phenomenological study research design

Qualitative study design: Phenomenology

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Used to describe the lived experience of individuals.

• Now called Descriptive Phenomenology, this study design is one of the most commonly used methodologies in qualitative research within the social and health sciences.
• Used to describe how human beings experience a certain phenomenon. The researcher asks, “What is this experience like?’, ‘What does this experience mean?’ or ‘How does this ‘lived experience’ present itself to the participant?’
• Attempts to set aside biases and preconceived assumptions about human experiences, feelings, and responses to a particular situation.
• Experience may involve perception, thought, memory, imagination, and emotion or feeling.
• Usually (but not always) involves a small sample of participants (approx. 10-15).
• Analysis includes an attempt to identify themes or, if possible, make generalizations in relation to how a particular phenomenon is perceived or experienced.

Methods used include:

• participant observation
• in-depth interviews with open-ended questions
• conversations and focus workshops. 

Researchers may also examine written records of experiences such as diaries, journals, art, poetry and music.

Descriptive phenomenology is a powerful way to understand subjective experience and to gain insights around people’s actions and motivations, cutting through long-held assumptions and challenging conventional wisdom.  It may contribute to the development of new theories, changes in policies, or changes in responses.

Limitations

• Does not suit all health research questions.  For example, an evaluation of a health service may be better carried out by means of a descriptive qualitative design, where highly structured questions aim to garner participant’s views, rather than their lived experience.
• Participants may not be able to express themselves articulately enough due to language barriers, cognition, age, or other factors.
• Gathering data and data analysis may be time consuming and laborious.
• Results require interpretation without researcher bias.
• Does not produce easily generalisable data.

Example questions

• How do cancer patients cope with a terminal diagnosis?
• What is it like to survive a plane crash?
• What are the experiences of long-term carers of family members with a serious illness or disability?
• What is it like to be trapped in a natural disaster, such as a flood or earthquake? 

Example studies

• The patient-body relationship and the "lived experience" of a facial burn injury: a phenomenological inquiry of early psychosocial adjustment . Individual interviews were carried out for this study.
• The use of group descriptive phenomenology within a mixed methods study to understand the experience of music therapy for women with breast cancer . Example of a study in which focus group interviews were carried out.
• Understanding the experience of midlife women taking part in a work-life balance career coaching programme: An interpretative phenomenological analysis . Example of a study using action research.
• Holloway, I. & Galvin, K. (2017). Qualitative research in nursing and healthcare (Fourth ed.): John Wiley & Sons Inc.
• Rodriguez, A., & Smith, J. (2018). Phenomenology as a healthcare research method . Journal of Evidence Based Nursing , 21(4), 96-98. doi: 10.1136/eb-2018-102990
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Phenomenology helps us to understand the meaning of people's lived experience.  A phenomenological study explores what people experienced and focuses on their experience of a phenomenon.  As phenomenology has a strong foundation in philosophy, it is recommended that you explore the writings of key thinkers such as Husserl, Heidegger, Sartre and Merleau-Ponty before embarking on your research. Duquesne's Simon Silverman Phenomenology Center maintains a collection of resources connected to phenomenology as well as hosting lectures, and is a good place to start your exploration.

• Simon Silverman Phenomenology Center
• Husserl, Edmund, 1859–1938
• Heidegger, Martin, 1889–1976
• Sartre, Jean Paul, 1905–1980
• Merleau-Ponty, Maurice, 1908–1961

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• Phenomenology Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy entry.

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What is phenomenology in qualitative research?

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7 February 2023

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Take a closer look at this type of qualitative research along with characteristics, examples, uses, and potential disadvantages.

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• What is phenomenological qualitative research?

Phenomenological research is a qualitative research approach that builds on the assumption that the universal essence of anything ultimately depends on how its audience experiences it .

Phenomenological researchers record and analyze the beliefs, feelings, and perceptions of the audience they’re looking to study in relation to the thing being studied. Only the audience’s views matter—the people who have experienced the phenomenon. The researcher’s personal assumptions and perceptions about the phenomenon should be irrelevant.

Phenomenology is a type of qualitative research as it requires an in-depth understanding of the audience’s thoughts and perceptions of the phenomenon you’re researching. It goes deep rather than broad, unlike quantitative research . Finding the lived experience of the phenomenon in question depends on your interpretation and analysis.

• What is the purpose of phenomenological research?

The primary aim of phenomenological research is to gain insight into the experiences and feelings of a specific audience in relation to the phenomenon you’re studying. These narratives are the reality in the audience’s eyes. They allow you to draw conclusions about the phenomenon that may add to or even contradict what you thought you knew about it from an internal perspective.

• How is phenomenology research design used?

Phenomenological research design is especially useful for topics in which the researcher needs to go deep into the audience’s thoughts, feelings, and experiences.

It’s a valuable tool to gain audience insights, generate awareness about the item being studied, and develop new theories about audience experience in a specific, controlled situation.

• Examples of phenomenological research

Phenomenological research is common in sociology, where researchers aim to better understand the audiences they study.

An example would be a study of the thoughts and experiences of family members waiting for a loved one who is undergoing major surgery. This could provide insights into the nature of the event from the broader family perspective.

However, phenomenological research is also common and beneficial in business situations. For example, the technique is commonly used in branding research. Here, audience perceptions of the brand matter more than the business’s perception of itself.

In branding-related market research, researchers look at how the audience experiences the brand and its products to gain insights into how they feel about them. The resulting information can be used to adjust messaging and business strategy to evoke more positive or stronger feelings about the brand in the future.

• The 4 characteristics of phenomenological research design

The exact nature of phenomenological research depends on the subject to be studied. However, every research design should include the following four main tenets to ensure insightful and actionable outcomes:

A focus on the audience’s interpretation of something . The focus is always on what an experience or event means to a strictly defined audience and how they interpret its meaning.

A lack of researcher bias or prior influence . The researcher has to set aside all prior prejudices and assumptions. They should focus only on how the audience interprets and experiences the event.

Connecting objectivity with lived experiences . Researchers need to describe their observations of how the audience experienced the event as well as how the audience interpreted their experience themselves.

• Types of phenomenological research design

Each type of phenomenological research shares the characteristics described above. Social scientists distinguish the following three types:

Existential phenomenology —focuses on understanding the audience’s experiences through their perspective. 

Hermeneutic phenomenology —focuses on creating meaning from experiences through the audience’s perspective.

