Abstract
People who have near-death experiences often report a subsequently increased sense of spirituality and a connection with their inner self and the world around them. In this study, we examined spiritual well-being, using Paloutzian and Ellison’s Spiritual Well-Being Scale, among 224 persons who had come close to death. Participants who reported having near-death experiences reported greater spiritual well-being than those who did not, and depth of spiritual well-being was positively correlated with depth of near-death experience. We discussed the implications of these findings in light of other reported aftereffects of near-death experiences and of spiritual well-being among other populations.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Agnor, D. W. (1988). Christian and non-religious sociopaths compared: Self-concept, locus of control, guilt, and quality of religious experience [Doctoral Dissertation, Western Conservative Baptist Seminary, 1986]. Dissertations Abstracts International, 48, 3713B.
Bufford, R. K., Paloutzian, R. F., & Ellison, C. W. (1991). Norms for the Spiritual Well-Being Scale. Journal of Psychology and Theology, 19, 56–70.
de Jager Meezenbroek, E., Garssen, B., van den Berg, M., van Dierendonck, D., Visser, A., & Schaufeli, W. B. (2012). Measuring spirituality as a universal human experience: A review of spirituality questionnaires. Journal of Religion and Health, 51, 336–354.
Durham, M. L. (1988). Denominational differences in supernatural locus of control and spiritual well-being [Doctoral Dissertation, Western Conservative Baptist Seminary, 1986]. Dissertation Abstracts International, 48, 3714B.
Ellison, C. W. (1983). Spiritual well-being: Conceptualization and measurement. Journal of Psychology and Theology, 11, 330–340.
Furn, B. G. (1987). Adjustment and the near-death experience: A conceptual and therapeutic model. Journal of Near-Death Studies, 6, 4–19.
Greyson, B. (1983). The near-death experience scale: Construction, reliability, and validity. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 171, 369–375.
Greyson, B. (1990). Near-death encounters with and without near-death experiences: Comparative NDE Scale profiles. Journal of Near-Death Studies, 8, 151–161.
Greyson, B. (2003). Incidence and correlates of a near-death experience in a cardiac care unit. General Hospital Psychiatry, 25, 269–276.
Greyson, B. (2006). Near-death experiences and spirituality. Zygon, 41, 393–414.
Greyson, B. (2007). Consistency of near-death experience accounts over two decades: Are reports embellished over time? Resuscitation, 73, 407–411.
Hoffman, R. M. (1995). Disclosure habits after near-death experiences: Influences, obstacles, and listener selection. Journal of Near-Death Studies, 14, 29–48.
Lange, R., Greyson, B., & Houran, J. (2004). A Rasch scaling validation of a ‘core’ near-death experience. British Journal of Psychology, 92, 161–177.
Marrone, R. (1999). Dying, mourning, and spirituality: A psychological perspective. Death Studies, 23, 495–519.
McLaughlin, S. A., & Malony, H. N. (1984). Near-death experiences and religion: A further investigation. Journal of Religion and Health, 23, 149–159.
Moody, R. A. (1975). Life after life. Covington, GA: Mockingbird Books.
Moody, R. A. (1977). Reflections on life after life. St. Simon’s Island, GA: Mockingbird Books.
Muldoon, M., & King, N. (1995). Spirituality, health care, and bioethics. Journal of Religion and Health, 34, 329–349.
Murray, R. B., & Zentner, J. B. (1975). Nursing concepts for health promotion. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Noyes, R. (1980). Attitude change following near-death experience. Psychiatry, 43, 234–242.
Noyes, R., Fenwick, P., Holden, J. M., & Christian, S. R. (2009). Aftereffects of pleasurable Western adult near-death experiences. In J. M. Holden, B. Greyson, & D. James (Eds.), The handbook of near-death experiences: Thirty years of investigation (pp. 41–62). Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger/ABC-CLIO.
Paloutzian, R. F., Bufford, R. K., & Wildman, A. J. (2012). Spiritual Well-Being Scale: Mental and physical health relationships. In M. Cobb, C. M. Puchalski, & B. Rumbold (Eds.), Oxford textbook of spirituality in healthcare (pp. 353–358). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
Paloutzian, R. F., & Ellison, C. W. (1982). Loneliness, spiritual well-being, and quality of life. In L. A. Peplau & D. Perlman (Eds.), Loneliness: A Sourcebook of current theory, research, and therapy (pp. 224–237). New York: Wiley.
Park, C. F. (2010). Making sense of the meaning literature: An integrative review of meaning making and its effects on adjustment to stressful life events. Psychological Bulletin, 136, 257–301.
Parnia, S., Waller, D. G., Yeates, R., & Fenwick, P. (2001). A qualitative and quantitative study of the incidence, features and aetiology of near death experience in cardiac arrest survivors. Resuscitation, 48, 149–156.
Parnia, S., & Young, J. (2013). Erasing death: The science that is rewriting the boundaries between life and death. New York: HarperOne.
Ring, K. (1980). Religiousness and near-death experience: An empirical study. Theta, 8(3), 3–5.
Stefanik, M., McDonald, P. G., & Hess, S. A. (2005). Religion, spirituality, and cancer: Current status and methodological challenges. Psycho-Oncology, 14, 450–463.
Sutherland, C. (1990). Changes in religious beliefs, attitudes, and practices following near-death experiences: An Australian study. Journal of Near-Death Studies, 9, 21–31.
van Lommel, P. (2011). Near-death experiences: The experience of the self as real and not as an illusion. Annals of the New York Academy of the Sciences, 1234, 19–28.
Wright, B. D., & Masters, G. N. (1982). Rating scale analysis: Rasch measurement. Chicago: MESA Press.
Zingrone, N. L., & Alvarado, C. S. (2009). Pleasurable Western adult near-death experiences: Features, circumstances, and incidence. In J. M. Holden, B. Greyson, & D. James (Eds.), The handbook of near-death experiences: Thirty years of investigation (pp. 17–40). Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger/ABC-CLIO.
Conflict of Interest
The authors and their institution have no relationship, financial or otherwise, with individuals or organizations that could influence the authors’ work inappropriately.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Khanna, S., Greyson, B. Near-Death Experiences and Spiritual Well-Being. J Relig Health 53, 1605–1615 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-013-9723-0
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-013-9723-0