Psychology of Populism

 “Populist Psychology in American History”

As I looked at the play of American political history, I learned some things about how surges of populist psychology have shaped our country. That is, mass, usually unnamed movements, powered by something that clicks in the mind of otherwise diverse people. Corrective movements and policies have emerged out of times of upheaval. The democratic process seems to “naturally” involve expression of emotion, both good and bad. It turns out that the corrective forces are not all rational, and do not all come from so-called reformers in government. Often there is a disconnect between rational discussion of social needs and the strong emotional movements that eventually changed things. I mean things that we now take for granted, such as Social Security, anti-trust laws, and the 8-hour workday. Often, in an historical look-back, following a surge of people power activity, the creative part (if there was one!) of the movement gets channeled into social reforms that eventually benefit not only the disaffected, but also their children and grandchildren. Us.

An example is the presidential campaign of William Jennings Bryant in 1896. He mobilized the farmers of the Midwest who had felt trampled and ignored by bankers and industrialists in the East. Some say that the story of the Wizard of Oz was written to allegorically portray the powerful forces in that election. Bryan’s party was actually called the Populist Party. He lost to William McKinley, but the reforms he argued for became national policy during the next forty years of American history.

Another example was the surge of white supremacy following the Civil War and the emancipation of slaves. Whites, especially in the South thought they were being sold out, and formed their own populist groups in the manner of the psychological development I have described. The Klu Klux Klan is one of those groups that survives to today, and captures the strong and bigoted racial emotions lurking in some of our good citizens. It is hard to see the benefit of such a populist movement, but perhaps it gives a contemporary voice to those who can’t otherwise express themselves.

At the same time the story of Huey Long, governor of Louisiana in 1924, and later a U. S. Senator is also a story of the South. When he saw the plight of persons in the Great Depression, he set out to get them relief, pushing for a tax on Louisiana’s Big Oil to fund social programs. Unlike right-wing populism of William Jennings Bryan, this seemed to be leftist oriented populism.

Occupy Wall Street, and, to some extent, Sen. Bernie Sanders campaign against the one-percenters is an example of a more left leaning populism.  

“Populist Psychology and the AuthoritarianPersonality”

Appearing in Vox digital news commentary, an article by Amanda Taub has put out some apparently well-researched data about the authoritarian personality. Conclusions from the data show the aspects of people whose personalities tend toward the authoritarian. Authoritarianism is explained by Taub as a current behaviorally-measured psychological attitude that explains the “popularity “ of Donald Trump’s style of politics. Naming the phenomenon as authoritarianism, she shows why it is surging as a political movement, generally unnamed, and a form of right-wing populism. Moreover, this sweeping political movement is explained in terms of the specific psychological elements involved in authoritarianism.

 Persons who feel threatened by “outsiders” (like immigrants, terrorists, or gays) will show their desire for a strong protector/leader who is seen as someone able to “protect them from the changes they fear”. The desire for order in a confusing and alien world around them will propel them to look to a strong leader.  This is termed an authoritarian attitude, characterized by the need for respect of authority, traditional values, and punitive response to offenders.

 She cites political science theorists who have done some survey research, much of it based on the National Election Survey data which has been collected in every national election since 1992. Taub summarizes the psychological profile of the type of people willing to give their power to a leader who has simple and strict answers, and who can allay the fears “with force”. Some of those who fit the profile are already considered authoritarian personalities; others respond similarly to emotional threat when things are more stressful.

“Hypn      Hypnosis and Dowsing, Further Thoughts

    How natural is the experience of hypnosis? It is as natural as the hunt for a water source in a parched land.

    OK, so that doesn’t tell you much when I am setting out to tell you more about the subject of clinical  hypnosis as a naturally occurring and healing phenomenon. The connection, as I promise to explain below, is between the old farmer’s wierd waterwitching stick and arm muscles that move involuntarily. This revelation should become the basis for a new episode of TV’s “The Mentalist”.

