Welcome to David Calof's speech at the Exploratorium on the topic of hypnosis and memory! WARNING: Treat this speech and any statements Calof makes with skepticism; take nothing on faith. Ask him what the known risks of hypnosis are. Ask him whether therapy techniques he advocates have been tested for safety and effectiveness in controlled scientific studies. Ask him for peer-reviewed scientific journal articles to support each statement he makes. Ask him what his qualifications to speak on the topics of hypnosis and memory are. Ask him what academic degrees he has and what institutions he received them from.

If you would like to judge for yourself David Calof's qualifications and knowledge about hypnosis and therapy, read the transcript of his recent court deposition which can be found online at the URL  ftp://ftp.calweb.com/users/j/jmprice/calof-deposition
 

Point:

Counterpoint:

Hypnosis can "reverse long term  amnesia and restore lost memory."  -- statement in the notice on the  Exploratorium web page at http://www.exploratorium.edu/ events/august_98.html  advertising David Calof's  speech today

"Contrary to what is generally believed by the public, recollections obtained during hypnosis not only fail to be more accurate but actually appear to be generally less reliable than nonhypnotic recall." -- "Scientific Status of Refreshing Recollection by the Use of Hypnosis," American Medical Association’s Council on Scientific Affairs, 1985  "There is no evidence that the use of consciousness-altering techniques, such as drug-mediated interviews or hypnosis, can reveal or accurately elaborate factual information about any past experiences including childhood sexual abuse." -- Royal College of Psychiatrists, U.K., 1997

 
Quotes from a Past Speech by David Calof

"For example, we're finding a lot of undiagnosed, unrecovered multiples in nursing homes. Well, don't ever let me hear about any of you doing abreactive work with an eighty-six year old person. It's just not the thing to do. I learned the hard way. One of my multiples had a stroke during an abreaction.  Fortunately, she recovered from it but it sure makes a point to me about considering constitutional issues."

Quotes from Doctors and Professional Organizations Regarding Memory

"Most people who were sexually abused as children remember all or part of what happened to them." -- Interim Report of the American Psychological Association Working Group on Investigation of Memories of Childhood Abuse

Quotes Regarding Hypnosis from the AMA Council on Scientific Affairs

• "It is the consensus of the Panel that hypnotic age regression is the subjective reliving of earlier experiences as through they were real--which does not necessarily replicate earlier events."
• "Although the Panel recognizes that there are many factors--including leading questions--that affect eyewitness testimony in the non-hypnotic state, subjects in hypnosis are more vulnerable to the biasing effects of leading questions."
• "[T]here are clinical case reports that appear to demonstrate memory enhancement in hypnosis. The vast majority of these reports are anecdotal, and most fail to provide independent corroboration of the memories recovered in hypnosis or to establish that hypnosis was responsible for any effects observed."
• "In no study to date has there been an increase in accuracy associated with an appropriate increase in confidence in the veracity of recollections. Consequently, hypnosis may increase the appearance of certitude without a concurrent increase in veracity."
• "Witnesses and victims, however, are not selected for their mental health .... the Panel believes that it is essential that hypnosis be conducted by a psychiatrist or a psychologist who is competent to help the witness or victim deal with overwhelming affect."
• "Not only is there a question about the accuracy of a subject's recollection during hypnosis, but there is also the problem that hypnosis leads to an increased vulnerability to subtle cues and implicit suggestions that may distort recollections in specific ways, depending upon what is communicated to the subject. Both the expectations of the hypnotist and the prior beliefs of the subject may determine the extent of confabulations or pseudomemories during hypnosis. The manner in which a question is framed can influence the response and even produce a response when there is actually no memory."
• "Before proceeding with hypnosis, informed consent should be obtained from the subject."
• "The Panel found no evidence to indicate that there is an increase in only accurate memory during hypnosis and recognized that there is no way for either the subject or the hypnotist to distinguish between those recollections that may be accurate and those that may be pseudomemories."