Transcendental phenomenology —focuses on how the phenomenon appears in one consciousness on a broader, scientific scale.

Existential phenomenology is the most common type used in a business context. It’s most valuable to help you better understand your audience.

You can use hermeneutic phenomenology to gain a deeper understanding of how your audience perceives experiences related to your business.

Transcendental phenomenology is largely reserved for non-business scientific applications.

• Data collection methods in phenomenological research

Phenomenological research draws from many of the most common qualitative research techniques to understand the audience’s perspective.

Here are some of the most common tools to collect data in this type of research study:

Observing participants as they experience the phenomenon

Interviewing participants before, during, and after the experience

Focus groups where participants experience the phenomenon and discuss it afterward

Recording conversations between participants related to the phenomenon

Analyzing personal texts and observations from participants related to the phenomenon

You might not use these methods in isolation. Most phenomenological research includes multiple data collection methods. This ensures enough overlap to draw satisfactory conclusions from the audience and the phenomenon studied.

Get started collecting, analyzing, and understanding qualitative data with help from quickstart research templates.

• Limitations of phenomenological research

Phenomenological research can be beneficial for many reasons, but its downsides are just as important to discuss.

This type of research is not a solve-all tool to gain audience insights. You should keep the following limitations in mind before you design your research study and during the design process:

These audience studies are typically very small. This results in a small data set that can make it difficult for you to draw complete conclusions about the phenomenon.

Researcher bias is difficult to avoid, even if you try to remove your own experiences and prejudices from the equation. Bias can contaminate the entire outcome.

Phenomenology relies on audience experiences, so its accuracy depends entirely on how well the audience can express those experiences and feelings.

The results of a phenomenological study can be difficult to summarize and present due to its qualitative nature. Conclusions typically need to include qualifiers and cautions.

This type of study can be time-consuming. Interpreting the data can take days and weeks.

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• Volume 21, Issue 4
• Phenomenology as a healthcare research method
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• Alison Rodriguez ,
• Joanna Smith
• School of Healthcare , School of Healthcare, University of Leeds , Leeds , UK
• Correspondence to Dr Joanna Smith, School of Healthcare, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9UT, UK; j.e.smith1{at}leeds.ac.uk

https://doi.org/10.1136/eb-2018-102990

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Qualitative research methodologies focus on meaning and although use similar methods have differing epistemological and ontological underpinnings, with each approach offering a different lens to explore, interpret or explain phenomena in real-world contexts and settings. In this article, we provide a brief overview of phenomenology and outline the main phenomenological approaches relevant for undertaking healthcare research.

What is phenomenology?

Edmund Husserl (1859–1938), a philosopher, established the discipline of phenomenology. In Husserl’s approach to phenomenology, now labelled descriptive phenomenology , experiences are described and researcher perceptions are set aside or ‘bracketed’ in order to enter into the life world of the research participant without any presuppositions. 1 Experience is recognised to involve perception, thought, memory, imagination and emotion, each involving ‘intentionality’, as the individual focuses their gaze on a specific ‘thing’ or event. 1 Martin Heidegger (1889–1976), a student of Husserl, rejected the theory of knowledge or ‘epistemology’ that influenced Husserl’s work, and instead adopted ‘ontology’, the science of being. In relation to research, ‘epistemology’ is concerned with what constitutes valid knowledge, and how knowledge is gained with a distinction between justified belief and opinion, while ‘ontology’ ‘is more concerned with the nature of reality and now we understand what exists and is experienced.

• View inline

Key differences between Husserl’s and Heidegger’s approaches to phenomenology

What is phenomenological research?

The philosophy of phenomenology resides within the naturalistic paradigm; phenomenological research asks: ‘ What is this experience like? ’, ‘ What does this experience mean? ’, and ‘ How does the lived world present itself to the participant or to me as the researcher? ’ Not all health research questions that seek to describe patient or professional experiences will be best met by a phenomenological approach; for example, service evaluations may be more suited to a descriptive qualitative design, where highly structured questions aim to find out participant’s views, rather than their lived experience.

Building on the work of Husserl and Heidegger, different approaches and applications of phenomenological to research have been developed. Table 2 , adapted from Rodriguez, 2 highlights the differences between the main traditions of phenomenology.

Comparison of the main phenomenological traditions

Is phenomenology an appropriate approach to undertaking healthcare research?

We will use a study that explored the lived experience of parenting a child with a life-limiting condition to outline the application of van Manen’s approach to phenomenology, 3 and the relevance of the findings to health professionals. The life expectancy of children with life-limiting conditions has increased because of medical and technical advances, with care primarily delivered at home by parents. Evidence suggests that caregiving demands can have a significant impact on parents’ physical, emotional and social well-being. 4 While both qualitative and quantitative research designs can be useful to explore the quality of life for parents living with a child with a life-limiting conditions, a phenomenological approach offers a way to begin to understand the range of factors that can effect parents, from their perspective and experience, revealing meanings that can be ‘hidden’, rather than making inferences. van Manen’s approach was chosen because the associated methods do not ‘break down’ the experience being studied into disconnected parts, but provides rich narrative descriptions and interpretations that describe what it means to be a person in their particular life-world. The phenomenological aim was to develop a ‘pathic’ understanding; the researcher was therefore committed to understanding the experience of the phenomena as a whole, rather than parts of that experience. In addition, van Manen’s approach was chosen because it offers a flexibility to data collection, where there is more of an emphasis on the facilitation of participants to share their views in a non-coercive way and the production of meaning between the researcher and researched compared to other phenomenological approaches ( table 2 ).

Central to data analysis is how the researcher develops a dialogue with the text, rather than using a structured coding approach. Phenomenological themes are derived but are also understood as the structures of experience that contribute to the whole experience. van Manen’s approach draws on a dynamic interplay of six activities, that assist in gaining a deeper understanding of the nature of meaning of everyday experience:

Turning to a phenomenon, a commitment by the researcher to understanding that world.

Investigating experience as we live it rather than as we conceptualise it.

Reflecting on the essential themes, which characterise the phenomenon.

Describing the phenomenon through the art of writing and rewriting.

Maintaining a strong and oriented relation to the phenomenon.

Balancing the research context by considering the parts and the whole. 8

These activities guide the researcher, alongside drawing on the four-life world existentials ( table 2 ), as lenses to explore the data and unveil meanings.