   I am talking about how even non-verbal hypnosis involves suggestion to the muscle movements of the arm. The fine and subtle art of suggestion may also be applied to other parts of the body for health producing purposes.

    Psychological experiments show a form of self-hypnosis, so natural that the average person doesn't know that he/she is responding to unconscious cues. Hypnosis produces small muscle movements of the arm, called ideomotor movements. The subject usually denies that he is exerting any control over these movements. The experiments show the influence of suggestion, and tend to debunk the notion of some outside force on the farmer’s stick. I like debunking when it broadens the understanding of hypnosis!

   Psychology professor Ray Hyman, at the University of Oregon, conducted “dowsing” or “water witching” research experiments with volunteer students. After the prof demonstrated a walk across the floor with a dowsing rod, which moved when arriving at a certain spot (where supposedly there was water beneath the floor), students were asked to try it. The students found to their amazement that they could repeat the same demo, and see the rod movement over the same spot. All subjects denied “emphatically” that they were exerting any conscious effort. The experiment showed that the idiomotor muscle movements of the arm are generated outside the conscious volition of the subjects, yet arising wholely from inside the minds of these subjects. 

    The practice of dowsing is a very old method of locating underground water with a wand, usually for the purposes of where to dig a well. This wierd practice may still be seen in some areas of the country, with strong believers who attribute the movements of the dowsing wand or rod to the properties of the wand itself.

Kinesiologists use this principle to test arm movements that they say reveal a true answer to a question that asks for a yes or no answer. Theoretically, resistance to an outsiders pressure on the subject's arm muscle reveals a "truth" not revealed in verbal communication.  the operator can determine which arm movement is strong or weak.

    The thing is, there is a great deal of unacknowledged suggestion here. I have seen it demonstrated at a Rotary meeting, where the educated audience is largely impressed.

    In their book, Water Witching, Hyman and Evon Vogt claim that dowsing is basically a ritual pattern which is intended to reduce anxiety about the uncertainty of locating a well, especially in areas with ground water  problems. Hyman (1992), writing further about ideomotor action, concluded from his experiments that "under a variety of circumstances, our muscles will behave unconsciously in accordance with an implanted expectation." The source of the muscle movement is wholly within the person holding the "divining rods". Clearly mind-body interaction!

    This is fascinating to me because I like to use hypnosis to implant suggestions for the purpose of healing. With such an above described mind-body interaction, I think some physical healing can and does happen. This is based on the fact that not only muscles, but other organs of the body respond to suggestion. In fact, some negative suggestion probably occurs to our health detriment, without  conscious realization or acknowledgement. Some patients may, for example, be subject to the subtle suggestions of health-care providers who do not know how to engender hope.

I also believe that a therapist does not have to be directly involved in the enactment of certain healing rituals which can also have the same effect. Those wishing to benefit simply must independently participate in the ritual, whatever it might be: assigned by a priest, shaman, or practitioner of non-traditional or alternative medicine.

    Religious ritual should be included in any discussion here. I have a strong opinion about how physical healing can be a beneficial result of simple healing services of worship, which occur regularly in many faith traditions.

    What if we could harness this power of the unconscious to stimulate the immune system? Some family doctors of modern medicine are realizing that there are rudimentary methods of non-verbal communication with patients, which help the healing process. An example of this is the routine exam where the doctor touches the patient in a non-threatening manner, such as to apply the stethoscope to check the heart.

    Human beings possess within themselves a legitimate source of healing, without having to believe in any magic  or superstition. It is not superstitious to participate in ritual that is a part of one’s faith tradition, designated as a “healing ritual”.

    Is dowsing still used to locate water? I asked Richard Jackson, co-owner of Water Medic in Cape Coral what he thinks of this old-time method of preparation for digging a water well. Although he is a well professional, he actually owns a dowsing rod. He uses more modern methods now if he has to locate underground water, but he keeps the dowsing tool around. For him, it is more like a piece of history than a serious instrument . He confesses he has played with it, and believes that it works. “The old-timers didn’t have the equipment that we do now”, he says.

