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14
ANN
WEFTZ
GARVIN
ET
AL.
significant increases and decreasesrespectively inboth metabolismand
effort sense (Morgan, 1985).This finding has recently been replicated
and extended with imaging techniques to demonstrate that regional
cerebralblood flow
(KBR),
heart rate, andblood pressure alsovarywith
hypnotic perturbation of effort sense during exercise (Williamsonet al.,
in press).
In
other words, there is an absenceof compellingdata support-
ing the view that hypnosis per se influences those physiological vari-
ablesthat historicallyhavebeenmeasured, and this generalfindingcon-
tinues to be confirmed with advances and applications involving
neuroimaging (Crawford,Knebel,
&
Vendemia, 1998;Williamson et al.,
in press).
An
exception to the above generalization is the report by Rainville
et al. (1999)dealing with regional cerebral blood flow (rCBR)and elec-
troencephalographic
(EEG)
responses during hypnosis. These investi-
gators reported that decreases in rCBR were observed in selected brain
regionswith hypnosis alone, and “hypnosiswith suggestionsproduced
additional widespread increasesin rCBR in the frontal corticespredomi-
nantly on the left side” (p. 110). The investigators interpreted these
results as providing
‘’
.
. .
a new description of the neurobiological basis
of hypnosis” (p.
110),
as well as support for a state theory of hypnosis.
Theseviews serve to contradictmuch of the contemporaryhypnosis lit-
erature, and the findings should be viewed with caution for a number
of
reasons. It was reported by these investigators that “thesuggestionsdid
not contain any direct reference to muscle relaxation/tension”
(p.
120),
and because the SHSS:A was modified to include a “fist lock“ (p. 119), it
is possible that the effects attributed to hypnosis were, in fact, due to the
alert or active nature of the induction. Isometric contractions (e.g., fist
lock)can lead to significantcardiovascularand endocrinechanges, and,
because this procedurewas not employed in the baselineor controlpro-
cedure,
i t
would be misleadingto suggest that the observedeffectswere
due to a special state resulting fromhypnosis.
Although each of the interventions was associated with a significant
reduction in state anxiety lasting for at least
1
hour, the three interven-
tions did not differ
in
the magnitude of this anxiolytic effect. These
findings are in agreement with earlier reports in which nonculticmedi-
tation and quiet rest produced comparable reductions in state anxiety
(Bahrke
&
Morgan, 1978), and transcendental meditation has been
reported to have physiological effects similar to those observed follow-
ing quiet rest (Michaelset al., 1976).It has alsobeen reported by Raglin
and Morgan (1987)that quiet rest isjust as effectiveas vigorous physical
activity in reducing both state anxiety and blood pressure. Hence, there
is psychometric, cardiovascular,and endocrine data supporting the effi-
cacy of quiet rest
as
a method of reducing stress markers (e.g., anxiety,
catecholamines, and blood pressure). These results demonstrate that
generichypnosis and autogenicrelaxationhave similareffectsand these
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