Ten parents of children with life-limiting conditions were interviewed with the aim of gathering lived experiences and generating thick descriptions of what it is like to be a parent of a child with a life-limiting condition. The essential meaning of the phenomenon ‘the lived experience of parenting a child with a life limiting condition’ can be understood as a full-time emotional struggle involving six continuous constituents, presented in figure 1 . Health professional supporting families where a child has a life limiting condition need to be aware of the isolation faced by parents and the strain of constant care demands. Parents innate parental love and commitment to their child can make it challenging to admit they are struggling; support and the way care and services are delivered should be considerate of the holistic needs of these families ( figure 1 ). 

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Lived experience of parenting a child with a life-limiting condition. 

In summary, in Husserlian (or descriptive)derived approaches, the researcher from the outset has a concrete ‘example’ of the phenomenon being investigated, presuppositions are bracketed and the researcher imaginatively explores the phenomena; a ‘pure’ description of the phenomena’s essential features as it is experienced can then be unveiled. While in Heideggerian, hermeneutic (or interpretive) approaches, the researcher’s perspectives, experiences and interpretations of the data are interwoven, allowing the phenomenologist to provide an ‘interpretation’ rather than just a description of the phenomena as it is experienced. In all phenomenological approaches, the researcher’s role in self-reflection and the co-creativity (between researcher and researched) is required to produce detailed descriptions and interpretations of a participant’s lived experience and are acknowledged throughout the researcher’s journey and the research process. These reflections are deliberated to a greater degree in heuristic and relational approaches, as the self and relational dialogue are considered crucial to the generated understanding of the phenomena being explored.

We will provide more specific details of interpretative phenomenological analysis in the next Research Made Simple series.

• Rodriguez A
• Rodriguez A ,
• Cheater F ,
• Moustakas C
• van Manen M
• Flowers P ,
• Larkin M , et al
• Langridge D

Funding The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.

Competing interests None declared.

Patient consent Not required.

Provenance and peer review Commissioned; internally peer reviewed.

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Phenomenological Qualitative Methods Applied to the Analysis of Cross-Cultural Experience in Novel Educational Social Contexts

Ahmed ali alhazmi.

1 Education Department, Jazan University, Jazan, Saudi Arabia

Angelica Kaufmann

2 Cognition in Action Unit, PhiLab, University of Milan, Milan, Italy

The qualitative method of phenomenology provides a theoretical tool for educational research as it allows researchers to engage in flexible activities that can describe and help to understand complex phenomena, such as various aspects of human social experience. This article explains how to apply the framework of phenomenological qualitative analysis to educational research. The discussion within this article is relevant to those researchers interested in doing cross-cultural qualitative research and in adapting phenomenological investigations to understand students’ cross-cultural lived experiences in different social educational contexts.

Introduction: The Qualitative Method in Educational Research

Many scholars in phenomenology hold the view that human beings extract meaning from the world through personal experience ( Husserl, 1931 ; Hycner, 1985 ; Koopmans, 2015 ; Hourigan and Edgar, 2020 ; Gasparyan, 2021 ). Investigating the experience of individuals is a highly complex phenomenon ( Jarvis, 1987 ): annotating and clarifying human experience can be a challenging task not only because of the complexity of human nature, but also because an individual’s experience is a multidimensional phenomenon, that is, psychologically oriented, culturally driven, and socially structured. Hence, much uncertainty and ambiguity are surrounding the description and exploration of an individual’s experience. Such uncertainty is due to the multidimensional aspects that constitute and form an individual’s experiences, including ongoing and “mediated” behaviour ( Karpov and Haywood, 1998 ), feelings, and cognition. In all these respects, the complexity of experience becomes especially evident in certain investigative contexts such as the one we decided to explore, that is the study of the cross-cultural interactions of individuals who experience a transition from their own cultural and educational social context to a different one. In this article, it is argued that a hybrid phenomenological qualitative approach that, as shall be illustrated, brings together aspects of descriptive phenomenology, and aspects of interpretative phenomenology ( Moustakas, 1994 ; Lopez and Willis, 2004 ), could assist researchers in navigating through the complexity of cross-cultural experiences encountered by individuals in novel social educational contexts. Descriptive phenomenology was derived mainly from the philosophical work of Husserl and particularly from the idea of transcendental phenomenology ( Moustakas, 1994 ; Lopez and Willis, 2004 ; Giorgi, 2010 ). In contrast, an interpretive phenomenological methodology was derived from the works of scholars like Merleau-Ponty (1962) , Gadamer (2000) , and Gadamer and Linge (2008) . These two approaches overlap in the research methods and activities and are deployed to assist the research by promoting engagement with responsive and improvised activities rather than with mechanical procedures. The general qualitative methodology of social science research has shaped phenomenology as a methodological approach just as reliable as quantitative and experimental methods, as recently discussed by Høffding et al. (2022) , who stressed the advantages of phenomenology in qualitative research (see also Zahavi, 2019a , b ). Since we are interested in cross-cultural experiences, in the past, for example, we used such phenomenological qualitative type of investigation to find out what it is like for Saudi international students to transition from a gender-segregated society to a mixed-gender environment while studying and living as international students ( Alhazmi and Nyland, 2013 , 2015 ). We were interested in further understanding the phenomenon of transitioning itself rather than collecting students’ opinions and perspectives about the experience of transitioning. The investigation was conducted to capture and describe essential aspects of the participants’ experience, to understand the experience encountered by students in their novel social educational context. Besides this specific study case, the same hybrid methodology, as shall be suggested, may be applied to the study of similar types of social environments and groups. We refer to our past work on cross-cultural transitioning experience to help the reader translate how the phenomenological qualitative methodology can be applied in relatable scenarios in educational research.

As Giorgi (1985) , Van Manen (1990) , Moustakas (1994) , and other phenomenologists have stated, interviewing individuals who experience specific phenomena is the foundation source that phenomenological investigation relies on to understand the phenomenon. Accordingly, aspects that are core to the interviews are the following: (1) general attributes of the conducted interviews, (2) criteria of selection for potential participants, (3) ethical considerations of dealing with human participants, and (4) the interviewing procedures and some examples (these will be presented in section “Practising Phenomenology: Methods and Activities”).

To design a phenomenologically based qualitative investigation, we suggest considering three aspects: (1) the aim of the investigation; (2) the philosophical assumptions about the sought knowledge; and (3) the investigative strategies. These three aspects of the investigation shall be approached while keeping in mind the two following rationals: (1) looking for essence and (2) flexible methods and activities.

