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NLP was developed in the mid-70s by John Grinder, a Professor at UC Santa Cruz and Richard Bandler, a graduate student. NLP, as most people use the term today, is a set of models of how communication impacts and is impacted by subjective experience. It's more a collection of tools than any overarching theory.

Much of early NLP was based on the work of Virginia Satir, a family therapist; Fritz Perls, founder of Gestalt therapy; Gregory Bateson, anthropologist; and Milton Erickson, hypnotist.

Question: Can any NLP techniques be used to discern negativity/resistance to change in a person?

That's a tricky question. NLP stresses astute observation of nonverbal behavior. If you notice involuntary reactions every time the topic of change comes up, it could be a sign that some part of their unconscious is resisting change. If the person shows nonverbal incongruity—they say they want to change while shaking their head "No"--, that could signal resistance. If they show sequential incongruity, "I want to do X" but then they come up with a million excuses why they can't do X, that could also signal resistance.

The NLP models really begin with the presumption that "resistance" simply means that some unconscious criterion for change readiness hasn't been met. The approach of a good NLP therapist (in my humble opinion) is to understand all aspects—conscious and otherwise—of a problem and help the client create a solution that addresses all aspects. When that's done, there's no resistance.

For instance, a client could be grappling with an internal conflict that prevents him from working. Whenever he starts to achieve and become a success, he sabotages himself. Paying attention to nonverbal behavior could reveal that every time he talks about being a success, his voice gets strained, he flushes, and his hands fidget. This would suggest a strong unconscious reaction to the notion of work.

Using the NLP meta-model, I would attempt to understand *both sides* of the conflict. If some part of him is strenuously objecting to work, there's probably a good reason. In the client I'm basing this example on, the reason went back to incidents in school where being smart and successful resulted in being ostracized and put down. The approach an NLP therapist would take is to validate both the "I want to work" and "Working will get me ostracized" concepts and use belief change and integration techniques to address the question: How can I work while continuing to be part of the community? That question honors both sides of the conflict while still orienting towards a resolution.