MikeH

Answer: Ghosts can't move on until they've completed some unfinished business. Malcolm felt guilty for not helping the kid who shot him. By helping Cole control his powers, he was finally at peace and realised the true state of things.

Brian Katcher

Answer: On top of it, Malcolm only realised he was dead when we saw his wedding ring drop from his wife's hand (he would have had it on him except if he were gone) and he saw her cold breath; these two things together helped him put all the pieces together (that we are shown in the movie) to show that she was grieving and mourning from his death and not that they were growing apart because he was wrapped up in a case (or to put it differently, he was so wrapped up in Cole that he did not notice that he hadn't had a conversation with his wife or even another human being for goodness knows how long - dead people see what they want to see).

Answer: Malcolm didn't realise he was dead until much later in the movie. By then he had a strong relationship with Cole, and being a psychiatrist, wanted to help him understand and cope with his ability and no longer fear it. Being a psychiatrist helped Malcolm analyse his own situation and work out that he had died. Once Cole was comfortable with his ability, Malcolm was able to move on. Also, as Cole noted, ghosts only saw what they wanted to see. Some were unable to come to terms with their deaths and therefore remained among the living.

raywest ★

Answer: The most likely scenario is that a ghost at the school told him.

Answer: Near the end, it is revealed that Cole has seen the ghosts of teachers that died in the fire at the school when "Stuttering Stanley" was a student, so it would make sense that one of them told him.

Chosen answer: Spoiler alert: Psychiatrists help their patients in a variety of ways. Generally, they begin by developing rapport, establishing an empathetic relationship, and trying to understand the patient's perspective and how he views the world. Some therapeutic approaches are based on the notion that the relationship between therapist and patient is the prime source of healing. Many psychiatrists would also prescribe medication to ameliorate what they would almost assuredly view as psychotic symptoms. But in this case, I think Dr. Crowe has a sense, throughout, that his young patient's experiences are more than hallucinations. Cole's stories resonate with him at a deep level, as he is also struggling internally and subconsciously with his own (as we will later learn) ambiguous position between life and death. I don't think there's a point where Dr. Crowe changes his mind, per se. He develops. And in the process, he definitely assists Cole in overcoming his fears, as well. During the film, they heal one another.

Michael Albert

Answer: I would have to rewatch, but it seems at one point he is humoring him, but maybe deep down has a feeling that he is not totally crazy, but then he goes and listens to the tape and hears a dead person and realises that there is such a thing as seeing dead people. This is why he tries to help cole cope after that, not be cured.

Chosen answer: Child psychologist - or so he thinks. Remember that Bruce Willis' character doesn't comprehend that he is actually dead, and certainly doesn't grasp the fact that Cole is the only person who can see him. Dr. Crowe's perception is that life goes on as does his professional role as a therapist for children. When he is around his wife, he misinterprets her melancholia and somber expressions as evidence that she resents his priority on his work, and that she is behaving coldly towards him as a result. In fact, she is in mourning for Malcolm, her dead husband - something he doesn't realize until the film's end.

Michael Albert