Would You Want to Know the Date of Your Death? What the Research Shows

Most people have a ready answer to this question. The research shows the answer depends heavily on who is asked, and that the date itself is something no one can give.

Would most people want to know the date of their death?

Mostly, no. Psychologists Gerd Gigerenzer and Rocio Garcia-Retamero surveyed nationally representative groups of adults in Germany and Spain, more than 2,000 people across two studies. Between 85 and 90 percent said they would not want to know about upcoming negative events, according to the American Psychological Association. Only 1 percent consistently wanted to know what the future held. The questions included the date and cause of their own or their partner’s death.

Older adults were less likely than younger adults to want to know. In an example from the British Psychological Society’s summary, 13 percent of adults under 35 said they would want to know the date their partner would die, compared with 8 percent of those over 50.

Why do people prefer not to know?

The researchers think anticipated regret is part of the answer: once you know an unwelcome fact, you cannot un-know it. People who preferred not to know were also more risk averse and more likely to buy life and legal insurance. Wanting to stay ignorant was stronger when an event was closer in time. For good news, many people also wanted to keep the suspense.

Do people who are seriously ill feel the same way?

Not always. Studies of patients with advanced cancer often find that many want their doctor to tell them how long they have, but the share varies widely.

• In an Australian survey of 126 patients with incurable cancer, 81 percent wanted to know the average survival time and 85 percent the longest survival with treatment.
• In a U.S. study of 590 patients with advanced cancer, 71 percent wanted to be told their life expectancy, yet only 17.6 percent recalled their doctor doing so.
• A review’s table lists 73 percent in one U.S. study, 60 percent in a Pakistani study, and 21 percent in another U.S. study that asked a similar question. The table does not explain the gap.

The Australian authors concluded that most patients want detailed information but prefer to negotiate how much they get, how, and when.

Can anyone actually predict the date?

No. In a study of 468 hospice patients in Chicago, doctors were asked to predict survival at the time of referral. The median survival was 24 days. Only 20 percent of the predictions were accurate, meaning within a third of the actual time. About 63 percent were too optimistic, and doctors overestimated survival by a factor of 5.3 on average. The authors concluded that the error is systematically optimistic. This was a 2000 study, and methods may have changed. See What Does “Terminal” Mean? for how doctors describe prognosis.

What if you want to know more, or less?

Tell your care team. Because most patients in the Australian survey wanted a say in what they heard and when, it is reasonable to say which things you want to know and which you would rather not. Since estimates are uncertain, you can ask for a likely range and what could change it. If your family wants something different from you, it can help to name that out loud. See What Is Hospice? for what care looks like when a prognosis is short.

What does this tell us about how people think about death?

Most of us know we will die but prefer not to know when. Philosophers and psychologists have long argued about whether facing mortality helps or harms. For more, see Memento Mori, Terror Management Theory, Why Are Humans Afraid of Death?, and What Do Dying People Regret?.

This is general educational information, not medical advice. A doctor or palliative care team can discuss your own situation. If you are having thoughts of ending your life, call or text 988 in the United States.