Predicting one’s own death: the relationship between subjective and objective nearness to death in very old age

Previous research found that the perception of a limited remaining lifetime is related to goal setting, social network composition,
attitudes, and behavior. However, to better understand those findings, it is important to know if this subjective perception
of being close to death corresponds with the time a person actually survives. The aim of the present study was to examine
the predictive and time–dynamic relationship between subjective and objective nearness to death using 16-year longitudinal
data from the Berlin Aging Study (Baltes and Mayer 1999; N = 516 older adults between 70 and 104 years). Older adults who felt close to death at the first measurement occasion were
more likely to die over the following 16 years than persons who did not report feeling close to dying. Results of multilevel
analyses revealed that there was a time–dynamic relationship such that subjective nearness to death increased as a function
of objective nearness to death. Our results indicate that very old adults seem to have quite accurate perceptions of their
nearness to death.