Research on Experiences Related to the Possibility of Consciousness Beyond the Brain: A Bibliometric Analysis of Global Scientific Output.
Jorge Cecílio Daher, Rodolfo Furlan Damiano, Alessandra Lamas Granero Lucchetti, Alexander Moreira-Almeida, Giancarlo Lucchetti
The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease 2017 DOI: 10.1097/nmd.0000000000000625 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Bibliometric analysis Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Published articles on near-death experiences, out-of-body experiences, end-of-life experiences, possession, past-life memories, and mediumship indexed in PubMed, Web of Knowledge, PsycINFO, Science Direct, and Scopus |
| Keywords | Brain Humans Consciousness Bibliometrics Databases, bibliographic Mind-body relations, metaphysical |
| Key points | The search retrieved 9,065 articles and included 1,954, with near-death experiences (598) and mediumship (565) most represented. Publication counts rose over the decades across all areas except mediumship, which declined in the late 20th century and rose in the early 21st. Most articles were reviews, except past-life memory and end-of-life studies, which were mostly original research; journal impact factors were similar to other scientific fields. |
Abstract
This study aims to conduct a search of publications investigating experiences commonly associated with the possibility of the existence of a consciousness independent of the brain held on the main scientific databases (Pubmed, Web of Knowledge, PsycINFO, Science Direct, and Scopus). Of the 9065 articles retrieved, 1954 were included (598 near-death experiences, 223 out-of-body experiences, 56 end-of-life experiences, 224 possession, 244 memories suggestive of past lives, 565 mediumship, 44 others). Over the decades, there was an evident increase in the number of articles on all the areas of the field, with the exception of studies on mediumship that showed a decline during the late 20th century and subsequent rise in the early 21st century. Regarding the types of articles found, with the exception of past-life memories and end-of-life experiences (mostly original studies), publications were predominantly review articles. The articles were published in journals with an impact factor similar to other areas of science.
Citations in the library
Cited by 12
- End-of-life experiences in patients: a scoping review of types, characteristics, and implications for the mind-brain relationship. International Review of Psychiatry 2025
- Near-death experience during cardiac arrest and consciousness beyond the brain: a narrative review. International Review of Psychiatry 2025
- Designing a "Near-Death Experience" Reality Testing System. Journal of medical physics 2021
- Kardec's spiritism, mental health and the production of scientific knowledge Seven Editora eBooks June 23, 2023
- Dealing with Possession in Contemporary Germany September 3, 2024
and 7 more in the library
Cites 19
- The Experimental Induction of Out-of-Body Experiences Science August 23, 2007
- Near-death experience in survivors of cardiac arrest: a prospective study in the Netherlands The Lancet December 1, 2001
- Visualizing Out-of-Body Experience in the Brain New England Journal of Medicine October 31, 2007
- Incidence and correlates of near-death experiences in a cardiac care unit General Hospital Psychiatry July 1, 2003
- Ketamine as a primary predictor of out-of-body experiences associated with multiple substance use Consciousness and Cognition February 16, 2011
and 14 more in the library