled intentional
action -without HOT unconscious performance of
executive function tasks??   -fully voluntary
action, i.e. performed with HOT ("I intend to
perform this action") (and typically with 3rd
order thought, making you aware of your intention
"I know I am intending to perform this action").
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Cold control theory of hypnosis Successful
response to hypnotic suggestions can be achieved
by forming an intention (imperative
representation in the SAS) to perform the action
or cognitive activity required, without forming
the higher order thoughts about intending that
action that would normally accompany the
reflective performance of the action.
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Can hypnotic suggestions involve executive
function tasks? a) Suggestion to forget the
number "four" "1,2,3,5,6,.." - must be content
control, but person claims ignorance of doing
anything strange gt no second order thought. b)
Spanos, Radtke, and Dubreuil (1982) highs
suggested to forget certain words in any type of
task given to them produced those words at a
below baseline level in a word association test.
Executive control because existing associations
must be suppressed. c) Amazingly Raz et al
(2002, 2003) Highs can eliminate the Stroop
effect when it is suggested the words are
meaningless (can occur in or out of hypnosis)
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In general, virtually any arbitrary behaviour can
be hypnotically suggested despite the fact that
such behaviour might be novel to the person, and
many hypnotic suggestions require the person
ignore some salient aspect of the situation (e.g.
amnesia or analgesia suggestion) gt many
hypnotic responses are under executive control.
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Often intentions, at least those maintained over
several minutes, trigger HOTs of
intending. Consider Wegners white bear
task Do not think of the concept of a white
bear for 2 minutes!
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White bear task Form intention Do not produce
representations of white bears! If intentions
tend to trigger HOTs, one has I am intending
not to produce representations of white
bears! Making the concept of white bears part of
a conscious mental state. To not think about the
concept of white bears consciously, one needs to
be able to avoid second order thoughts.
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Maybe highs are good at avoiding accurate HOTs
about intentions? Bowers and Woody (1996)
(after hypnosis) highs could NOT think of their
favourite car for 2 minutes more effectively than
lows
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How is the normal triggering of HOTs prevented?
  According to HOT theory, HOTS are just
thoughts and so their occurrence will be
sensitive to the same influences as other
thoughts (Rosenthal, 2001). That is, consistent
with the socio-cognitive approach, a HOT about
intention might not occur because of Beliefs
and expectations the expectation that the act
will occur involuntarily prevents HOTS of
intending from occurring.
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Speculation dissociation between HOTs and first
order states is brought about by
expectations. Consistently Kirsch (1985, 1991)
Hypnotic experiences are the outcome of
expectations .   Or is there some other
mechanism by which or state in which HOTs are
avoided? Are there individual differences in the
mechanism/extent to which expectations can
determine HOTs independently of first order
content?  
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• Evidence
• General responsiveness of hypnotic subjects to
  demand characteristics
• 2) For suggestions given with no induction,
  correlation between expectation of response and
  response 0.53 (Braffman Kirsch, 1999)
• 3) Post-induction, expectation of number of
  suggestions that will be experienced correlates
  highly with number of hypnotic suggestions
  experienced, r .64 (Council et al, 1986).
• 4) Subjects pass more suggestions after an
  induction rather than without an induction only
  to the extent that they expect to (Braffman
  Kirsch, 1999).

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Problem with expectation being sole
explanation We can 100 expect to see our keys
where we left them, but in clear viewing
conditions that does not mean we see them there
if they are not there. Solution expectations
need only affect higher order thoughts of
intending and not first order states. Will only
see keys if have the intention to imagine them,
and that intention will only happen if it fits in
with other intentions, plans and strategies. gt
Hypnotic hallucinations etc will in general be
contextually appropriate
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What brain region might be involved in producing
hypnotic responses? Lau and Passingham 2006 Two
conditions Visual discrimination task with same
level of objective performance but different
probability of thinking one saw the stimulus Mid
dorsolateral prefrontal cortex HOT box
responsible for creating accurate higher order
thoughts
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If disrupt HOT box with rTMS gt Harder to create
accurate HOTs gt Easier to form intentions
without knowing one has gt Easier to experience
hypnotic suggestions??
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Undergraduate projects, 2007, 2008 Edwyner Dyer,
Hamish Morris ( Sam Hutton) 24 Mediums (4- 8
on Waterloo) Five minutes 1HZ rTMS to a) Left
Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (F3 in the 10-20
system) b) Vertex In counterbalanced
order Hypnotist blind to site stimulated
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Suggestions Magnetic hands (easy motor) Arm
levitation (hard motor) Rigid arm
(challenge) Sweet /sour taste (cognitive) Measu
rements Subjective experience (0-5) Objective
response (experimenter rated 0-100)
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Objective ratings
Stimulation at left DLPFC rather than vertex
little evidence for effect on objective scores
No change in effectiveness of first order
intentions to produce the movements
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Subjective ratings
Stimulation at left DLPFC rather than vertex
increases subjective experience overall
NB challenge suggestions behave differently?
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• Cold control theory gives us a handle on
• How hypnotic responses can be executive tasks
• How expectations seem to have much larger
  effects in hypnotic rather than typical
  non-hypnotic contexts
• Order of difficulty of hypnotic suggestions (see
  chapter)
• Why zapping the left mid DLPFC should increase
  hypnotic response

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• Why does hypnotic behaviour exist?
• It is prevalent cross-culturally
• Largely associated with religious rituals and
  spirit possession/divine influence
• If you performed actions, saw images etc that you
  didnt produce gt spirit must have caused them
• Evolved to support religious beliefs?
• Note the need for self deception you must cause
  a behaviour/cognition but not know that you did
  so, so that it can be attributed to
  divine/spiritual intervention

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2) Sociological functions You can perform
behaviours for which you are not
responsible Lewis (1971, 2003) Spirit possession
serves important functions in the possessed. E.g.
Socially marginalised people can acquire the
gifts necessary for the spirit to be exorcised
(e.g. wife demanding more resources from
husband). A person can acquire the authority of
the spirit and rise to positions of political
power. Very common cross culturally. Cold control
would be the ideal way of fulfilling these
functions as it ensures the contextual
appropriateness of the relevant involuntary
behaviours and experiences
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• Conclusions
• Executive function requires intentions. But
  intentions are only conscious mental states if
  one is aware of having them. Executive function
  does not require conscious intentions.
• Hypnotic responding often requires executive
  control, but subjects do not have relevant higher
  order thoughts to make the executive control
  conscious