• The researcher’s aim is that of identifying the essential and invariant structure (i.e., the essence ) of the lived experience as this is described by the participants ( Moustakas, 1994 ; Crotty, 1998 ; Cresswell, 2008 ). This allows the researcher to ‘return to the concrete aspect of the experience’ ( Moustakas, 1994 , p. 26) by offering a systematic attempt to present the experience as it appears in consciousness ( Polkinghorne, 1989 ) and to focus on the importance of the individuals and their respective views about the lived experience ( Lodico et al., 2006 ). It is essential to keep this aim (i.e., identifying the essence of lived experience ) in mind when conducting a phenomenological qualitative investigation as this is the core aim of phenomenology. According to Finlay (2006 , 2008 ), exploring and understanding the essential structure and themes of the lived experience encountered by individuals is critical. Researchers adopting these perspectives ‘borrow’ the participants’ experience and their reflections on their experience to get a deeper understanding and to grasp the deeper meaning of the investigated experience ( Van Manen, 1990 , p. 62). This is what Finlay (2006 , 2008 ) calls ‘dancing’ between two approaches, and it is also the approach that we endorse. As pointed out by Høffding and Martiny (2016) , in this explorative process the interviewer needs to understand the relation between the interviewee’s experience and their description of it, since the interview constitutes a second person perspective in which one directly encounters another subjectivity and shall not elicit closed answers such as “yes” or “no” (see section “Attributes of the Conducted Interviews”). This feature is useful when exploring an experience that has not been sufficiently explored and discussed.
• The suggested phenomenological qualitative approach offers a strategy that ‘sharpen the level on ongoing practices in phenomenologically inspired qualitative research’ ( Giorgi, 2006a , p. 306). Methods and activities for data collection are flexible, and the analysis is designed to be aligned with the theoretical and philosophical assumptions underlying qualitative research. The present strategy allows a researcher to dialogue with both the participants and the data to produce a multi-layered description of the experience. This feature is academically important in terms of conducting a rigorous qualitative study that provides trustworthy knowledge ( Crotty, 1998 ; Denzin and Lincoln, 2003 ; Creswell, 2007 , 2009 ; Bryman, 2008 ).

The three core aspects of the investigation (1) the aim of the investigation; (2) the philosophical assumptions about the sought knowledge; and (3) the investigative strategies, informed by these two rationals , are essential to developing a phenomenologically oriented qualitative method to examine the lived experience and for identifying its essence.

Aim and Method

Thinking about the actual object of our investigation, that is, the lived experience of individuals is an essential aspect of phenomenological qualitative research. The researchers need to identify their aim very carefully by focusing on the lived experience of the subject being interviewed and on the structure of such experience rather than on the opinion of the participants about the experience.

In our previous studies, we were interested in describing the cross-cultural experience lived by Saudi students transitioning from their home country to another. Call the experience of transitioning ‘experience X’ and call Saudi students ‘group Y’. The research sought to examine the major question and the supplementary questions around which the study revolved, which was the following: “ What does the experience X look like for the individuals belonging to group Y? ”

As the question is broad in scope and quite complex, we decided to address it from a particular angle to grasp the essence of the students’ experience rather than providing a superficial description or a personal reflection of the experience. The efforts were directed to identify the most prominent overt display of the students’ experience; the focus was on investigating the most invariant and essential aspect of their experience. From this viewpoint, the research was directed to the quest of ‘what’ individuals encounter and ‘how’ they encounter it. This aim is characterised by the research design as exploratory (e.g., Blumer, 1986 ; Stebbins, 2001 ; Ritchie and Lewis, 2003 ). Exploratory research design allows researchers to “taste” and experience social phenomena and provides a journey of discovery that consists of adventure ( Willig, 2008 ) and surprise. The researcher, guided by the research inquiry, may arrive to discover an unanticipated phenomenon.

In particular, the study of cross-cultural experience involves two aspects: first is what we can call a “transitioning experience” between two cultures. The second is the potential impact that “transitioning experience” has upon the identity of those individuals who lived the experience. The conceptualisation of the phenomenon (i.e., cross-cultural experience) must be addressed, and the theoretical perspective informing its conceptualisation should be considered while developing such a phenomenological approach.

Two theoretical perspectives can allow understanding the phenomenon of cross-cultural transition: the first one is the sociocultural theory, which has been developed from Vygotsky’s works (e.g., Vygotsky, 1978 ; Doelling and Goldschmidt, 1981 ; Cole, 1995 ; Wertsch et al., 1995 ); and the second one is symbolic interactionism theory, which draws on the works of Mead, Blumer, and others (e.g., Kuhn, 1964 ; Mead, 1967 ; Blumer, 1986 ; Denzin, 1992 ; Clammer et al., 2004 ; Urrieta, 2007 ). These two perspectives informed the conceptualisation of the research phenomenon and how the phenomenon has been approached methodologically. For what concerns Vygotsky and neo-Vygotskian authors (and their sociocultural perspectives), they facilitate our understanding of the phenomenon of cross-cultural transition and its investigation. For example, Vygotsky and neo-Vygotskian authors conceptualise the individual ability to adjust to the new culture. The assumption that underlies the investigation is that individuals can acquire new cognitive developmental patterns of thought employing what these authors call “mediational assistance of tools, signs, and other cultures” ( Kozulin, 2018 ).

For what concerns instead, the symbolic interactionism approach, this latter allows researchers to understand cross-cultural experienced phenomena by taking into consideration the role of symbolic meanings in forming individuals’ experience. The core assumption developed from this perspective is that symbolic meanings are developed, while individuals acquire their understanding of both their internal and external world.

To analyse cultural identity and this transitioning experience, another relevant aspect to consider is that symbolic interactionists assume that the definition of individual self and identity are both constructed in and played out through interaction with the environment and the other selves surrounding us. As stated by Hollander et al. (2011) , the most basic requisite for symbolic interaction is the existence of social selves who come together to share information, emotions, and goods—the full range of human activities. The conceptions that people have of themselves, and others shape how they present themselves. In turn, how they present themselves allows others to infer what actors privately think of themselves and others (p. 123). Another aspect to be noted is that in the context of cross-cultural transitioning, cultural identity reflects how individuals think and feel about belonging to their culture and to the larger society from which they come from; it is in the essence of their experiences, the sense of belonging to, or attachment with, either or both cultural groupings. To fully appreciate this, we need to “borrow” from different authors’ arguments, ideas, and theoretical perspectives and adopt the hybrid perspective that we mentioned.

