This month marks the 125th anniversary of hypnotist Dave Elman's birth—an ideal moment to revisit his seminal book, Findings in Hypnosis (later republished as Hypnotherapy).
When I first encountered the writings of Dave Elman, I was struck not just by his skill as a hypnotist, but by the clarity and conviction with which he taught. His 1964 book, Findings in Hypnosis, remains one of the most practical and influential texts ever written on the subject. And yet, nearly 60 years later, many of his contributions are misunderstood, misquoted, or reduced to caricature.
This blog is a personal homage to Elman’s work—what he got right, what is questionable, and what still shines today. It’s also a bridge between his foundational ideas and the modern, evidence-informed understanding of hypnosis that we have today.
Who Was Dave Elman, Really?
Dave Elman wasn’t a physician. He was a performer and a broadcaster who became one of the most respected hypnosis instructors of his time—demonstrating and training large numbers of doctors and dentists in his rapid hypnosis techniques. Over half a century later, his legacy lives on through his methods, but perhaps even more so through his attitude: practical, no-nonsense, and always results-driven.
Elman brought hypnosis out of the mystic fog and made it useful. He was seemingly obsessed with speed, efficacy, and reproducibility. That obsession led him to challenge a great deal of dogma, especially the long, drawn-out induction rituals that defined much of early 20th-century hypnotic practice.
The Core of Elman’s Model
Elman’s view of hypnosis was remarkably straightforward: it occurs when the critical faculty of the mind is bypassed and selective thinking is established. He believed that hypnosis was not something done to someone, but something the subject does with guidance.
His phrase from page 1 of his book, “There is no such thing as a hypnotist” wasn’t a denial of his role—it was an affirmation of agency. In his words, “You won't hypnotise him; he will hypnotise himself.” Hypnosis, for Elman, was not manipulation. It was facilitation.
That premise aligns closely with what we now understand about the psychology of suggestion. Hypnosis doesn’t override a person’s will. It directs attention, modulates expectation, and engages the imaginative capacities of the subject. In this way, Elman was ahead of his time.
What Made Elman Different
Unlike many of his contemporaries, Elman emphasized the consent-based nature of hypnosis. He insisted that the subject must be willing to accept suggestions, must trust the hypnotist, and must be free from fear. Without those elements, hypnosis simply would not occur. Some audio recordings of Elman really bring home this last point. When hypnosis isn't working, he is quick to tell the subject. that they have "let the fear in."
He also challenged the notion that there was only one way to induce hypnosis. He dismissed the idea that technique alone was responsible for success, stating, “Authors are wrong who say that any particular technique is the only reliable way to induce trance.” Instead, he focused on principles—such as bypassing the critical faculty—and let technique evolve naturally from there.
That flexibility, paired with his efficiency, gave rise to what is now known as the 'Elman Induction,' a rapid method for inducing what he referred to as a "deep trance state"—often to somnambulism—within minutes. This became the gold standard for many clinicians, particularly in medical and dental hypnosis. Later with lay hypnotherapy practitioners, the second edition of his book with it's green cover became affectionately known as 'the green bible', and his induction a standard.
Selective Thinking and the Critical Faculty
Elman's definition of hypnosis: "
One of Elman’s most quoted ideas is the “bypass of the critical faculty.” Rather than imagining this as shutting down rational thinking, modern psychology reframes it as temporarily suspending top-down processing—the brain’s tendency to interpret new input through the lens of prior beliefs and expectations.
Elman described the critical faculty as a kind of mental gatekeeper, filtering out suggestions that don’t match a person’s existing worldview. The importance he placed on this can be understood in this quote from him: "
His idea of selective thinking—an idea that is accepted wholeheartedly—closely resembles James Braid’s concept of monoideism, and aligns with modern understandings of focused attention, cognitive priming, and belief-driven perception.
Though his terminology may now feel dated, the essence of Elman’s approach remains remarkably current. He wasn’t enforcing control—he was inviting people into a mindset where imagination becomes influential, and suggestion can shape perception and response in real time
Waking Hypnosis and the Power of Expectation
One of Elman’s most radical contributions was his exploration of “waking hypnosis”—the idea that hypnotic effects could be produced without a formal trance. He wrote, “Now you're learning that you do not need the trance state to achieve actual hypnosis and hypnotic effects.” And "
This aligns with what we now understand through the lens of cognitive-behavioural theories of hypnosis: that hypnosis is not a special state, but a context in which suggestion is more likely to be experienced as real. The induction is a ritual. The state is suggested. The response is genuine.
Waking suggestion, when delivered with authority and clarity, can be just as effective—sometimes more so—than traditional “deep trance” work. Elman’s teachings foreshadowed this shift in thinking, and they continue to inform modern cognitive and social models of hypnosis.
