CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, NORTHRIDGE HYPNOTHERAPY AND NON-VERBAL 11 COMMUNICATION Proposal for a course for students in the Counseling and Guidance Program at California State University, Northridge A graduate project submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Arts in Educational Psychology, Counseling and Guidance by lr1ichael Aharoni August, 1979 The Thesis of Michael Aharoni is approved: oe McNair, Ph.D. Art Charlap-Hyman, Ph.D. Marvin Chernoff, Ph.D. Chairperson California State University, Northridge .- ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank the following people for the help they have given me. Dr. Marvin Chernoff, for encouraging me to go through the program and giving me great experiences in the program. Dr. Dave Dobson, my friend, who believed in me and taught me so much about hypnosis. Richard Bandler and John Grinder, for teaching me the art and magic of non-verbal communication. The students who took the course, trusted in me, and made the course such a pleasant experience. Last, but foremost, Bonnie--for being so support­ ive and patient with me, especially during the time I researched and wrote this project. iii PREFACE The Prince and the Magician Once upon a time there was a young prince who believed in all things but three. He did not believe in princesses, he did not believe in islands, he did not believe in God. His father, the king, told him that such things did not exist. As there were no princesses or islands in his father's domains, and no sign 6£ God, the prince believed his father. But then, one day, the prince ran away from his palace and came to the next land. There, to his astonish­ ment, from every coast he saw islands, and on these islands, strange and troubling creatures whom he dared not name. As he was searching for a boat, a man in full evening dress approached him along the shore. "Are those real islands?" asked the young prince. "Of course they are real islands," said the man in evening dress. "And those strange and troubling creatures?" "They are all genuine and authentic princesses." "Then God must als.o exist!" cried the prince. "I am God," replied the man in evening dress, with a bow. The young man returned home as quickly as he could. iv "So, you are back," said his father, the king. "I have seen islands, I have seen princesses, I have seen God," said the prince reproachfully. The king was unmoved. "Neither real islands, nor real princesses, nor a real God exist." "I saw them!" "Tell me how God was dressed." '"God was in full evening dress." "Were the sleeves of his coat rolled back?" The prince remembered that they had been. The king smiled. "That is the uniform of a magician. You have been deceived." At this, the prince returned to the next land and went to the same shore, where once again he came upon the man in full evening dress. "My father, the king, has told me who you are," said the prince indignantly. "You deceived me last time, but not again. Now I know that those are not real islands and real princesses, because yo~ are a magician." The man on the shore smiled. "It is you who are deceived, my boy. In your father's kingdom, there are many islands and many princesses. But you are under your father's spell, so you· cannot see them." v The prince pensively returned home. When he saw his father, he looked him in the eye. "Father, is it true that you are not a real king, but only a magician?" The king smiled and rolled back his sleeves. "Yes, my son, I'm only a magician." "Then the man on the other shore was God." "The man on the other shore was another magician." "I must know the truth, the truth, beyond magic." "There is no truth beyond magic," said the king. The prince was full of sadness. He said, "I will kill myself." The king by magic caused death to appear. Death stood in the door and beckoned to the prince. The prince shuddered. He remembered the beautiful but unreal islands and the unreal but beautiful princesses. "Very well," he said, "I can bear it." "You see, my son," said the king, "you, too, now begin to be a magician." Reprinted from The Magus, by John Fowles, Dell Publishing Co., Inc.;pp. 499-500. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ~1?1?~()\7~ 1?1\(;~ . ..• ~ • • . • • . • • • . • . • • . • • • . • • • • . • • . • • ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. • . • . • . iii PREFACE. • . • . • • . i v ABSTRACT . • viii Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION. • . • . .. 1 2. HYPNOTHERAPY AND NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION... 6 Introduction. • . • . 6 Background: Hypnosis as a Therapeutic Mod a 1 ity . ~ . .. 6 Definition................................ 9 Misconceptions............................ 11 Conscious vs. Subconscious................ 11 Depth of Hypnotic Trance.................. 15 Suggestibility Tests...................... 16 Hypnotic Techniques....................... 18 Post-Hypnotic Suggestions................. 22 Non-Verbal Communication.................. 24 3. SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECO&~NTDATIONS.. 