Near-Death Experience as a Probe to Explore (Disconnected) Consciousness
Charlotte Martial, Héléna Cassol, Steven Laureys, Olivia Gosseries
Trends in Cognitive Sciences January 22, 2020 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2019.12.010 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Near-death experience |
| Citations | 90 |
| Key points | Argues that near-death experiences during comatose states represent disconnected consciousness, requiring a new framework distinguishing awareness, wakefulness, and connectedness. |
Abstract
Forty-five years ago, the first evidence of near-death experience (NDE) during comatose state was provided, setting the stage for a new paradigm for studying the neural basis of consciousness in unresponsive states. At present, the state of consciousness associated with NDEs remains an open question. In the common view, consciousness is said to disappear in a coma with the brain shutting down, but this is an oversimplification. We argue that a novel framework distinguishing awareness, wakefulness, and connectedness is needed to comprehend the phenomenon. Classical NDEs correspond to internal awareness experienced in unresponsive conditions, thereby corresponding to an episode of disconnected consciousness. Our proposal suggests new directions for NDE research, and more broadly, consciousness science.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on near-death experience, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Otherworld Journeys: Accounts of Near-Death Experience in Medieval and Modern Times | 1987 | Historical analysis | |
| Neuroscience and the Near-Death Experience: Roles for the NMSA-PCP receptor, the sigma receptor and the endopsychosins | 1990 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Implications of near-death experiences for a postmaterialist psychology. | 2010 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Near-death experiences between science and prejudice | 2012 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Religion, Spirituality and the Near-Death Experience | 2003 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
Citations in the library
Cited by 54
- The Near-Death Experience Content (NDE-C) scale: Development and psychometric validation Consciousness and Cognition November 1, 2020
- Defining Transformative Experiences: A Conceptual Analysis Frontiers in Psychology June 24, 2022
- Losing the Self in Near-Death Experiences: The Experience of Ego-Dissolution. Brain Sciences July 14, 2021
- The nature of consciousness in anaesthesia BJA Open September 26, 2023
- Incidence of near-death experiences in patients surviving a prolonged critical illness and their long-term impact: a prospective observational study Critical Care February 27, 2023
and 49 more in the library
Cites 50
- Out‐of‐body experience and autoscopy of neurological origin Brain January 15, 2004
- Near-death experience in survivors of cardiac arrest: a prospective study in the Netherlands The Lancet December 1, 2001
- Stratification of unresponsive patients by an independently validated index of brain complexity Annals of Neurology September 22, 2016
- Unresponsiveness ≠ Unconsciousness Anesthesiology February 7, 2012
- Two Distinct Neuronal Networks Mediate the Awareness of Environment and of Self Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience June 1, 2010
and 45 more in the library