What’s Outdated—and What’s Still Golden
Some of Elman’s ideas haven’t aged as well. His strict emphasis on “depth,” the classification of extra-special states like “hypnosleep” and the “Esdaile state,” and the idea that amnesia or anaesthesia require somnambulism are all rooted in a sspecial state-based view of hypnosis. These concepts, while useful metaphors, don’t hold up to modern scrutiny.
We now know that depth is not a prerequisite for effectiveness. Many therapeutic changes occur with suggestions go into a light state—or with no suggestions to go into a formal hypnotic state at all. What matters is not how “deep” someone is, but how engaged they are with the process and the suggestion.
Elman’s views on trauma and memory, particularly around causality, are now considered problematic. He wrote: “It is my firm belief that every stutter has a basic, investigable cause. If the cause remains within him, the stutter will return.”
Statements like this have contributed to a persistent belief among therapists, especially hypnotherapists that regression to cause is essential—even the ultimate key—to therapeutic success. Even Sigmund Freud abandoned this idea, and decades before Elman wrote his book. Yet, the idea, that uncovering a specific root cause is necessary for resolution, has become central to many schools of hypnosis.
This emphasis has played a role in the false memory crisis that caused significant harm to the credibility of psychotherapy and even more so to hypnotherapy. It can foster therapist dependency, encourages retrospective certainty where none may exist, and promotes outdated models of memory as fixed and retrievable, rather than reconstructive and fallible. Despite these concerns, the belief remains influential in certain corners of the field—yet it is increasingly viewed as misguided, potentially harmful, and professionally irresponsible.
It’s also worth noting that Elman wrote, “Hypnosis is of little value in permanently correcting the cigarette habit.”
According to reliable accounts, this conclusion came after he personally sought help to quit smoking—from his most accomplished student—and the attempt failed. While anecdotal, this story likely shaped his broader skepticism, highlighting how even pioneers can form sweeping conclusions based on personal experience rather than systematic evidence.
Despite these shortcomings, the heart of Elman’s work is solid. His focus on clarity, consent, precision, and respect for the subject still forms the foundation of ethical, effective hypnotherapy.
A Hypnotist’s Hypnotist
Elman was revered not because he mystified hypnosis, but because he demystified it. He taught doctors how to use it in surgery. He trained dentists to use it for pain control. He showed therapists how to produce fast, observable results in anxiety, phobia, and habit change.
And he did all of this without ever claiming special powers or invoking esoteric language. His was a model of hypnosis as a learnable, teachable, testable skill.
Even when he spoke of the “inside mind,” he wasn’t invoking mysticism. He was simply describing what modern psychology would call unconscious processes—the non-verbal, automatic patterns that govern much of our behavior and experience.
Teaching Hypnosis Today: Building on Elman’s Shoulders
At Jacquin Hypnosis Academy, we aim to teach hypnosis in a way that honors its history while embracing its future. Elman’s work is part of that lineage. We reference his methods, reinterpret his ideas, and equip students with tools that are both respectful of his legacy and informed by contemporary science.
We teach that hypnosis is not a power the hypnotist holds. It is a process the subject engages with. It requires clarity, intention, and cooperation. It requires language that works with imagination and belief—not against it.
Elman’s genius was that he knew that suggestion was only as powerful as the subject’s willingness to accept it. He knew that no technique could override resistance. He knew that the best hypnosis was invisible—when it worked so seamlessly that the subject believed they had done it all themselves.
And in a way, they had.
Why Elman Still Matters
In an age of neuroscience and digital therapeutics, it’s tempting to see Elman as a figure from the past. But the truth is, he is more relevant than ever.
His insistence on efficiency is echoed in today’s demand for brief therapy.
His emphasis on the subject’s role aligns with our understanding of agency and neuroplasticity.
His focus on real-world application, not abstract theory, is what makes his work enduring.
What Elman offered was not a doctrine, but a doorway. His book is not a bible, but it is an account of his practical methods. He invited us to explore what happens when the mind becomes absorbed, when the body becomes still, and when imagination becomes more powerful than logic.
That’s still hypnosis. And it’s still worth learning.
Final Thoughts: The Modern Mind Meets the Elman Method
There is something deeply satisfying about revisiting the work of a master—not to memorize, and certainly not to canonize, but to engage with it. To test it, refine it, and apply it.
In the hands of a modern practitioner, Elman’s tools still cut deep. They are sharper when informed by today’s science. They are more ethical when paired with a contemporary understanding of trauma, consent, and memory. But at their core, they still serve the same purpose: to help people alter their experience and access their own untapped resources.
So yes, there is such a thing as a hypnotist. But as Elman himself taught us—it’s not about power over others. It’s about helping others reclaim the power they already have.
As a further ode to Dave Elman, I collaborated with a student of mine, who is also a music producer, and we created a song titled The Elman Track. The lyrics are all direct quotes from Elman's book. You can listen on YouTube here.