Abstract
The Berlin physician Albert Moll (1862-1939) was an advocate of hypnotic suggestion therapy and a prolific contributor to the medical, legal and public discussions on hypnotism from the 1880s to the 1920s. While his work in other areas, such as sexology, medical ethics and parapsychology, has recently attracted scholarly attention, this paper for the first time comprehensively examines Moll's numerous publications on hypnotism and places them in their contemporary context. It covers controversies over the therapeutic application of hypnosis, the reception of Moll's monograph Der Hypnotismus (1889), his research on the rapport between hypnotizer and subject, his role as an expert on 'hypnotic crime', and his views on the historical influence of hypnotism on the development of psychotherapy. My findings suggest that Moll rose to prominence due to the strong late-nineteenth-century public and medical interest in the phenomena of hypnosis, but that his work was soon overshadowed by new, non-hypnotic psychotherapeutic approaches, particularly Freud's psychoanalysis.
Highlights
Hypnosis was a controversial topic of medical, legal and public debate in several European countries during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries
This paper examines Moll’s role in the contemporary discourse on hypnosis
In contrast, was inclined towards the view of Bernheim, the physician Ambroise-Auguste Liébeault (1823–1904) and others of the so-called Nancy School (Janet, 1925, 1: 172–80; Gauld, 1992: 319–27) that hypnosis was a purely psychological phenomenon which was caused by suggestion. Drawing upon his experience with hypnosis in France, especially in Bernheim’s clinic, and some trials on his own patients in Berlin, Moll argued that hypnotizing patients and suggesting to them improvement or disappearance of their symptoms was a successful method of treatment in a number of conditions, such as cases of neuralgia, agitated states of neurasthenia, sleeplessness and headaches
Summary
Hypnosis was a controversial topic of medical, legal and public debate in several European countries during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Drawing upon his experience with hypnosis in France, especially in Bernheim’s clinic, and some trials on his own patients in Berlin, Moll argued that hypnotizing patients and suggesting to them improvement or disappearance of their symptoms was a successful method of treatment in a number of conditions, such as cases of neuralgia, agitated states of neurasthenia, sleeplessness and headaches.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
