Suggestibility – what is it: reasons, factors, examples

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Without noticing it, people receive suggestions from their environment and, to the same extent, influence others. All beliefs, ideas, thoughts, even characters and morals, are suggestible. It is an effective remedy to manage various forms of the condition. It is actively used in medicine, sports, and pedagogy. The main task of influence is to bring positive aspects and teach people to benefit. But there is a category of people to whom it is especially easy to impose their ideas, thoughts, and considerations.

What is suggestibility

A suggestible person is one who is easy to subordinate to someone else's will. This has not only disadvantages, but also its advantages.

Education occurs through suggestion. There are no people completely free from the judgments and opinions of others. First, parents tell their children what is good and what is bad. They convey information about the world around them within the framework of its advantages and disadvantages. Then along the way we meet other people who can also somehow influence us. Psychologists claim that the degree of suggestibility of each person has its own characteristics.

Pros and cons of quality

People who are suggestible easily adapt to circumstances and rarely conflict. They quickly remember any information and very often become professionals in one field.

Positive qualities:

• availability of talents;
• easy and quick perception of any information;
• plasticity of psyche and logic;
• high learning ability.

The disadvantages of suggestible people include the fact that they trustingly accept criticism addressed to them and have low self-esteem. They very quickly succumb to the influence of scammers, because they believe in the good deeds of other people.

Negative qualities:

• quick change of opinion;
• falling under the influence of scammers or swindlers;
• the emergence of frequent conflicts from a diversity of opinions.

Frequent conflicts are a possible consequence of increased suggestibility

Increased suggestibility does not interfere with a person’s life, but its degree can affect the quality of life.

Examples of unconscious influence

One of them, a man, for example, at that moment decided to spit out the collected saliva and does it not towards the lawn, but at the feet of a young girl walking towards him. This can be regarded as a manifestation of the stranger’s negative attitude towards the girl who happened to be walking by. Or you might just think that the guy is poorly educated and always acts so ugly. But that same girl has no idea about the real thoughts of the person she meets, so she takes this spit personally. This means her mood and self-esteem suffers.

Suddenly, on this very day, the young lady, in her opinion, did not look very good. And in her opinion, the guy noticed her shortcomings and reacted this way to her second appearance. One way or another, the psychological trauma was inflicted on the young lady in a matter of seconds. The young man’s unconscious behavior did not influence the stranger in the best way. Without suspecting it, he instilled in her a feeling of inferiority and gave her a complex.

Another example of a negative impact would be going to the cinema. At the cinema box office, watching a pair of lovers, you can identify the leader, because this is not always a man, and understand who sets the tone for the relationship and influences the behavior of the partner. She wants to watch a film about love, which is natural, it’s horror. Their desires are currently separate. And then the opposition begins - who will win. A clearly negative psychological influence is used - insults, tears, screams and threats.

Most often girls suffer from this. For them, such methods are the simplest instrument of manipulation. Men, as a rule, have one answer - silence, frowning and active analysis of probable outcomes. A soft and compliant man knows even before entering the cinema what film he and his companion will watch today. Also, truly men in love give all the reins in choosing a film to their girls. He will watch a film that the guy himself likes alone at any convenient moment.

TV advertising can be considered both a negative and a positive example of persuasion or suggestion. And, as you know, they advertise everything you need. For example, medications are something that is difficult for many to refuse. Pharmaceutical companies are investing multimillion-dollar sums in information that will impact billions. This or that remedy will eliminate a specific problem for a specific person. The TV viewer watched and forgot, but the information received was fixed in the subcortex of the brain. This means that there was contact with direct and even positive suggestion. And as soon as a person has a health problem, he remembers active advertising calls and rushes to the pharmacy for a healing drug. The direct influence of advertising on human behavior can be traced across all positions of the promoted product.

The method of repeated suggestion of information works especially well. Fashion can be considered such an influence option. The creation of clothes by one person, its promotion and sale to the masses is the simplest chain when one idea influences the masses. Everyone strives to imitate fashion trends, models and stars. This desire is dictated by many years of repeated suggestions about fashion, beauty and the demand for certain things, hairstyles, shoes, and cosmetics. Fashion influence is a conscious influence on the part of fashion trendsetters and those who obey their laws.

The former give a message about a fashion item, the latter accept this message and become potential buyers. They already know that they will purchase the product of that particular brand or specific model of dress or coat that they saw in the advertising space and believed what was said there. Fashion is just imitation, the desire to be like everyone else. A kind of psychological dependence on other people's opinions. After all, if you are not dressed in the latest fashion, then you are a profane person. Only brave and self-sufficient individuals are able to resist the imposition of thoughts and behavior.

