Engaging with Phenomenology: Is it more of a Challenge than it Needs to be?

Abstract

When seeking to understand the human condition, with all the problems this enterprise poses for traditional scientific research approaches, qualitative research is held to be in some ways superior to rigidly quantitative research. As a result, many beginning health researchers plan to employ a qualitative approach to explore topics that were previously inaccessible via traditional scientific means. However, implementing a qualitative approach is not an easy process and, in many cases, researchers must look long and hard to find material to assist them in developing their research plans. This may be particularly so in phenomenological research. This article examines some of the problems and pitfalls faced by phenomenological researchers new to the approach. Through accounts of personal experience, it high-lights some of the areas where phenomenological researchers could be helpful by being less reticent about the process of implementing a phenomenological study.