Exploring Congruency of Death Location Preferences Versus Expectations: Findings from the General Public in Brazil, Italy, Japan, and the U.S.

Abstract

Honoring an individual's preference in death location is a crucial indicator of quality end-of-life care. Though studies have explored congruency in death location preferences and actual death location in terminal samples, more research is needed to understand perceptions of death locations with samples of the general public. Using national probability samples from Brazil, Italy, Japan, and the U.S., this study explored individual's perceptions of preferred death locations and perceived likely death locations. Congruency in death locations was assessed using Pearson's Chi-squared tests. Explanatory predictors of discrepant death location perceptions were explored using weighted logistic regression. Among the total sample, 45% of participants reported that they were not likely to die in their preferred location. While most participants across the total sample reported a preference to die at home, most felt that they were most likely to die in a hospital. Understanding death location perceptions can support proactive end-of-life planning discussions.