“I Was Told to Come Back and Share This”: Social Media-Based Near-Death Experience Disclosures as Expressions of Spiritual Beliefs
Yifan Zhao, Yuxin Fang, Yihuan Chen, Ray Lc
April 13, 2026 DOI: 10.1145/3772318.3791379 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Content analysis |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 200 |
| Population | TikTok videos tagged with #nde and related hashtags |
| Topics | Near-death experience |
| Keywords | Faith Expression computer science Social media Content measure theory Spirituality Content analysis Personal narrative Qualitative research Narrative inquiry Self-disclosure Social identity theory Connection principal bundle |
| Citations | 1 |
| Key points | Near-death experience narratives on TikTok frequently incorporate spiritual and religious themes, and videos with such themes generate more engagement and deeper conversations about faith. |
Abstract
People who experienced near-death events often turn to personal expression as a way of processing trauma and articulating beliefs. While scholars have examined how individuals share near-death experiences (NDEs), limited research has explored how these narratives are communicated collaboratively on today’s social media platforms. We analyzed 200 randomly sampled TikTok videos tagged with #nde and related hashtags. Content analysis revealed that individuals often use NDE narratives to articulate personal meaning, with spiritual and religious themes appearing in the majority of posts and serving as a means of exploring and making sense of personal spiritual perspectives. Consistent with this, analyses of comment sections reveal that videos containing spiritual themes tend to attract more engagement and foster deeper conversations around faith and meaning. Our findings offer insights into how online platforms facilitate community-level engagement with spirituality, and suggest implications for design of spaces that support shared expression and connection in specialized communities.