Near-death experience by proxy: A case study

Abstract

A recent interview with a 34-year-old man, currently serving a life sentence for murder, revealed a remarkable case of "near-death experience by proxy." The phenomenological features of the experience unfolded typically, with some slight variation in content. The immediate drastic changes in attitude and belief following the experience are described.In a study of the sociological implications of the near-death experi ence (NDE), I have been interviewing near-death experiencers throughout the eastern states of Australia. Along with this major sample, I have also sought to interview two smaller samples of(1) those who have been close to death, or clinically dead, yet have not had, or could not remember, a near-death experience, and (2) those who have had an experience that had many features similar to a near-death experience, but who were not actually close to death. It was in the latter context that I interviewed the 34-year-old man whom I will call Robert for the purposes of this paper. Journal of 8(4) Summer 1990 1990 Human Sciences Press JOURNAL OF NEAR-DEATH STUDIESWe talked for more than three hours, ninety minutes of which was tape recorded.

[Review of the book Transformed by the light: Life after near-death experiences, by C. Sutherland].

“…It is to be hoped that this won't prevent either work from getting the full international recognition it deserves. Certainly Cherie Sutherland, whose name will already be familiar to readers of this Journal from her three major papers in recent years (Sutherland, 1989(Sutherland, , 1990a(Sutherland, , 1990b, has written something of an international land mark work in the field, in at least four respects.In the first place, this work is quite a landmark in academic recogni tion of near-death studies. Of course, individual academics of high authority have been active in near-death studies right from the early days when Raymond Moody (1975) coined the term "near-death experi ence," or "NDE."…”

“…It is to be hoped that this won't prevent either work from getting the full international recognition it deserves. Certainly Cherie Sutherland, whose name will already be familiar to readers of this Journal from her three major papers in recent years (Sutherland, 1989(Sutherland, , 1990a(Sutherland, , 1990b, has written something of an international land mark work in the field, in at least four respects.…”