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

Near-death experiences (NDEs) in children closely resemble those reported by adults, suggesting that cultural conditioning does not primarily shape their content. A review of seventeen accounts, including two from very young children, found that the core features of NDEs—such as feelings of peace, seeing a light, or encountering beings—appear early in life, before extensive cultural or religious learning has occurred. This finding challenges the argument that NDEs are merely culturally conditioned responses to a life crisis.

Study at a glance

Abstract

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."