With this in mind, we present an overview of our research aims and the attributes that they involve: exploration and philosophical assumptions about sought knowledge.

Exploration

The study process is not a recipe to follow but rather a journey to take, and as Willig (2008 , p. 2) pointed out, the concept of research ‘has moved from a mechanical (how-to-apply-appropriate-techniques-to-the-subject-matter) to a creative (how-can-I-find-out?) mode’.

A study should be designed to maintain the subjective approach of the researcher towards the exploration of the phenomenon being investigated, as well as to appreciate the inter-subjective nature of the approach involved in the investigation of the phenomenon itself. A phenomenological qualitative method allows to track empathy and recognition of both the researcher’s and the participant’s subjectivity in relation to the phenomenon being explored.

The design is aimed to provide the researcher and the audience, with an opportunity to test and experience the phenomenon through descriptions of the essence of the experience. By concentrating on exploration as an essential aim, we evoke flexibility—the type of flexibility that allows researchers to shift between lines of inquiry and move from one activity to another to uncover the structure of the experience. The direction and proposal concerning the activities should be open enough to accommodate the complexity and ambiguity that surrounds any examined phenomenon. Flexibility consists of merging the exploratory research with phenomenological and qualitative practices.

Philosophical Assumptions About Sought Knowledge

We consider ontological assumptions, that is, specific beliefs about some aspect of reality, and epistemological assumptions, that is, specific beliefs about some aspect of knowledge, that constitutes the phenomenon being the object of the investigation. Ontological and epistemological assumptions are considered an essential part of the research design. Therefore, researchers should identify these assumptions while engaging with the research process, as they will play a significant role in framing the research questions and justifying the research methodology, on the one hand, and the methods and activities, on the other hand ( Guba, 1990 ; Guba and Lincoln, 1994 ; Crotty, 1998 ; Denzin and Lincoln, 2003 ; Creswell, 2009 ; Høffding and Martiny, 2016 ; Martiny et al., 2021 ; Høffding et al., 2022 ).

Ontological Assumptions of the Phenomenological Investigation

Ontological assumptions are, here, propositions about the nature of social reality—that is, what exists in a social context ( Crotty, 1998 ; Blaikie, 2000 ). They relate to questions about reality: for example, what reality does exist? Does it have an external existence or is it internally constructed? However, not all phenomenologists consider ontological issues a real concern for designing and practising qualitative inquiry. That is because the ideas of phenomenology appeared as a reaction to the scientific positivist philosophical view of knowledge that dominated the philosophy of science. The phenomenological arguments, when they first appeared, were not concerned with ontological questions but rather they focussed on providing an alternative epistemological approach about how we can access knowledge that tends to be subjective and internally mediated. In other words, phenomenology, in its original form, is an attempt to explore the relationship between the knower and the known, which is an epistemological issue in philosophy rather than an ontological position. The main issue that concerns phenomenology, from these perspectives, is whether we assume or not that reality exists outside of human consciousness, i.e., before or independently of whether we think and reason about it. The epistemological question needs to be answered from both positions. The epistemological question is the real dilemma, and this concerns who is invested in the study of human consciousness. From this perspective, what is provided by human consciousness is our social reality, regardless of its internal existence, before we think about it. Knowledge is what research usually attempts to provide, therefore, it is what should concern a researcher. According to Spinelli (2005 , p. 15), “We have no idea whether ‘things in themselves’ truly exist. All we can say is that, as human beings, we are biased towards interpretations that are centred upon an object-based or ‘thing-based’ world”. In addition, ontological assumptions should be identified clearly before one practice phenomenological research. This perspective has relied on Heidegger’s thesis, which moved the discussions concerning phenomenology to the ontological level when he discussed the philosophy of existence and being from a phenomenological perspective ( Laverty, 2003 ; Tarozzi and Mortari, 2010 ).

The basic philosophical assumption underlying a phenomenological investigation is that truth can be found and can exist within the individual lived experience ( Spiegelberg and Schuhmann, 1982 ). Our study is based on arguments about the existence of a social world as internally mediated, which means that as humans, we must interact with this existence and construct meanings based on our culture and beliefs, historical development, and linguistic symbols.

In our work, we considered an internal reality that was ‘built up from the perception of social actors’ ( Bryman, 2008 , p. 18) and that was consistent with the subjective experiences of the external world ( Blanche and Durrheim, 1999 ). This assumption was supported by Dilthey (1979 , p. 161) who said that ‘undistorted reality only exists for us in the facts of consciousness given by inner experience (, and) the analysis of these facts is the core of the human studies’.

The meanings emerged from the research methods and activities, and from this systematic interaction with the participants in this research and from sharing their experience, for example, about our work on students transitioning from their home country to the novel educational social context. These meanings should be considered a central part of the social reality that a study should report upon. This assumption underlies and merges implicitly with the second level of assumptions, the epistemological assumptions of phenomenology.

Epistemological Assumptions of the Phenomenological Investigation

In qualitative research, the researcher can be considered the subject who acts to know the phenomenon that is considered as the object. Accordingly, the phenomenon of cross-cultural transition between two cultures can be seen as an (object) for the deed of the investigator who is seen as (subject). Identifying the relationship between subject and object is essential to developing a coherent and sound research design. The following epistemological considerations are relevant to the current investigation.

Intentional Knowledge

The first element is intentionality. This concept is at the heart of the phenomenological approach ( Moustakas, 1994 ; Crotty, 1998 ; Husserl and Hardy, 1999 ; Barnacle, 2001 ; Creswell et al., 2006 ; Tarozzi and Mortari, 2010 ). The original idea of phenomenology was built on this concept, introduced by Brentano (1874) . Intentionality is the direction of the content of a mental state. This is a pervasive feature of many different mental states: beliefs, hopes, judgements, intentions, love, and hatred. According to Brentano, intentionality is the mark of the mental: all and only mental states exhibit intentionality. To say that a mental state has intentionality is to say that it is a mental representation and that it has content. Husserl, who was Brentano’s student, assumed that this essential property of intentionality, the directedness of mental states onto something, is not contingent upon whether some real physical target exists independently of the intentional act itself. This is regardless of whether the appearance of the thing is an appearance of the thing itself or an appearance of a mediated thing. Such consciousness and knowledge of the thing amount to perspectival understanding. Therefore, a person’s understanding is an understanding of a thing or an aspect of a thing (object). The key epistemological assumption, derived from Husserl’s concept of intentionality, is that the phenomenon is not present to itself; it is present to a conscious subject ( Barnacle, 2001 ). Therefore, the knowledge that an individual hold about the phenomenon is mediated and one cannot have ‘pure or unmediated access’ which is other than a subjective mediated knowledge ( Barnacle, 2001 , p. 7). We have access only to the world that is presented to us. We have an intention to act, to know what is out there, and we only can have access to an intentional knowledge that the knower can consciously act towards ( Hughes and Sharrock, 1997 ). Therefore, the assumption held here is that knowledge is the outcome of a conscious act towards the thing to be known ( Hughes and Sharrock, 1997 ).

