Description

The Stanford Hypnotic Clinical Scale for Children (SHCS-Children-7) is a psychometric assessment instrument designed to evaluate the effectiveness and responsiveness of children and adolescents to clinical hypnosis procedures. The scale is primarily used by psychologists and mental health professionals who apply clinical hypnosis in pediatric populations.

The instrument was developed by Morgan and Hilgard in 1978 and consists of 7 items assessing different aspects of hypnotic responsiveness and the effectiveness of hypnosis in clinical applications. The scale focuses on the extent to which children respond to hypnotic procedures in areas such as pain management, anxiety reduction, and other therapeutic applications.

The SHCS-Children-7 provides a structured method for evaluating hypnotic sensitivity and may be particularly useful in clinical contexts involving children experiencing medical procedures, chronic pain, anxiety-related difficulties, or other conditions where hypnosis is used as a therapeutic intervention.

Data Analysis and Use

Data obtained through the SHCS-Children-7 can be analyzed to determine the level of hypnotic responsiveness and the effectiveness of clinical hypnosis interventions in children and adolescents.

The scale allows researchers and clinicians to quantify the degree to which hypnotic procedures produce measurable responses. Statistical analysis may include calculation of descriptive indicators such as means, standard deviations, score distributions, and comparisons between different groups of children or different clinical conditions.

The instrument may also be used in research examining the effectiveness of hypnosis in relation to variables such as pain perception, anxiety management, emotional regulation, and response to medical procedures.

In clinical settings, the results may contribute to understanding individual differences in hypnotic sensitivity and assist professionals in adapting hypnosis-based interventions according to the child’s level of responsiveness.

Objective

The primary objective of the SHCS-Children-7 is to assess the effectiveness of clinical hypnosis and the degree of hypnotic responsiveness in children and adolescents.

More specifically, the scale aims to evaluate whether children demonstrate meaningful responses to hypnotic procedures and to estimate their sensitivity to hypnosis in therapeutic contexts.

The instrument may support both clinical practice and research by providing a standardized measure of hypnotic effectiveness in pediatric populations.

Structure and Content

The SHCS-Children-7 consists of 7 statements or tasks that evaluate children’s responses during a hypnotic procedure.

The items examine the effectiveness of hypnosis in relation to therapeutic outcomes, including areas such as pain management, reduction of anxiety, and other psychological or clinical responses.

The scale was specifically developed for children and adolescents and is administered individually by trained professionals familiar with hypnotic assessment procedures.

Scoring

Scoring of the SHCS-Children-7 is based on an eight-point scale ranging from 0 to 7.

A score of 0 indicates no hypnotic effectiveness, whereas a score of 7 indicates high hypnotic effectiveness or sensitivity.

The final score is calculated by summing the scores obtained from the individual items. Higher total scores indicate greater responsiveness to clinical hypnosis and stronger hypnotic sensitivity.

The resulting score provides an overall indicator of the effectiveness of hypnosis for the individual assessed.

Statistical Analysis

Statistical evaluation of the SHCS-Children-7 may include examination of internal consistency, relationships between hypnotic responsiveness and clinical outcomes, and comparisons between different patient groups.

The scale can be analyzed using descriptive statistics and reliability procedures to evaluate its psychometric performance. Additional analyses may examine associations between hypnotic responsiveness and therapeutic outcomes, such as pain reduction or anxiety management.

The instrument may also be used in intervention studies evaluating changes in clinical outcomes following hypnosis-based treatments.

Validity

The SHCS-Children-7 demonstrates satisfactory construct validity according to the available information.

The scale has been used to assess hypnotic responsiveness in children and adolescents and has shown acceptable ability to evaluate the effectiveness of clinical hypnosis procedures.

The available information does not provide detailed validity coefficients, factor analytic results, sensitivity, specificity, or comparisons with alternative hypnotic responsiveness measures. Therefore, these characteristics should be interpreted according to the specific validation studies conducted for the instrument.

Reliability

The reliability of the SHCS-Children-7 has been examined through internal consistency analysis.

The reported Cronbach’s alpha coefficient is α = 0.72, indicating satisfactory internal consistency among the items of the scale.

This reliability coefficient suggests that the items provide a consistent assessment of hypnotic responsiveness in the populations studied. However, reliability should be reassessed when the scale is applied to different cultural, linguistic, or clinical populations.

References

Liossi, C., & Hatira, P. (2003). Clinical hypnosis in the alleviation of procedure-related pain in pediatric oncology patients. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 51(1), 4–28.

Morgan, A. H., & Hilgard, J. R. (1978). The Stanford hypnotic clinical scale for children. American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis, 21(2–3), 148–169.

Wang, D., Wang, C., Chen, S., Zuo, C., Dong, D., & Wang, Y. (2020). Psychometric properties of the subjective health complaints for Chinese children: Parent-and self-reports. Current Psychology, 39(6), 2357–2365.