Children, due to their age, have not yet reached the level of conscious choice and often imitate adults. The result of the influence depends on which adult is next to the child. A bad example is a bad educational result, and vice versa. Drinking, yelling and poorly behaved adults will have the most unfavorable impact on their child, which will further lead to negative behavior in the family of the grown-up heir. Any educational, and therefore influential, example always carries a load. It is better to be a positive example and influence the future of your children only positively.

Suggestibility indicators

Suggestible people blindly follow advice, even if they wanted to do differently. They can easily change their views and opinions and are prone to irritation and imitation.

Suggestibility indicators:

• timidity, dependence, gullibility;
• impressionability, the presence of an inferiority complex;
• anxiety, emotionality, low self-esteem;
• subject to the influence of hypnosis;
• lack of confidence in one’s own strengths and assertions;
• slowness of thinking;
• presence of mental disorders;
• tendency to imitate.

Suggestible individuals do not know how to compare facts and reason, and do not have their own opinions. They constantly worry about their behavior, feel anxious when they need to make an independent choice, and doubt the correctness of their actions. They are always in search of a person, preferably one of authority and status, who will advise and help, and will inspire the right choice.

Dangers

Suggestible and weak people can be dangerous to themselves and others. Self-hypnosis and outside suggestion are equally dangerous. The personality tends to accept incorrect judgments as verified facts. She has no personal opinion, or she cannot defend it.

Self-hypnosis is dangerous for people with low self-esteem. They are better at accepting negative information that confirms their inadequacy. There are two types of suggestibility: primary, associated with self-hypnosis, and secondary, based on low self-esteem and lack of motivation.

The danger of self-hypnosis or suggestion also lies in the fact that a person does not come to conclusions on his own, and therefore cannot rely on them in a difficult moment. The instilled beliefs only seem reasonable to her, but they cannot be used for her own benefit. The subconscious mind does not distinguish between random self-hypnosis and the suggestion of a hypnotist, so mental disorders arise, stress resistance decreases, aggression and apathy appear.

Factors and reasons

Suggestible people may not even suspect that they are being influenced. There are situations in which they become a victim of obsession. Suggestibility is influenced by factors:

• degree of importance of information;
• fatigue and lack of time;
• stress and pressure from others;
• uncertainty in choice;
• psychological instability;
• alcohol or drug addiction.

Children and the elderly are quickly suggestible. During illness or a stressful situation, it is easy to inspire specific actions in people. When a person understands the result of influence, his self-esteem drops. Suggestibility depends on the following categories:

• circumstances;
• life experience;
• the level of education;
• age.

You can succumb to suggestion both under the influence of hypnosis and due to low self-esteem. Stopping being influenced is difficult, but possible.

Description

It is an individual personality trait and depends on a number of characterological characteristics (for example, in hysterical individuals it is higher than in psychasthenics), on age (higher in children), and certain painful conditions (increased suggestibility is typical for alcoholics).

Suggestibility depends on the psychological state of the individual at one time or another, his emotionality, degree of fatigue, etc. It is largely interconnected with conformity, that is, with the tendency to subordinate one’s behavior to the influence of other people (such “group pressure” is more determined by social factors) .

Varying degrees of suggestibility and its nature determine the choice of psychotherapeutic techniques - hypnotherapy, rational psychotherapy. Suggestibility regarding hypnotic influence - hypnotizability. There are special suggestiveness tests.

Test by S. N. Astakhov (1962)

Light pressure on the eyelids in the area of ​​the superciliary arches after appropriate exposure in persons with increased suggestibility and hypnotizability causes the eyelids to close.

Test by P. I. Buhl (1955)

The subject is given a metal weight suspended on a thread, to which a horseshoe-shaped, specially painted “magnet” cut from wood is either brought in or removed.

The patient is told to pay attention to the supposed deviations in the position of the load under the influence of the “magnet”. In suggestible individuals, the load actually begins to swing in a given direction due to the occurrence of ideomotor movements.

Degrees of suggestibility

In psychology there is a concept of the degree of suggestibility. It can be increased and mild. The first is typical for people:

• poorly educated;
• with mental disorders;
• prone to hysteria.

The second degree is observed in a certain situation:

• under the influence of alcohol;
• under stress;
• during hysterics;
• in children 7-11 years old.

When under stress, a person becomes more suggestible

The role of suggestion in education

We looked at what suggestion is in psychology and discussed the educational implications of suggestion while looking at each different type of suggestion. Now we can generalize.

The role of the teacher

The teacher has prestige, authority and respect. He can use this for suggestions. The teacher should try to gain respect through his education, experience and tact, and try to avoid punishment and negative situations.

Role of the student

The student must allow himself to be guided by the thoughts of his parents and more experienced teachers. The teacher has the right to "put his knowledge and life experience into a common pot from which each growing mind of his little community can draw what he needs."

