People have believed in the existence of life after death throughout
human history and in all regions of the world. Mere belief, however,
does not make it true. What is the empirical evidence for life after
death? Has any significant research been conducted, and if so, what
conclusions does it suggest? In fact there exists a large body of
research on topics relevant to the question of life after death. This
book objectively examines that research, drawing together the
observations of social science regarding such phenomena as
reincarnation, near-death experiences, deathbed visions, cases of
possession by dead spirits, and apparitions of the deceased. It
considers possibilities including survival of consciousness and survival
of personality, and reflects on the logical problems inherent in any
model of postmortem survival. An extensive bibliography lists hundreds
of studies of life-after-death phenomena.