Hilgard and his colleagues hypnotized participants to believe they would not experience pain when they placed one hand in ice water. participants were asked to press a response button with the other hand if they felt any pain. what did hilgard and his colleagues find?

Hilgard and his colleagues find out that hypnotized people report less pain when their arms are placed in ice water. When Hilard asked the participants to press a key if "some part" of them felt pain, almost all pressed the key. That is how e concluded that there is s "hidden observer", or a split consciousness that involuntarily knows what is happening.