ABSTRACT
The long historical association between hypnosis and sleep is still reflected in many of the standard induction suggestions that S should enter into a deep, relaxed, restful sleep. A different set of questions has been explored concerning the sleeping individual's ability to interact with his environment. Hypnosis has provided both a model for studying interactions with the sleeping person and a means of exploring cognitive functioning during sleep. Sophisticated computer techniques are being employed to investigate the electroencephalographic in ways that could not be achieved by simple on-line visual scanning and manual scoring. A variety of hypnotic techniques, including regression, were used with the more hypnotizable Ss in an attempt to reverse the amnesia for the sleep experiences. In emphasizing the importance of the interpretation of dreams, Sigmund Freud stressed their symbolic meaning as a technique for evaluating unconscious mental processes.
