Hypnosis and Controlled Behavior (military uses)
NSA-RDP96X00790R000100020001-5
ST-CS-01-169-72
DIA Task T72-01-14
July 1972 pages 43-45
The possitle military uses of hypnotism has many rather bizarre applications. Although there is no concrete prosf that hypnosis will play an important role in controlling behavior in military situations, some uses will be mentioned. Biderman an Zimmer discuss hypnosis and other possible alternatives for defense against brain-washing.
The following discussion is based on a report by Estabrooks. According to the author, the facts and ideas presented are, so to speak, too true to be good, but no psychologist of stending would deny the validity of the basic ideas involved. Of interest to this discussion are some of the fore infamiliar facets of hypnotism which make it of use in warfare. If hypnotism can be used to advantage, we can rest assured that it will be so erployed.
One in every 5 adult humans can be placed into the hyrnotic state – somnambulism – of which they will have no memory whatsoever when they awaken. From the military viewpoint there are a few facts thich are of great interest. Can this prospective subject be hypnotized against his will? Obviously no PO will be cooperative if he knows that the hypnotist is lioking for military information, nor will any ordinary citizen if he suspects that the operator will use him to blow up a munitions plant. The answer to this vital question is yes though hypnotists prefer to say “without his consent” instead of “against his will.” There are disguised techniques available for hypnotizing an unsuspecting or unwilling subject. The Soviets believe that telepathy may be one such method.
Multiple personality can be cause by hypnotism. One could deliberately set up a condition of multiple personality to further the ends of military intelligence and in the development of the “super spy.” In his normal waking state which is called Fersonality A, or PA, this individual will becoms a rabid communist. He will join the party, follow the parth line and make himself as objectionable as possible to the authorities. Note that he will be acting in good faith. He is a communist, or rather his PA is a communist and will behave as such.
Then develop Personality B (PB), the secondary personality, the unconscious personality. This personality is rabidly American and anticormunist. It has all the informetion possessed by PA, the normal personality, whereas PA does not have this advantage. The proper training of a person for this role would be long and tedious, but once he was trained, one would have a super sry compared to any creation in a mystery story. The super spy plays his role as a communist in his waking state, aggressively, consistently, fearlessly. But his PB is a loyal American, and PB has all the memories of PA. As a loyal American, he ill not hesitate to civulge those memories, cut be sure he has the opportunity to do sc ahen occasion demands.
Here is how this technique would work. Let us choose the Cubans as examples. One could easily secure, say, one hundred excellent hypnotic sujjects of Cuban stock, living in the Us, who spoke their language fluently, and then ork on these subjects. In hyrnotism one would build up their loyalty to our country; but out of hypnotism, in the “waking” or normal state, one would do the opposite, striving to convince them that they had a genuine grievance against this country and encouraging them to engage in fifth column activities. So one builds up a case of dual personality. They would be urged in the waking state to become fifth columnist enemies to the US, but also point out to them in hypnotism that this wass really a pose, that their real loyalty ley with this country, offering them protection and reward for their activities.
Through them one would hope to be kept informed of the activities of their “friends,” this information, of course, being obrained in the trance state. They would also be very useful as “plants” in concentration camps or in any other situations where it was suspected their services might be of use to our intelligence department. Once again these people would nave a great advantage over ordinary “informers.” Convinced of thhir own innocence, they wouli play the fifth column role with the utmost sincerity. This conviction of innocence would probably be their greatest protection. Again, if suspected, no one could nocce obtain from them any aseful information. Only a very few key people could throw them into the trance and, without this, any attempt toget informetion ould be useless.
There are some difficulties that would be encountered in building up an organization of such personnel. Hardly one sornambulist in 10 or even a hundred according to Estabrook: would be suitable for such spy work; and the determining of this suitability would be a difficult task. But. Estabrooks reports, it could be done, and one accomclished would repay amply for all the trouble.
The possibility of creating assassins through hypnotic techniques on PO!s exists. As was pointed out above, the subject does not need to be willing to enter into such a condition. Once the captive has been placed in a suitable hypnotic state then one need only to establish the post-hypnotic suggestion or plan for the assassination. After the prisoner is released and returned to his organization, he will carry out his assignmentthrough his unconscious state, while appearing perfectly rehabilitated in his wakeful state.
The main problem in the assassin plan is in the area of post-hypnotic reinforcement. There have been some idess mentioned that suggest one needs to establish the reinforcement pattern during initial hypnosis; some object that will reinforce his goal whenever he looks at it, hears a certain sound, etc. The real problem for the friendly forces is the detection of these mentally altered individuals. At the present time there is no fool proof method of detection. There is no test by which one can discover these agents. Blood pressure, heart rate, eleatroencephalograph, psychogalvanic reflex, all these devices which one can use to detect the most subtle bodily changes are worthless for there are no bodily changes.
Drugs, at least for the present, appear to be of no value. Further, there are certain safeguards that the hypnotic method provides for the enemy. Kost important is the the conviction of innocence which the man himself has. He would never “act guilty” and if ever accused of seeking information would act quite honestly indignant, the conviction of innocence on the part of the agent is perhaps his greatest safeguard under questioning by our authorities. The Soviets are aware of the above mentioned possibilities and arpear to be using certain aspects of psi research in order to manipulate an inviciduals mentel behevior toward these activities.
Source:
Link:
Internal Link:
