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From: mmt@dciem.UUCP (Martin Taylor)
Newsgroups: net.sci
Subject: Re: IS REVEEN THE HYPNOTIST A FAKE ??
Message-ID: <1230@dciem.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 27-Nov-84 14:20:41 EST
Article-I.D.: dciem.1230
Posted: Tue Nov 27 14:20:41 1984
Date-Received: Tue, 27-Nov-84 16:52:59 EST
References: <239@alberta.UUCP>
Organization: D.C.I.E.M., Toronto, Canada
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I can't speak as to Reveen or any other particular hypnotist, but
it doesn't really matter about the performer so long as he has a
good stage presence.  The skill of hypnosis is in the subject, not
the hypnotist.  People vary in suggestibility (talent for being
hypnotized) and in hypnotizability (developed with practice).
Any reasonably competent person can perform the hypnosis with a
little training.  Only about 1% of the population is sufficiently
suggestible to be able to do all the tricks a hypnotist demands
on stage.  One thing a stage hypnotist must therefore do is to
find out which volunteers are able to perform (which doesn't mean act).

If you see the same people return to the stage, there are two non-faking
reasons at least.  One is that they are highly suggestible and the manner
in which people are called is such as to "collect" suggestible people.
The other is as mentioned by Derek Keeping: maybe having been hypnotized
once leads them to volunteer again.

Reference: Hypnosis for the seriously curious. Kenneth S. Bowers,
           Monterey, CA: Brooks/Cole, 1976.
-- 

Martin Taylor
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