Subjectively Mediated Knowledge

The second epistemological assumption is related to the previous one, that of intentionality. It is that we either assume that the social world and a phenomenon do exist outside of our consciousness (see, for example, Vygotsky, 1962 ; Burge, 1979 , 1986 ), or that they do not, but we are able only, as individuals, to interact with it and produce meaning for it through a conscious act. Consciousness is the ‘medium of access to whatever is given to awareness’ ( Giorgi, 1997 , p. 236); therefore, epistemologically, only subjective knowledge can be known about the experienced world. This assumption leads to the next epistemological assumption held in this investigation, which claims that knowing other people’s experiences is the outcome of constructed and dialogical knowledge.

Constructed Dialogical Knowledge

By stating that the knowledge obtained from a phenomenological study is constructed dialogically, we differentiated between philosophical knowledge on life experiences, and the knowledge provided by certain research practices that explore and understand other people’s descriptions of their lived experience ( Giorgi, 2006a , b ; Finlay, 2008 ).

From a phenomenological perspective, we assume that knowledge provided through the research activities is a result of the researcher’s and participants’ interactions with the phenomenon that is subject to the investigation. The essence of the argument here is that the ‘experience’ is best known and represented only through dialogical interaction: an interpretative methodology that analyses (spoken or written) utterances or actions for their embedded communicative significance ( Linell, 2009 ). For what concerns us, interaction occurred between two inseparable domains: between the conscience of the researcher and the participants, and between these consciousnesses and the phenomenon explored. The qualitative methodology provided a direction for this study by way of navigating through the first domain, which was the interaction between researcher and participants. The first domain had two levels of interaction, with the first being the relationship between researcher, participants, and raw data as a dialogical relationship—a dialogical relationship in the sense that the researcher is actively engaged, through dialogue (in the form of spoken or written communicative utterances or actions), in constructing reasonable and sound meanings from the data collected from the participants ( Rossman and Rallis, 2003 ; Steentoft, 2005 ). The importance of such a dialogical relationship, in phenomenological research, is supported by Rossman and Rallis (2003) .

Phenomenological Qualitative Methods and Strategies

Two forms of phenomenological methodologies can be noticed in the literature of qualitative research: descriptive phenomenology and interpretive phenomenology ( Moustakas, 1994 ; Lopez and Willis, 2004 ). Descriptive phenomenology was derived mainly from the philosophical work of Husserl and particularly from the idea of transcendental phenomenology ( Moustakas, 1994 ; Lopez and Willis, 2004 ; Giorgi, 2010 ). In contrast, an interpretive phenomenological methodology was derived from the works of scholars like Heidegger, Merleau-Ponty (1962) , Gadamer (2000) , and Gadamer and Linge (2008) .

These approaches overlap in the research methods and activities and are used to assist the research by promoting engagement with responsive and improvised activities rather than with mechanical procedures. In fact, key principles of both descriptive and interpretative phenomenology are peoples’ subjective experiences and the meanings they ascribe to their lived world and how they relate to it ( Langdridge, 2007 ). No definite line distinguishes or separates these two approaches or attitudes. Deploying both binaries is what differentiates our phenomenological qualitative approach from other qualitative approaches in the field (see, for example, Finlay, 2008 ; Langdridge, 2008 ).

Descriptive Attitude

The descriptive attitude in ‘the sense of description versus explanation’ ( Langdridge, 2008 , p. 1132; Ihde, 2012 ) occurs where the emphasis is on describing what the researcher hears, reads, and perceives when entering the participants’ description of their experience. According to Ihde (2012 , p. 19) it is that attitude that consists in ‘describe phenomena phenomenologically, rather than explain them’. The whole phenomenological qualitative approach process is not description vs. interpretation, since interpretation is inevitably involved in describing and understanding the description of other people’s lived experiences ( Langdridge, 2008 ). As presented in Figure 1 , the descriptive attitude is served by the bracketing mode and by the reduction process in order to generate a textural description of the described lived experience ( Moustakas, 1994 ; Creswell, 2007 ).

The hybrid phenomenological qualitative method.

Bracketing refers to the efforts that should be made to be open to listening to and observing the described phenomenon with fresh eyes. It is an attempt to put aside any prejudgements regarding the phenomenon being investigated ( Salsberry, 1989 ; Moustakas, 1994 ; LeVasseur, 2003 ; also see a critical discussion in Zahavi, 2019a , 2020 , 2021 , and in Zahavi and Martiny, 2019 ). This mode also allows one to engage phenomenologically with the reduction process concerning the participants’ descriptions of their lived experiences. What the bracketing mode offers to a phenomenological qualitative study is: (1) temporary suspension of any prejudgements or assumptions related to the examined phenomenon that might have limited and restricted how the phenomenon appeared for the participants, while being aware that it is impossible to be completely free from any presuppositions; and (2) assistance in maintaining the involvement of previous experiences and perceptions about the phenomenon to recognise and realise what constitutes other aspects of the explored experience. According to Moustakas (1994 , p. 85) adopting a bracketing status allows that ‘whatever or whoever appears in our consciousness is approached with an openness’. The bracketing mode influences most stages of the research activities about the following aspects:

• – Forming descriptive research questions free from presuppositions to guide and direct the research enquiry, leading to the achievement of a study’s aims.
• – Responding to and engaging with previous works that were concerned with the same experience.
• – Conducting descriptive interviews that allow participants to share and describe their lived experiences.
• – Re-describing the described experience with careful treatment of the data included, maintaining the involvement of the researcher, and avoiding being selective or discriminating in the re-description of the experience.