Formation of features

Suggestion helps in the assimilation of information, moral behavior, aesthetic development and character formation. Through suggestion good habits of behavior and valuable interests can be instilled.

• The moral influence of elders is usually captured by them.
• The people around the child are the main source of suggestions that shape his life.
• Studying biographies influences character.
• An aesthetically decorated school campus fosters an aesthetic sense.
• Feelings of all types (moral, aesthetic, patriotic, etc.) develop according to the inspiration of elders.

Influence of material instruments

The material environment also exerts its guiding influence. The printed page gives an authoritative suggestion. Therefore, textbooks must have high quality standards.

Biographies of great leaders will evoke thoughts of patriotism and self-sacrifice. Classrooms for various subjects should be decorated and decorated with illustrations to create a suggestive atmosphere.

The effect of the method of suggestion

Negative suggestions should be avoided. Positive suggestions have the desired effect. Negative self-hypnosis demoralizes a person. Therefore, positive self-hypnosis should be encouraged.

It is effective to use authoritative and collective suggestion and avoid opposition.

Constant use of suggestion is also harmful because it fosters the habit of submissiveness. Students can be encouraged to explore the issue independently with the opportunity to come to their own conclusion.

Suggestion and fear

Suggestion works best in the absence of fear.

Delinquent children need compassionate treatment coupled with positive reinforcement. A frustrated child can gain self-confidence through self-hypnosis.

Limitations of suggestion

The suggestions made very often lose their effectiveness and are detrimental to the critical judgment and initiative of the students.

Dumville said: “In science, history, geography, arithmetic, and even to a large extent in literature, the main goal of the teacher should be to encourage children to explore and come to their own conclusions. They should not be inclined to passively accept whatever their teachers tell them.”

• Coercion and fear should not accompany suggestion.
• Individuals who have strong opinions, prejudices, or rigid attitudes do not accept suggestions. Old grandmothers are the least impressive. Old conservative teachers are unlikely to accept any useful but new suggestion from young teachers.
• Ideas that are not supported by the majority, no matter how useful, are not readily accepted.

Despite all these limitations, suggestion is a psychological tool that works wonders in the hands of skilled teachers, parents and psychologists.

What suggestions did you make or accept? Write in the comments.

P.S. Get my free PDF book “Happiness?!” How to let something into your life without which it is impossible” here and receive positive suggestions! Be healthy!

Group suggestibility

In addition to individual suggestibility, group suggestibility is distinguished. The so-called crowd effect. When a group of people is influenced by one person, the individual cannot control his emotions and thoughts. He thinks and acts the same way as the people in his group. The very acceptance of information occurs as if under hypnosis. This is unconscious and uncontrolled suggestibility. A person may unconsciously perceive information just to be in this group. This is not always a negative effect. Categories of such groups accompany people throughout their lives:

• groups in kindergarten or school;
• group of friends;
• team;
• circles and sections.

The desire to be in a group becomes higher than one’s own principles and life positions. An individual cannot be alone and therefore must accept the rules of the group and obey them.

Examples

Suggestibility manifests itself in people’s everyday lives:

• Someone witnesses a fight after school. When later asked about the "huge battle" that took place, he recalls the memory, but unknowingly distorts it with exaggerated fabrications because he now thinks of the event as a "huge battle" rather than just an argument.
• Parents tell children that they are good singers, so from then on they think they are talented, while their parents actually falsely encourage them.
• A teacher can trick their AP Psych students by saying, “Suggestibility is the distortion of memory through suggestion or misinformation, right?” Most students will probably agree with him because he is a teacher and what he said sounds right. However, the term actually represents the misinformation effect.

However, suggestibility can also manifest itself in extremes, which leads to negative consequences:

• A witness's testimony changes because police or lawyers make suggestions during questioning, causing their already questionable observations to become distorted memories.
• A young girl began to experience migraines, which led to lack of sleep and depression. Her therapist, who was a specialist in child abuse cases, repeatedly asked her whether her father had sexually abused her. This assumption caused a young girl to fabricate memories of her father molesting her, which led to her being placed in foster care and her father being tried on abuse charges.

Misconceptions

Many people are susceptible to influence and suggestion, but there are no absolutely non-suggestible people. Those people who claim that they live completely only in their thoughts seem to be protecting themselves from the world. They want to prove to themselves that they don’t look at anyone and don’t listen to anyone. But that's not true. Any information that comes to us is already an influence, someone’s opinion, which is sometimes worth following, and not just accepting.