    “ If you go back in time, it was better than nothing”, says Jackson, showing some respect for the method. He was not skeptical, and, on questioning, seemed to attribute the power of the dowsing rod to something operating outside the person . How does he thinks it works, I asked? “Maybe magnetism”, he replied. I was not ready to debate him about this. Why should I question his belief with the new science I had discovered?

Hypnosis and Dousing

I am planning to do a column to describe clinical  hypnosis as a naturally occurring phenomenon. In this case, I am talking about hypnosis which involves suggestion to the idiomotor muscle movements of the arm.
The interesting thing about this is that it also shows a form of self-hypnosis, so natural that the subject doesn't know that he/she is responding to unconscious cues, and produces small muscle movements of the arm. The subject usually denies that he is exerting any control over these movements.
The practice of dowsing is an old method of locating underground water with a wand, often for the purposes of where to dig a well. This practice may still be seen in some areas of the country, with strong believers who attribute the movements of the dowsing wand or rod to the properties of the wand itself.
Kinesiologists use this principle to test arm movements that they say reveal a true answer to a question that asks for a yes or no answer. Theoretically, resistance to an outsiders pressure on the subject's arm muscle reveals a "truth" not revealed in verbal communication.  the operator can determine which arm movement is strong or week.The thing is, there is a great deal of unacknowledged suggestion here. I have seen it demonstrated at a Rotary meeting, where the educated audience is largely impressed.
In their book, Water Witching, Ray Hyman and Evon Vogt claim that dowsing is basically a ritual pattern which is intended to reduce anxiety about the uncertainty of locating a well, especially in areas with ground water  problems. Hyman (1992), writing further about ideomotor action, describes his experiments with volunteer students in his psychology class which he conducted to show the influence of suggestion. He concluded from his experiments that "under a variety of circumstances, our muscles will behave unconsciously in accordance with an implanted expectation." The source of the muscle movement is wholly within the person holding the "divining rods".

This is fascinating to me because I like to use hypnosis to implant suggestions for the purpose of healing. With such an above described mind-body interaction, I think some physical healing can happen. This is based on the fact that not only muscles, but other organs of the body respond to suggestion. In fact, some negative suggestion probably occurs to our health detriment, without  conscious realization or acknowledgement.
I also believe that a therapist does not have to be involved in the enactment of certain healing rituals which can also have the same effect. Those wishing to benefit simply must participate in the ritual, whatever it might be: assigned by a priest, shaman, or practitioner of non-traditional or alternative medicine. Religious ritual should be included in any discussion here.
What if we could harness this power of the unconscious to stimulate the immune system? Some family doctors of modern medicine are realizing that there are methods of non-verbal communication with patients, which help the healing process. An example of this is the routine exam where the doctor touches the patient in a non-threatening manner, such as to apply the stethoscope to check the heart.
In my proposed article, I hope to show that human beings possess within themselves a legitimate source of healing, without having to believe in any magic  or superstition.
I welcome your comments

Is Hypnosis an Art or a Science?

