Hypnosis and human development: interpersonal influence of intrapersonal processes.

This article revisits the too-long-forgotten relation between hypnosis and development, illuminating common processes underlying both, and using research on one to provide insights into the other. Hypnosis is defined within a communications framework, and essential features of hypnosis are identified in the communicative exchanges of the first months of life. This forces a reconsideration of our understanding of the ontogenesis of hypnosis. Hypnosis, in turn, offers important insights into development. Four key features of hypnosis are identified and their developmental implications examined.