The consequences of suggestion can also include elementary rules of behavior and established requirements in society. Teachers at school give knowledge - this is also suggestion and a requirement for its processing and perception. Each person then learns to extract from the information received what they need for themselves. This confirms the fact that suggestibility is not such a bad quality as it seems. It is necessary to benefit from information.

Some psychologists study the power of suggestion as a method of combating illness. In the category of patients there are those who have caused the disease to themselves.

Authoritative suggestion

Prestige or authority helps ensure continued acceptance of an idea. We usually accept suggestions from elders whom we admire and respect. We also accept advice from those who are superior to us in knowledge, experience, prestige and status.

What explains the suggestion of authority?

Ross says: “If one person is respectful of another, he will readily accept his beliefs, opinions and views, and this is true of all suggestions, whether in hypnosis or in the normal state. We are all prone to accept suggestions from authority figures, from people we admire, and from the printed page.”

Thus, the first explanation is the difference relation. There is another explanation for this position. We have such an attitude towards another when we lack the knowledge and training to confront his views.

At the heart of this attitude is the attitude towards others. Children obey their parents and teachers because they consider them superior to them.

Common people obey the leaders and speakers on the political platform because they look up to them with great respect.

This is also due to the fact that some people absorb and maintain a habitual attitude of respect and obedience towards others (parents, elders, superiors and persons in power).

The educational consequences of prestige indoctrination are very important:

• The teacher, being senior in age, knowledge and experience, is in a position to make suggestions to his students, who may accept them unconsciously. School teachers may unconsciously inculcate cherished ideals and civic qualities among their students.
• Textbooks, which have the authority of the printed word, should not contain anything that could give the wrong message to students. Incorrect statements made in the textbook can become a serious refutation of the correct statements of the teacher.
• The teacher must remember that his suggestions will be accepted only when he enjoys respect and authority. When authority is lost, all its direct or indirect instructions are neutralized.

State of increased suggestibility

Hypnosis is a state of increased suggestibility. Many people are sure that they are smart and strong in spirit, so hypnosis is not scary for them. They confuse suggestibility with gullibility.

Hypnosis is a human condition characterized by increased suggestibility

Gullibility is the concept of simplicity and gullibility. Such people are easy to deceive and convince. Hypnosis rejects the idea that only the stupid and undeveloped, the gullible, can fall into a state of hypnosis. On the contrary, hypnosis increases the level of suggestibility. The smarter a person is, the more developed his thinking is, the higher his suggestibility. Hypnosis does not aim to deceive. It creates a situation in which it is easy to instill ideas. Psychologists have proven that the most suggestible individuals are very smart and talented. They easily receive information with new ideas and views. They can quickly make them their own, remake them for themselves.

Main features

Increased or excessive suggestibility manifests itself not only in a state of trance, but also in the behavior of an individual in familiar conditions. Willingness to obey affects the personal and professional qualities of an individual. She is the ideal subordinate, a worker who can follow the leader and not challenge his authority. She simply accepts other people's ideas - increased individual suggestibility is combined with low self-esteem, then it is difficult for a man or woman to believe in their own strengths.

Advice for such people is a guide to action. Suggestible and weak people quickly agree and rarely start arguments. They are calm and complex. Such people are dependent on the mood of others, they become infected by the general mood, regardless of personal preferences. The measure of suggestibility is reinforced by additional unfavorable conditions: against the background of increased anxiety and frequent stress, the readiness to obey increases. The gullibility and apathy of the suggestible personality are hypnotizability assistants and determine the overall influence of hypnosis.

Fighting methods

If a person is highly suggestible, this causes a lot of problems for her and those around her. Often, someone else's unnecessary opinion creates a barrier in relationships between loved ones or friends. Ways to combat the feeling of suggestibility:

• work on improving your self-esteem;
• actively develop abstract thinking skills;
• learn to operate with facts;
• know how to check the information presented;
• learn to process information, analyze and extract only useful data;
• Participate in training to develop critical thinking.

A high degree of suggestibility does not allow you to live your life. All emotions, views, concepts are dulled and relegated to the background. Such an individual succumbs to stress, which leads to complete abstraction and lack of will. If he comes across a person with good intentions on the way, who allows him to believe in his own strength, then suggestibility will become a faithful companion.

Bottom line

Suggestibility is often unconscious. Certain character traits and a person’s willingness to trust external information make him suggestible. Doubts about one’s own knowledge or its complete absence further contribute to suggestibility.

Only critical thinking, when a person does not trust, checks, draws conclusions himself, does not allow him to be suggestible. On the other hand, suggestibility allows a person to quickly enter the groups where he wants to be, as well as quickly establish favorable interpersonal relationships with others, without provoking conflicts and disputes based on differences of opinions and views. That is, a person is ready to live in accordance with other people’s views and opinions, so as not to provoke conflicts and to always be accepted by other people.