31 BIBLIOGRAPHY.. 35 APPENDIXES A. COURSE OUTLINE. • . • . • . 3 9 B.. BIBLIOGRAPHY. • . • . • • 41 C. HYPNOTHERAPY HANDOUTS....................... 49· D. SELECTED CLASS COMMENTS . • . • 61 vii ABSTRACT HYPNOTHERAPY AND NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION Proposal for a course for students in the Counseling and Guidance Program at California State University, Northridge by Michael Aharoni Master of Arts in Educational Psychology, Counseling and Guidance The purpose of this project was to develop a course in the areas of hypnotherapy and non-verbal communication for the graduate students in the Counseling and Guidance Program at California State University, Northridge. It was developed to acquaint students with these areas that are useful as tools in individual and family counseling. The reasons for developing such a course were: 1) The areas of hypnotherapy and non-verbal·communication are not given sufficient attention in the Counseling and Guidance Program, and 2) students expressed an interest viii in gaining skills in these fields. The course was taught in a seminar fashion by the author over a six-week period. Seventeen students attended. Specific theories and topics were presented and discussed, along with practical experience in eac~~ area. An extensive course outline was developed for teaching this information in a three-unit course. The response of the students to the class was determined through the use of an evaluation form and student's personal comments regarding the class. It was concluded that there is a definite n~ed for such a course in this program and that students would like to see such a course offered by the Educational Psychology Department as a three-unit course .. ix CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION The two year master's degree Counseling and Guidance Program at California ·state University, Northridge is designed to prepare students to become counselors. This program focuses on a variety of theories and tech­ niques. Most of the techniques are traditional and include such theories as Freudian, Adlerian, Gestalt, Jungian, and Behaviorism. In the past ten years there have· been many new discoveries and advances in the fields of hypnotherapy and non-verbal communication. More and more, psychologists and counselors are searching for information in order to use these tools in their work. Currently, there are very few places which offer the students or professionals quality training in these areas. Most of the available courses and seminars are expensive and are often taught by inexperienced people and organizations. In reviewing the Counseling and Guidance Program at California State University,.Northridge, I discovered ·that these two very impor£ant_areas are not given sufficient attention in this program. ·The problem, therefore, becomes: Where and how does the student, who 1 2 is going to become a counselor, get the training in these areas that are becoming increasingly important in therapy. There were several reasons why I chose to do this project. First, in giving lectures and demonstrations to Education Psychology classes, I found the response to be largely favorable by both students and faculty. Secondly, training in these two important areas are currently not available in this program. Thirdly, as a practicing hypnotherapist, I .found these tools to be extremely helpful in doing counseling with individuals as well as with groups. I have been interested in the area of hypnosis for many years. My curiosity led me to numerous books and articles written ~n the subject. The successful use of self-hypnosis for personal growth, led me to devote a great deal of time and energy in developing my-knowledge in this area. This included studying privately for one and one-half years with Dr. David Dobson, Hypnotherapist; attending numerous workshops and lectures, including those given by the Southern California Society of Clinical Hypnotists; the Professional Hypnotist's Association; as . well as individual training sessions with Erika Fromm, Ph.D., William Kroger, M.D., and many others. I was also accepted by the Southern California Society of Clinical Hypnotists, in 1975, as a student member, and was certified by the Professional Hypnotist's 3 in 1975, as a student member, and was certified by the Professional Hypnotist's Association as a professional hypnotist in 1976. In 1976, I was introduced to non-verbal communi­ cation and system theories that were developed and taught by Milton Erickson, Richard Bandler and John Grinder, and Virginia Satir. Further advanced training was received from Richard Bandler and John Grinder in the use of non­ verbal communication and hypnotherapy techniques to be used with clients in clinical and medical situations. In the past five and a half years, I have worked with hundreds of. people using the above techniques with a high degree of success. This has included treating people for such conditions as: anxiety, nervousness, depression, we.ight problems; habit control, sexual dysfunctions, migraine headaches, ulce.rs, insomnia, and communication problems.