Ivor, money, thanks for the mnemonic info. Funny, every stage hypnotist/mentalist that I've ever seen has also done memory "tricks".
HypnoRick, I would be careful of over-selling hypnotherapy. I fully endorse cognitive-behavioral therapy, and think that hypnosis can be used effectively in that context. That said, there are an awful lot of extremely flaky people that are "into" hypnosis or are hypnotherapists. It's as if they became so bowled over once they realized the powers of the mind, that they started attributing to the mind powers that it doesn't have. Also, I'd like to reiterate that I disbelieve in the hypnotic "trance". I don't think it's necessary to argue for such a thing to argue for the existence of the effects of hypnosis.
On hypnosis and memory: Hasn't it been shown that a relaxed mind has better powers of recall? Relaxation is almost always part of hypnosis, and I believe that any memory improvement "under" hypnosis is attributable to relaxation. I once read of a study where people were shown an arrangement of small objects for a set amount of time, then asked a series of questions to test their recall of the placement of the objects. There was a control group and a hypnotized group. The hypnotized subjects showed a slightly better memory, however: When asked leading questions - "Where was the red car placed?" - when there was no red car - yeah, they "remembered" that better, too.
On hypnosis and therapy: CBT has mostly to do with how a person "talks" to themselves. Playing this cooperative game sometimes called hypnosis helps some people chill out enough to talk to themselves openly and honestly. Guided imagery relaxation is what therapists call it to avoid the resistance many people would have to being hypnotized. It seems to be invaluable in curing Post-traumatic Stress Disorder, as well. With PTSD, every time the sufferer remembers their traumatic event, they are flooded with nasty emotions. Reliving the trauma. For some reason not fully understood, if they can remember the event without all the emotional baggage, that is when they start getting better. That's where the hypnotherapy, or whatever you want to call it, comes in. It allows people to remember with a sort of detachment. Of course, as noted, the therapist has to be very careful to not implant any false memories, through direct suggestion, or indirectly through questions.
On the topic of "a hypnotized person won't do something against their morals/that they wouldn't normally do.": Well, probably not in one session, but over time a hypnotist could really mess up a suggestible person. They could change what it is that their subject would normally do. I saw a TV documentary about a therapist/hypnotist that moved into a small town. Several women in the town that went to see him for relatively minor issues, anxiety and depression, ended up with MPD and self-injurious behaviours, because of his hypnotic therapy. Burning and cutting themselves was not what they would have previously normally done.