I have been intrigued by the bad reputation that hypnosis has received since it was first practiced. From the beginning in the 19th century, when it was generally referred to as "Mesmerism", there was much suspicion about how some hypnotic events between doctor and patient were occurring. Franz Mesmer himself thought there was some effective magnetism that flowed from doctor to patient. This was in the lifetime of Benjamin Franklin. Franklin, as a then notable scientist, was summoned to Paris to evaluate Mesmer's work. Franklin and his colleagues declared that there was no magnetism or science involved.
The mesmeric phenomenon was off to a bad start. Then,two Scottish practitioners, Braide and Esdaile began using it in medical practice, and theorized that nobody was controlling anybody by magnetism or anything else: the good effect came from what state of consciousness the patient achieved, with the guidance of the doctor's words. James Esdaile, son of a Presbyterian minister, was a surgeon who practiced his craft in India around 1850. Without anesthetic ( which wasn't yet in use), he removed tumors and limbs from patients, who apparently experienced no pain when in a hypnotic state. This is amazing to me, and makes me think that the effectiveness of the trance probably depended on the cultural expectations of people in India at that time. Nowadays, our "belief" in the scientific method would not let most of us escape into a pain-free state of consciousness so easily. I am told that the best place to practice hypnosis for pain in Western cultures, is the emergency room, where people are really looking for ways to avoid the pain of physical trauma.
Soon, because of peoples interest in the unusual mental phenomenon seen in trances, it seemed everyone wanted to experience it or witness it. Charles Dickens used hypnosis as entertainment at large parties hosted at his home at the height of his career. Stage hypnosis was used as entertainment right into the twenty-first century, where it has aroused both peoples' suspicions and interest. "Cluck like a chicken" is the familiar phrase most of the general public think of when you ask if they want to be hypnotized even for for clinical purposes ( like, for example, irritable bowel syndrome).
I have been thinking that maybe we should call clinical hypnosis something else to avoid the negative associations of the name. I believe it is a powerful healing force, and have seen how it works. Maybe: "healing meditation" would be better.

On Horror Stories

How can we be more alert to relationships in which we are called upon to be a compassionate friend?I am speaking of situations where you know someone has a health concern, and may want to air their anxieties. It obviously calls for being a good listener. The question is can everyday conversations with friends be a place for some kind of "healing" presence? I would be interested to hear reader comments. Can it be mutual? What if you have your own concerns, and you are in need of a good listener, yourself? Will common sense be enough? The occasions of "horror stories" seem to reveal that we don't always realize when we are relating things that may have powerful suggestions. What does it take to increase one's self-awareness of what you are saying in these situations, so that comfort and compassion can prevail?

Babyboomer Remarrying :Should You Marry for Love?

This raises a lot of issues about the nature of love, and just how intuition could be applied in such a major decision as partner choice. Widows and widowers often find themselves in a position later in life where they want to make a decision about gaining a new partner. Decisions made at a young age would have been influenced by a more idealistic notion of romantic love then what situation a person finds themselves in at this stage in life.
    So now, a person finds himself/herself able to take advantage of the wisdom of marital satisfaction/dissatisfactions--older and wiser, with different needs as a result of age, health, wealth
accumulation. Plus, how to prioritize the needs of companionship, affection, sex, not to mention security. Some people like the " living together separately" group really only want someone to travel with, go to entertainment venues, or just occasionally go out to dinner. These latter have had all they want out of a marriage and are satisfied with that. Decision-making at this level is more about dating then it is about marriage.
   Others have a serious opportunity to remarry, perhaps fulfilling some of the needs they did not have fulfilled in a previous marriage. Decision-making now becomes a bit more complicated. For example, should one choose a partner based on practical considerations, or could you make a choice based on not just what your head tells you what your heart tells you.
    I think here's where intuition comes into the picture. By now you may have learned whether to trust your intuition's generally speaking.
    This is a fairly large group of people I am talking because an AARP statistic says that 45% of those over 65 are now divorced widowed or separated, and they are the fastest growing segment of online daters.  AARP now has its own matchmaking service. I think it is safe to say that the difficulty of this new group of potential couplers is more about trusting love and intuition than it is about age. According to the New York Times "(Matchmakers Help Those Over 60...") article on this issue some people are paying big bucks to find
just the right mate through matchmaking services. It turns out that women are the big searchers, because there're fewer men alive at this age.
    Intuition comes into play when you have to trust a  decision that is more complex than it was when you were younger. Reconnecting at this stage in life at whatever level of involvement you may choose, requires, some assessment of your emotional needs, and  knowing what you want out of life considering that it is now shorter period of time . Matchmaking services may help to put you in touch with those whom you have listed as having preferred qualities, such as education political stance, tastes in entertainment,and desire to travel. But as rationali this might be, your final decision will probably be relying on intuition. What role do dreams, prayer, meditation play in sharpening intuition?