Rating the Persuasiveness of Empirical Evidence for the Survival of Consciousness After Bodily Death: A cross-sectional study
Helané Wahbeh, Arnaud Delorme, Dean Radin
Journal of Anomalous Experience and Cognition April 3, 2023 DOI: 10.31156/jaex.24125 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Survey Cross-sectional Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 442 |
| Population | Academic professionals |
| Topics | Near-death experience Philosophy of mind |
| Keywords | After-death communication Mediumship Skepticism Survival of consciousness Paranormal belief |
| Key findings | The most persuasive proposed experiments for testing survival of consciousness were a controlled prospective study of veridical out-of-body perceptions during a near-death experience, a mediumship experiment, and a reincarnation experiment. |
Abstract
Objective. Throughout history and across all cultures, many people have believed in some form of afterlife. Recent surveys show that most people worldwide believe they will survive after bodily death. Those who do not believe would require substantial empirical evidence to influence their skepticism. This study’s objective was to evaluate what types of evidence might persuade academic professionals that some aspect of consciousness survives after bodily death. Method. We surveyed academic professionals and collected demographic and professional background data, personal confidence in survival, and paranormal belief ratings. Respondents also rated the persuasiveness of 10 relevant experiments and the likelihood of their success. These data were analyzed over all participants and partitioned by confidence in survival. Results. Professional academics (N = 442) completed the survey. Gender was a significant predictor of confidence in survival, paranormal belief, and many persuasiveness ratings, with females having higher scores than males. Older age was a positive predictor for persuasiveness ratings of a proposed experiment involving after-death communication. Confidence in survival and paranormal beliefs were highly correlated. The highest persuasiveness ratings were for a controlled, prospective experiment that resulted in veridical out-of-body perceptions during a near-death experience, a mediumship experiment, and a reincarnation experiment. The least persuasive proposed experiment was survival in the form of computer-based artificial intelligence. Conclusion. Academics hold a wide range of beliefs and confidence in survival. Successful experiments designed to test for survival may influence skeptics’ prior beliefs.
Comparable studies
Other cross-sectional and survey studies on near-death experience, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fantasy Proneness Correlates With the Intensity of Near-Death Experience Individuals who have experienced a near-death experience (classical or NDE-like) and... | 2018 | Cross-sectional survey | n = 228 |
| A systematic analysis of distressing near-death experience accounts Individuals who had a near-death experience and wrote down their account | 2019 | Cross-sectional study | n = 123 |
| Reduced death threat in near-death experiencers Adults who had near-death experiences, came close to death without NDE, or never came... | 1992 | Cross-sectional study | n = 290 |
| Near-Death Experiences in a Psychiatric Outpatient Clinic Population Psychiatric outpatients | 2003 | Cross-sectional survey | n = 832 |
| Near-Death States Reported in a Sample of 50 Misusers Previous ketamine misusers who reported a ketamine-related near-death experience | 2010 | Cross-sectional survey | n = 50 |
Citations in the library
Cites 6
- Near-death experience in survivors of cardiac arrest: a prospective study in the Netherlands The Lancet December 1, 2001
- Characteristics of English-speaking trance channelers. Explore 2020
- Which near-death experience features are associated with reduced fear of death? Mortality January 27, 2022
- Belief in the paranormal: measurement development and evaluation e-space May 28, 2026
- AWARE-AWAreness during REsuscitation-a prospective study. Resuscitation October 7, 2014
and 1 more in the library