A taxometric analysis of hypnotic susceptibility.

Abstract

The possibility that hypnotic ability is typological rather than dimensional was evaluated in a series of 4 studies. Study I used two samples of mass-testing measures of hypnotic ability, which were analyzed using the MAXCOV-HITMAX method ( P. E. Meehl, 1973). Results of these analyses were in keeping with the existence of a latent typology in hypnotic ability scores. Study 2 investigated the possibility that these results could be a false-positive artifact of factor structure. Results of the simulation analyses indicated that the possibility of a false-positive was unacceptably high. Studies 3 and 4 used larger samples, combined with data-simulation control analyses. Results of Studies 3 and 4 were in keeping with the existence of a latent typology in hypnotic ability scores, whereas data-simulation control analyses demonstrated that the risk of false-positive results was acceptably low.