ABSTRACT
The interrelated fields of hypnotherapy, psychotherapy, and family therapy are experiencing a historical period of growth as a result of innovative techniques created by Milton H. Erickson, M.D. (1901–1980). His contributions are distinctive in many ways but are of special interest for the variety of treatments and interventions they provide. To explicate the uniqueness of his strategic approaches and interventions and increase their availability to hypnotherapists, this paper attempts to place them within a “states of consciousness” (SoC) model of mental processes. This is achieved by providing a guideline which traces the induction process in terms of the alternations in emphasis between conscious and unconscious SoCs. Finally, implications for family therapy are suggested.
