u/FinancialFarm9987

I've been reading different opinions on this, and I'd like to hear your thoughts.

Traditional hypnotists often claim that hypnosis can never make someone act against their morals or ethical values. However, some modern hypnotists argue that morals and ethics are more like a "surface layer" and that if the critical factor is bypassed, those limits can also be bypassed under certain circumstances.

For example, imagine someone would never intentionally harm their own mother or father. But what if, under hypnosis, they genuinely perceive that person as something else—such as being told, "That's not your mother; it's a dangerous monster that's about to attack you. Stop it before it hurts you." If the person were to react based on that altered perception, would that really count as overriding their morals and ethics, or would it simply be them acting according to what they believe is true in that moment?

Are there any scientific studies or well-documented cases that address this question?

Do you think hypnosis can ever override a person's moral or ethical boundaries? If not, why not? I'm interested in hearing different perspectives, especially if you can support your opinion with research or evidence.

You might want to watch Deception with Keith Barry. In the documentary, there are demonstrations that appear to go far beyond what many hypnotists describe as normal ethical limits. For example, the subject is given the identity of a professional assassin, is led to believe they are carrying out an assassination mission, and in another demonstration is instructed to withdraw their own money from a bank, throw it away, and later has no memory of doing so.

In addition, I'm planning to conduct my own small experiments using only completely harmless suggestions, with the full knowledge and consent of the participants. I have no intention of misusing hypnosis or encouraging unethical behavior. My goal is simply to explore this question in a safe and ethical way, and then make another post discussing what I found.

I've been studying hypnosis for about a week, and I started doing actual performances two days ago. I've been practicing magic and illusion for five years, so my analysis and presentation skills are pretty solid. Because of that, I was able to achieve some advanced phenomena during my very first hypnosis performances, including hallucinations, invisibility, and several other high-level effects.

The next day, I was hanging out with four friends. One of them told me he didn't believe in hypnosis at all, but said, "I'll try to believe and I won't resist you." I spent about 10 minutes trying different inductions to bypass his critical factor, but nothing worked.

He said he felt relaxed during the induction, but I couldn't even get basic catalepsy. He even struggled with simple set pieces like the light/heavy hands exercise. I tried the handshake induction, confusion techniques, and several other approaches, but I still couldn't produce even basic catalepsy with him.

How can I bypass or lower someone's critical factor in a case like this? What should you do when you encounter a subject like this?