Journal of Death
Advancing thanatology research, end-of-life care, grief and bereavement science, and mortality studies across cultures and disciplines. Our scholarly community connects researchers, clinicians, and practitioners dedicated to understanding death and dying as fundamental human experiences. As populations age globally and medical technology extends life while raising complex ethical questions, rigorous thanatology research has never been more important for guiding humane care.
Interdisciplinary Expertise
Global Open Access
21-Day Decisions
Clinical Translation
Cultural Sensitivity
Research Network
Excellence in Thanatology Research
Expert Peer Review
Review by thanatologists, palliative care physicians, bereavement researchers, medical ethicists, and cultural anthropologists who understand the multifaceted nature of death studies. Our editorial board includes specialists in hospice medicine, grief counseling, death education, and cross-cultural mortality practices ensuring comprehensive evaluation of submitted scholarship. Our reviewers bring decades of combined experience in clinical care, academic research, and policy development related to end-of-life issues.
Rapid Publication
Streamlined workflow delivers first decisions within 21 days, ensuring timely dissemination of research improving care for dying patients and bereaved families. End-of-life care practices evolve continuously, and our efficient processes ensure evidence reaches practitioners when most actionable for improving patient and family experiences during life transitions. In fields where compassionate timing matters immensely, rapid dissemination of quality research saves suffering.
Global Distribution
Published research reaches clinicians, educators, counselors, and policymakers worldwide without barriers, informing compassionate end-of-life practices globally. Open Access ensures your thanatology research has maximum impact on both academic scholarship and clinical practice. JOD bridges research and application, ensuring published findings reach the practitioners, policymakers, and educators who shape how societies care for dying persons and bereaved families.
Support Your Research
All tiers include rigorous peer review, professional DOI assignment, and comprehensive indexing for maximum discoverability. Select the membership tier aligned with your research output and organizational capacity to maximize your investment in advancing thanatology scholarship and improving end-of-life care
Thanatology Focus Areas
End-of-Life Care Quality
JOD emphasizes research improving care for dying patients. We welcome studies on symptom management, communication with terminal patients and families, advance care planning, and healthcare system factors affecting death quality. Our aim is publishing research that makes dying more humane and dignified for patients and families worldwide.
Bereavement Science
Grief affects millions worldwide. JOD publishes research on normal and complicated grief trajectories, evidence-based bereavement interventions, resilience after loss, and support strategies for bereaved individuals across the lifespan from childhood bereavement to spousal loss in older adulthood. Understanding the full spectrum of grief experiences helps clinicians and counselors provide compassionate, tailored care. Understanding grief helps clinicians and counselors provide compassionate, effective care.
Ethical Dimensions
Death raises profound ethical questions that societies must address thoughtfully. JOD welcomes research on end-of-life decision-making, advance directives, physician-assisted dying policy debates, organ donation ethics, allocation of scarce medical resources, and justice in access to quality death care across socioeconomic contexts. These complex issues require rigorous scholarly examination across disciplinary perspectives.
Cross-Cultural Perspectives
Death practices vary dramatically across cultures, religions, and historical periods. JOD publishes anthropological, historical, and comparative research illuminating how different societies understand, ritualize, memorialize, and integrate death into communal life. From funeral practices to memorialization traditions, cultural context profoundly shapes every aspect of dying, death, and bereavement. Cultural context shapes every aspect of dying and bereavement.
Methodological Rigor
We require rigorous methodology for research on sensitive topics. JOD reviewers evaluate manuscripts for ethical research conduct, appropriate participant protections, and methodological quality whether qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods approaches are employed. Death studies demands both scientific rigor and human sensitivity.
Interdisciplinary Integration
Thanatology integrates medicine, psychology, sociology, philosophy, theology, and anthropology. JOD serves as a nexus connecting these disciplines, publishing research that advances comprehensive understanding of death from multiple scholarly perspectives while maintaining accessibility across specialties.
Clinical Application
Research must inform practice. JOD prioritizes studies with clear implications for palliative care teams, hospice workers, grief counselors, chaplains, and others providing direct support to dying patients and bereaved families in clinical settings where compassionate care makes profound difference.
Educational Impact
Death education shapes future practitioners and prepares society for mortality. JOD welcomes research on death education curricula, training program evaluation, and pedagogical approaches preparing healthcare professionals, counselors, and the general public for end-of-life experiences.
JOD maintains strict editorial independence. All submissions undergo rigorous double-blind peer review regardless of membership tier. Our reviewers evaluate manuscripts for scholarly rigor, ethical sensitivity, and potential to improve understanding and practice related to death, dying, and bereavement. The Journal serves researchers and practitioners committed to bringing compassion, dignity, and evidence-based care to this universal human experience. The Journal of Death has established itself as a vital platform for scholars investigating one of humanitys most profound experiences, from biological dying processes to cultural meanings of mortality that shape every society.
Ready to Publish Your Research?
Submit your thanatology research for expert peer review and global Open Access distribution. Join the JOD community advancing death studies and improving end-of-life care for patients and families worldwide. Whether you focus on palliative medicine, bereavement counseling, death attitudes, or cultural practices, JOD provides the platform and expert reviewers to ensure your research achieves maximum visibility and clinical impact. Contact [email protected] for membership inquiries.