Posthypnotic responding: knowing when to stop helps to keep it going.

The authors examined the effect of specifying (cue) or not specifying (no cue) the cancellation cue for posthypnotic suggestion. Responding was indexed on formal, embedded, informal, and postexperimental tests. Thirty-six real, hypnotized participants and 20 simulating participants took part in an application of the real-simulating paradigm. Responding declined across the four tests. Real participants in the cue condition maintained responding longer than simulators in the cue condition, and they also maintained responding longer than reals and simulators in the no cue condition. The findings highlight the interactional influence of individual, interpersonal, and situational factors in posthypnotic responding and underscore the active involvement of individuals in hypnotically initiated events.