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The near-death experience in children: Shades of the prison-house reopening.

Nancy Evans Bush

The Journal of near-death studies 1983 DOI: 10.17514/jnds-1983-3-2-p177-193. (opens in new tab)

Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Review Peer reviewed
Sample size 17
Population Children who experienced near-death experiences
Topics Near-death experience
Keywords Mores Prison Developmental psychology Criminology Politics Law Jungian analytical psychology
Citations 37
Key findings Near-death experiences occurring at early ages appear to be substantially similar in content to adult experiences, suggesting cultural conditioning is not a primary determinant of NDE contents.

Abstract

"Some critics have argued that the near-death experience (NDE) is merely a culturally conditioned response to a life crisis, a reflection of expectations engendered by education, religious training, social mores, and family traditions. A review of seventeen accounts of NDEs in children, including two youngsters still in childhood, indicates that NDEs that occur at early ages appear to be substantially similar in content to adult experiences. These accounts suggest that cultural conditioning is not a primary determinant of NDE contents."