See clearly: suggestion, hypnosis, attention, and visual acuity. Review uri icon

Overview

abstract

  • Some reports claim that positive suggestion (e.g., using hypnosis) can significantly improve visual acuity (e.g., in myopes). Based on behavioral, neurocognitive, and ophthalmological findings, the authors provide a critical account to review and challenge some of these data. While acknowledging the relative merits of hypnosis for investigating visual phenomena, an array of arguments converges to propose caveats to the apparent influence suggestion can exert on visual acuity. The authors argue that neither suggestion nor hypnotic phenomena are likely to significantly improve myopic vision and contend that a responsible scientific attitude should carefully outline what hypnosis and suggestion cannot do in addition to what they can. It seems likely that the small apparent influence of suggestion on visual acuity is mediated by changes in attention. The authors outline how attention can affect visual acuity.

publication date

  • April 1, 2004

Research

keywords

  • Attention
  • Suggestion
  • Visual Acuity

Identity

Scopus Document Identifier

  • 1842529437

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

  • 10.1076/iceh.52.2.159.28097

PubMed ID

  • 15115060

Additional Document Info

volume

  • 52

issue

  • 2