Citation

This article presents the methods and quantitative analysis of a survey study (n = 51) which explored the extent to which a near-death experience (NDE) as a whole, as well as the individual items of the NDE Scale, are associated with particular psychological wellbeing (PWB) outcomes. These PWB outcomes include long-term changes in 1) happiness/life satisfaction; 2) perception of life’s purpose; 3) social relationships; and 4) mood. Per Pearson’s correlation coefficient, the depth (i.e., score) of the NDE had no correlation to after-effects except for that of believing the NDE has led to positive long-term and ongoing changes in one’s mood. Mood was impacted by the transcendental component of the NDE (r = .423; p = .006). Several NDE Scale items related to specific PWB outcomes. Although the depth of the NDE did not correlate with life satisfaction, there were relationships between life satisfaction and the other PWB outcomes, most notably with changes in one’s perception of life’s purpose (r = .741; p < .001). Furthermore, a Mann-Whitney u-test revealed that Near-Death Experiencers (NDErs) younger than 20 at the time of their NDE (n =14) demonstrated significantly lower scores on social wellbeing (U = 99.5, p = .007).