The evolutionary origin of near-death experiences: a systematic investigation
Costanza Peinkhofer, Charlotte Martial, Héléna Cassol, Steven Laureys, Daniel Kondziella
Brain Communications June 22, 2021 DOI: 10.1093/braincomms/fcab132 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Preregistered Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Near-death experience |
| Citations | 49 |
| Key points | Proposes that thanatosis (death-feigning) is the evolutionary foundation of near-death experiences, with a shared biological purpose of survival. |
Abstract
Abstract Near-death experiences are known from all parts of the world, various times and numerous cultural backgrounds. This universality suggests that near-death experiences may have a biological origin and purpose. Adhering to a preregistered protocol, we investigate the hypothesis that thanatosis, aka death-feigning, a last-resort defense mechanism in animals, is the evolutionary origin of near-death experiences. We first show that thanatosis is a highly preserved survival strategy occurring at all major nodes in a cladogram ranging from insects to humans. We then show that humans under attack by animal, human and ‘modern’ predators can experience both thanatosis and near-death experiences, and we further show that the phenomenology and the effects of the two overlap. In summary, we build a line of evidence suggesting that thanatosis is the evolutionary foundation of near-death experiences and that their shared biological purpose is the benefit of survival. We propose that the acquisition of language enabled humans to transform these events from relatively stereotyped death-feigning under predatory attacks into the rich perceptions that form near-death experiences and extend to non-predatory situations.
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 Experience as a Probe to Explore (Disconnected) Consciousness | 2020 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Near-death experiences between science and prejudice | 2012 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
Citations in the library
Cited by 20
- 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
- Language as a Window Into the Altered State of Consciousness Elicited by Psychedelic Drugs Frontiers in Pharmacology March 22, 2022
- A neuroscientific model of near-death experiences. Nature Reviews Neurology June 1, 2025
- Studying death and near‐death experiences requires neuroscientific expertise Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences August 26, 2022
- Personality traits and pattern of beliefs of near-death(-like) experiencers Frontiers in Human Neuroscience April 28, 2023
and 15 more in the library
Cites 22
- Subanesthetic Effects of the Noncompetitive NMDA Antagonist, Ketamine, in Humans Archives of General Psychiatry March 1, 1994
- Near-death experience in survivors of cardiac arrest: a prospective study in the Netherlands The Lancet December 1, 2001
- Deep posteromedial cortical rhythm in dissociation Nature September 16, 2020
- DMT Models the Near-Death Experience Frontiers in Psychology August 15, 2018
- Incidence and correlates of near-death experiences in a cardiac care unit General Hospital Psychiatry July 1, 2003
and 17 more in the library