Phenomenological Reduction

Phenomenological reduction is the process of re-describing and explicating meaning from the described experience ( Giorgi, 1985 , 2006a , b ; Moustakas, 1994 ; Crotty, 1998 ; Todres, 2005 ; Creswell, 2007 ; Finlay, 2008 ). Such strategies are used to underlie the data analysis process. For Moustakas (1994) and others (e.g., Todres, 2005 , 2007 ), the phenomenological reduction of human experience deals with two dimensions of the experience: texture and structure.

The texture is the ‘thickness’ of an experience ( Todres, 2007 , p. 47); it is a description of what the experience is like. Accordingly, the texture is an extensive description of what happened and how it appears to the researcher. The texture is the qualitative feature of the experience ( Moustakas, 1994 ; Creswell, 2007 ). The structure of the experience deals with emergent themes, and these describe the essential aspect of the experience. Such themes ‘can be grasped only through reflection’ on the textural descriptions of the participant’s experience ( Keen, 1975 , as cited in Moustakas, 1994 , p. 79).

Interpretive Attitude

The interpretive attitude is the second strategy to be used to approach the data. It is part of the phenomenological approach towards discovering the essential structure and meanings of the experience as described by the participants. The interpretive attitude is part of the methodological strategies used to search for the essence of the experience. This approach is used mainly in the final stages of the research activities when the data analysis is being conducted.

As Finlay (2008 , 2009 ) argued, ‘interpretation (in phenomenological practice) is not an additional procedure: It constitutes an inevitable and basic structure of our “being-in-the-world.” We experience a thing as something that has already been interpreted’ (p. 10). Therefore, to achieve a meaningful description and understanding of the essential aspect of an experience, we should move from the bracketing mode to an imaginative variation mode to reflect on the first step of the phenomenological reduction, which is a textural description.

Imaginative Variation Mode

In the phenomenological literature, imaginative variation is akin to the induction process in that it aims to extract themes and essential meanings that constitute the described experiences ( Klein and Westcott, 1994 ; Moustakas, 1994 ; Giorgi, 2006a , b , 2009 ; Creswell, 2009 ). It should be mentioned, however, that in the phenomenological practise, shifting from a descriptive to an interpretive attitude is ‘interpretive so far’ ( Klein and Westcott, 1994 , p. 141). It shall be noted that usually applying phenomenology within qualitative methods is seen as working with a version of ‘factual variation’ that, in comparison to ‘imaginative variation’, works with qualitative data (as described in Høffding and Martiny, 2016 ). However, since our approach is not purely fitting within the epistemological assumptions of positivism and neo-positivism, but rather it reflects the epistemological assumptions of the hermeneutical approach, we prefer to adopt ‘imaginative variation’, and remain consistent with our hybrid view that attempts to balance descriptive and interpretative methods of investigation. The imaginative variation mode enables a thematic and structural description of the ‘experience’ to be derived within the process of phenomenological reduction. This mode assists in focusing on the second aspect of the research, which requires an examination of how the experience might affect the cultural identity of the participants, that is, that part of their self-conception that is typically influenced by the cultural background of their country of origin, and that is responsible for shaping their social values and beliefs. This strategic mode can guide the researcher to shift from the descriptive to the interpretive attitude. According to Von Eckartsberg (1972 , p. 166) such a mode ‘constitutes the reflective work, looking back and thinking about this experience, discovering meaningful patterns and structures, universal features that are lived out concretely in a unique fashion’. This will be considered describing “past experience” as “mediated experience” in the final analysis. And mediation is an essential process that individuals engage with in relation to their experience. Reflecting on people’s personal experiences requires mutual and reciprocal respect between researcher and participants ( Klein and Westcott, 1994 ). This aspect allows the researcher to engage with the texture of the participant’s personal experience, to reflect on it, and to decide on possible meanings in relation to the whole context. It also allows the participants to evaluate the researcher’s reflection. This methodological mode can play a significant role in the process and activity of data analysis.

Practising Phenomenology: Methods and Activities

We provided an overview of the methodology that we endorse as hybrid since it embeds both descriptive and interpretive phenomenological attitudes. To implement and explicate this approach in the practice of the research, we can take suggestion of Moustakas (1994) about organising the phenomenological methods around three categories: (1) methods of preparation, (2) methods of collecting data and gaining descriptions about the phenomenon, and (3) methods of analysing and searching for the meaning. These categories are useful when it comes to conducting a phenomenological qualitative study because they allow for the reporting of the most significant methods and ensure that activities are conducted in a logical order.

Methods of Preparation, Activities, and Data Collection

If the nature of the study is emergent, like in most qualitative research (e.g., Creswell, 2009 ; Hays and Singh, 2011 ), the research purpose and questions are emergent too; they grew initially from personal experience and then emerge through the process of conceptualising a research topic around experience being investigated, for example, the experience of cross-cultural transition lived by individuals who move from their own cultural and educational context to a different one. In our past work, this was the transition of Saudi students, both males and females, from Saudi Arabia to Australia. These students experienced the transition from a gender-segregated, deeply religious cultural and educational social context to a different one, where gender-mixed interactions are not limited to members of one’s own family, such as in Saudi Arabia. In Australia, these students experienced life in a gender-mixed educational social context that is not built on religious pillars. The experience that we investigated consisted of: the cross-cultural transition to a different educational social context. As Giorgi (1985) , Van Manen (1990) , Moustakas (1994) , and other phenomenologists have stated, aspects that are core to the interviews are the following: (1) general attributes of the conducted interviews, (2) criteria of selection for potential participants, (3) ethical considerations of dealing with human participants, and (4) the interviewing procedures and some examples.

Attributes of the Conducted Interviews

The main attributes of the interviews may be summarised as follows:

As an interview is influenced by the mode of bracketing, prior to each of the interviews it is necessary to elicit the participant’s experience separately from any comparison with one’s own. The interviews are about what the participants want to say rather than what the main researcher wants them to say or what the main researcher expect them to say. It is important to point out that the interviews are designed in such a way to encourage discursive answers rather than affirmative or negative answers (as discussed in Høffding and Martiny, 2016 ). Engaging with the interviews has the scope of seeking new views and perspectives about the phenomenon that is being investigated, and not simply to confirm or disconfirm what is already known about that phenomenon.

