Philip J. Cozzolino, Marieta Pehlivanova, & Jim B. Tucker

Division of Perceptual Studies, Department of Psychiatry and Neurobehavioral Sciences, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA, USA

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Introduction: For more than 60 years, researchers have rigorously examined ‘cases of the reincarnation type’ (CORTs), in which young children appear to have memories of living a previous life . At the University of Virginia in particular, scholars follow a strict protocol in which a trained researcher investigates potential CORTs by systematically interviewing the child, their parents, extended relatives, and even community members who can provide first-hand information for the child’s claims. Some of these claims are so detailed that investigators have identified a deceased person whose life appears to match the child’s memories. In the most compelling cases, investigators have documented how birthmarks/defects in the child correspond to fatal wounds suffered by the “previous personality”, as well as preferences or phobias in the child that correspond to those same features in the previous personality. The bulk of these investigations, for obvious reasons, focus on the children, their claims, and on verifying those claims to determine how likely it is that the case may have a paranormal explanation or some other non-anomalous explanation, such as children’s fantasies, fraud, or socio-psychological needs of families with a belief in reincarnation. Less studied in this long history of CORT research is the effect of these claims on the parents of the children in question. Mothers and fathers often must come together to handle common challenges in young children, including how to respond to imaginary companions or how to deal with their child’s belief in fairies, monsters, or even Santa Claus. How do parents react when their child insists that they were once a previous person who died and then returned in this child’s body, especially in cases when the child specifically states, “You are not my real parents”? It may be easy to discount initial claims as fantasy, but what about those CORTs that develop into strong cases with features suggesting the case may have a paranormal explanation? Among the many assessments made by CORT investigators and coded into the database in the past 50+ years is the degree to which parents are accepting and encouraging of their child’s memories compared to how discouraging they are, even to the extent of actively suppressing their child’s claims. This paper presents findings from the first exploration of CORT data related to mothers’ and fathers’ convergent and/or divergent attitudes when it comes to their child’s past-life claims. Due to the retrospective nature of the CORT database, we present these findings with no a priori hypotheses, but rather view this paper as an important first step in a program of research investigating the family dynamics present in cases of the reincarnation type.

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Philip’s research explores how individuals seek meaning in life, with a particular focus on the positive psychological consequences of death awareness. Inspired by evidence from near-death experience research, Philip is responsible for a psychological model that links healthy and honest considerations of human mortality to increased well-being, heightened desires for self-direction, and more authentic living. His work has been covered in the ‘Huffington Post’, ‘Psychology Today’, ‘Scientific American’, and ‘BBC Radio 4’.

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Published on March 3, 2026