NLP for Teachers Series – Benefits of Educational Hypnosis

Dale (1972) reports on the use of hypnosis in education in a lengthy article which summarizes nine possible uses of hypnosis and suggestion. These are:

1. to reinforce positive habits and relinquish negative ones
2. to expand consciousness by increasing sensory and sensual response
3. to improve concentration
4. to aid memory
5. to increase motivation
6. to diminish “mental blocks”
7. to reduce anxiety
8. to encourage original thinking
9. to develop self-confidence

At the time of writing (1972), he notes that these are still mainly confined to theory and that schools and universities have not yet made use of these benefits widely. He recognizes a reluctance to use hypnosis because of its association with areas such as magic, entertainment, manipulation, and danger.
Dale also reports on much earlier research into the benefits of hypnosis in education including improved concentration and study habits (Estabrooks and May, Krippner; Fowler); increased reading speed (Donk et al.), and improved reading skills (Illovsky, 1963);
All of this research is over 40 years old, yet searches in standard databases such as Google Scholar and Eric reveal few modern publications in the area of hypnosis and education. Incidentally, Dale also reports that “our schools are in crisis …. students are rebelling and turning away from educational institutions as irrelevant to their needs.” It could easily be argued that this is even more true today than it was in 1972.
OTHER SOURCES

• Sapp (1996) examines the effects of three different types of therapy in reducing the worry and emotional components associated with test anxiety among undergraduate and graduate students. He reports that “relaxation therapy was more effective with graduate students, while undergraduates responded more to supportive counseling” (abstract).
• Sapp, M. (1990). Hypnotherapy and test anxiety: Two cognitive-behavioral constructs. The effects of hypnosis in reducing test anxiety and improving academic achievement in college students. Report. ERIC ID: ED328163.
• The Use of Hypnosis and the Improvement of Academic Achievement
  Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/026286_college_hypnosis_students.html#ixzz1N9lkw1Y5
• Effects of Anxiety-Reducing Hypnotic Training on Learning and Reading-Comprehension Tasks
  Robert L. Johnson and Henry C. Johnson
  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2561633/
• Test Anxiety and Hypnosis: A Different Approach to an Important Problem
  http://eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/search/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=EJ171001&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=EJ171001
• Articles on suggestopedia

References
Bandler, R. (2008). Richard Bandler’s Guide to Trance-formation: How to Harness the Power of Hypnosis to Ignite Effortless and Lasting Change. HCi.