Daniel Kahneman opted for assisted suicide in Switzerland

Daniel Kahneman was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2002. (archive picture)

Picture: sda

At the age of 90, Nobel Prize winner Daniel Kahneman chose to die a self-determined death in Switzerland. He spent his last days in Paris - conscious, fulfilled and quiet.

In March 2024, Daniel Kahneman celebrated his 90th birthday - surrounded by his partner Barbara Tversky, his daughter and her family in Paris.

The Israeli-American psychologist strolled through the city, visited museums and the ballet, enjoyed soufflés and chocolate mousse. They were days full of life.

But towards the end of his stay, Kahneman began to send a personal message to close friends: a farewell email. On March 26, he left his family and flew to Zurich. One day later, he died by assisted suicide.

In the email, he wrote openly about his decision, as theWall Street Journalhas now revealed: He was convinced that the suffering and humiliations of old age were superfluous - and that it was now time to go.

He wanted to "forestall natural decline, not slip helplessly into a state" that he himself had experienced with his mother, his wife Anne Treisman and other loved ones.

His partner died in 2018 as a result of vascular dementia. The loss affected him deeply.

Kahneman wanted to preserve his autonomy until the end

Although Daniel Kahneman neither suffered from dementia nor required dialysis, he said he noticed an "increase in mental lapses and a decline in his kidney function".

His decision seems to have been based less on his famous scientific thinking and more on a very personal feeling. He wanted to retain his autonomy until the end and to shape his own end.

Kahneman knew that many would see his decision as premature. But that was exactly what he intended, he wrote: If you wait until a life is "obviously no longer worth living", it is already too late.

Therefore, his move was inevitably premature. He had spoken about it with some people close to him, and even though they initially resisted, they had finally accepted his decision.

Kahneman: "Thank you all for helping me"

Daniel Kahneman did not want to make a statement or start a debate. "I am not ashamed of my decision," he wrote, "but I don't want it to be discussed publicly either."

Even in death, the Nobel laureate remained modest - his wish was that his passing should not dominate the obituaries.

He spent his last days in Paris - remembering, enjoying, writing. And even at the end, when asked what he would like to do, he said: "I would like to learn something."

Kahneman lived to the end as a curious researcher. He closed his email with the words: "Thank you all for helping me to make this life a good one."

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