Pain-reduction strategies in hypnotic context: ERPs and SCRs during a secondary auditory task

American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis,  Apr 2005  

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De Pascalis, V., Bellusci, A., Gallo, C., Magurano, M. R., & Chen, A. C. N. (2004). Pain-reduction strategies in hypnotic context: ERPs and SCRs during a secondary auditory task. International Journal of Clinical & Experimental Hypnosis, 52(4), 343-363. Pain-rating scores were obtained from 10 high-, 10 medium-, and 10 lowhypnotizable subjects who were holding a painful cold bottle in their left hands and were exposed to pain reduction treatments while they were performing a secondary oddball task.

All subjects received suggestions of dissociative imagery and focused analgesia as cognitive strategies for pain reduction. The following measures were obtained for tone targets of the auditory oddball task: (a) reaction time; (b) P300 peak amplitude of the event-related potentials; (c) skin conductance levels and skin conductance responses. Focused analgesia produced the most pain reduction in high-, but not medium- or low-, hypnotizable subjects who showed shorter reaction times, higher central and parietal P300 peaks, and higher skin conductance responses. These findings were discussed vis-a-vis the dissociated-control model assuming that capacity demands of hypnotic suggestion are low.

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