FIGURE 3.

Strengths and weaknesses of contemporary techniques to investigate unconscious perception and instrumental hypnosis as a function of evaluation criteria. Generality: whether the technique applies to a broad range of stimuli or only to a selected few. Location of stimulus: whether the stimulus has to be presented at the center or the periphery of the visual field to induce conscious suppression or inattention. Temporal constraint: whether the technique imposes a temporal constraint relative to the duration of the stimulus presentation. Robustness: whether the technique completely abolishes awareness. Invariant stimulation: whether conscious suppression requires significant modifications of sensory events to make a stimulus invisible. A “✓” indicates that the technique meets this particular criterion, whereas an “×” indicates that the technique fails to meet this particular criterion.