Impact of reading a scientific journal issue about hypnosis on the beliefs and attitudes towards hypnosis among psychologists

The goal of this study was to examine the influence of receiving scientific information about hypnosis over Spanish psychologists’ beliefs and attitudes toward hypnosis. The Valencia Scale on Attitudes and Beliefs toward Hypnosis-Therapist (VSABH-T) wasadministered to 2434 Spanish psychologists. A retest and a second retest were carried out, and between these testing administrations a monograph issue focused on hypnosis was published in a journal that all members of the Spanish Psychological Association received. Results indicated that psychologists who read this monograph, in general terms, changed their misconceptions about hypnosis for correct beliefs and their negative attitudes toward hypnosis for positive ones. Moreover, the VSABH-T was useful for detecting changes in psychologists’ beliefs and attitudes toward hypnosis.