Here is an example of spontaneous answers to open questions taken from our previous work: Z. talks freely about the first week of experience in the novel educational social context in Australia: “Explicitly, the first class was horrible; was very bad. It is probably because I have not been in such position [mixing with males]. So, I was silent most of the time; I did not talk with any one most of the time; and I isolated myself in corner…. Mixing [with unknown males] is difficult for me because I have to deal with foreign men and I do not know them … I do not have a problem to speak with men. But the problem for me [is that] sometimes I think what if this man cross the limits between how I can deal with such behaviour. So I preferred to stay away from the men. In the first time it was hard, I could not do anything by myself. Many times, I just cried. The life [here] was mysterious in the beginning.”

And again towards the end of the stay in Australia, Z. spontaneously shares how her worldviews about herself have been changed by being in a gender-mixed educational environment. For example, Z. stated clearly that she is now confident ‘to deal with male’—after all the ‘scariness’ and ‘horribleness’ that was felt in the beginning. She learned from her experience in a gender-mixed environment how to make her own rules that males cannot cross. Z. said: “… Being here has changed my personality completely…. The most important advantages from (being here) refined my personality in a good way, and I became more independent…. I refined my personality. Not only me, who realised that, but my family also said that: Z. has changed…. Finally, I learned how to deal with man with confidence and how to make my own rule. So When I come back to Saudi Arabia, I will be more confident.”

During the interviewing activity, is also important to share experiences with the interviewees in order to practice empathy ( Corbin and Morse, 2003 ; Dickson-Swift et al., 2006 ; August and Tuten, 2008 ; Mitchell and Irvine, 2008 ; Mallozzi, 2009 ) and be respectful for what they feel about their experiences ( Klein and Westcott, 1994 ). These techniques are outlined to show interviewees that the researcher is interested in hearing detailed accounts ( Hays and Singh, 2011 ) about their experiences. As Hays and Singh (2011) have suggested, such involvement during an interview activity may encourage participants to share their experiences more freely, if they feel they are in a friendly situation. The advantages of this technique can be reflected in the descriptions of the answers provided and in the participants’ helpfulness in reviewing the transcribed interviews and adding or correcting data.

Selection of the Participants

A purposive sampling method can be used to select the participants. This is a type of nonprobability sample. The main objective of a purposive sample is to produce a sample that can be logically assumed to be representative of the population. This is often accomplished by applying expert knowledge of the population to select in a nonrandom manner a sample of elements that represents a cross-section of the population. For example, in our past work, such expertise was given by the author being a Saudi citizen who went to study in Australia. Such methods are considered fitting for most investigations if one wants ‘to discover, understand, and gain insight … from which the most can be learned’. Another reason to use a purposive sampling method is that in qualitative, particularly in phenomenological inquiry, the aim is not to generalise findings to a population but to develop insights and in-depth exploration of an under-researched phenomenon ( Onwuegbuzie and Leech, 2007 ). The concern is not about the number of participants. Rather, the focus should be on the intensity of participation and the diversity of the participants. Moustakas (1994) suggested that the number of participants in a phenomenological study can be from 1 to 20, depending on the time frame (see, Halldórsdóttir, 2000 ; Morse, 2000 ; Starks and Trinidad, 2007 ; Jones and Lavallee, 2009 ).

This section describes how the data and reports on the activity conducted can be treated to generate findings from the interviews. The following series of processes is indicative of the path followed to arrive at the findings for this research, which relied heavily on the works of Hycner (1985) , Moustakas (1994) , Giorgi (1997) , and Wertz (2005) when a plan for data treatment is developed. Warning of Hycner (1985) against using the term data analysis when engaging in a phenomenological approach has been considered. The concept of analysis involves breaking things into parts, while phenomenology is about potting parts of any experience (phenomenon) together to get a sense of the whole, to get into phenomenological “reduction.” We are looking for “the essence.” This requires getting a sense of the whole rather than of the part. Therefore, we prefer to use “explication.” Explication usually points to the process of being explicit about the constituents of the whole phenomenon. Using a popular term like analysis may be inconsistent with how the data are treated because the term analysis usually implies a process of breaking things into parts. Therefore, to avoid misleading uses of terminology, the suggestion is to use the term data explication, which Groenewald (2004) suggested. Explication usually points to the process of being explicit about the constituents of the whole phenomenon ( Hycner, 1985 ; Groenewald, 2004 ).

The Interviewing Procedure

In order to capture and explicate the essence and the structures constituting the experience encountered by the participants nine steps can be followed: (a) transcribing participants’ interviews, (b) developing a sense of the whole, (c) developing meaning units for each participant’s experience (horizontalisation), (d) clustering relevant units of meanings, (e) translating the meaning units, (f) developing textural (i.e., narrative) descriptions for each individual, (g) searching for essential structures that could express the entire textural description, (h) evaluating the textural description, and (i) synthesising the structure from all participants’ accounts. Each step is addressed in further detail in the remainder of the paper.

Transcription

After the interviews are conducted with all the participants, the interview recordings are transcribed. After having confirmed the privacy and confidentiality statements that are provided by the third-party transcribers are confirmed, verbally and by email, interviews are sent to the transcribers, and records should be deleted after the completion of the transcription process.

Developing a Sense of the Whole

Following the transcription process, the second step consists in developing a general sense for each participant’s description. This involves listening to all the recordings several times as well as reading the transcripts several times. Repeating the procedure is useful to make sure the content of the interviews is carefully approached: In fact, this process helps the investigator to become familiar with the context of the units of meaning and themes that they sought to extract in the next step. At this stage, the goal is to get a general sense of what participants had told the investigator about their experience. This sense provides a foundation for the following process of data explication. Engaging in this activity helps the investigator to switch on and keep the focus on the phenomenon itself, which appear within the descriptions of the participants.

It is essential to the phenomenological attitude to pay full attention to both the spoken and written forms of the data. Developing a sense of the wholeness and of the entirety of what everyone had expressed regarding their experience is necessary because the goal of the investigation is to find the essential meanings of the experience as encountered by the participants ( Hycner, 1985 ; Moustakas, 1994 ). Each transcript and record should be read and listened to separately and at different times. This step allows getting an overall sense of the data.

Developing Meaning Units for Each Participant’s Experience (Horizontalisation)

After transcribing the interviews, and once a general sense of the whole description of the phenomenon has been gained, it is possible to formally engage with the data treatment in order to extract the invariant meaning units and themes that constitute the experience encountered by the participants. Every statement, phrase, sentence, and paragraph in each transcript is examined to elicit statements relevant to the experience. At this stage, the attitude is to go through the transcripts with an open-minded attitude, as much as possible ( Hycner, 1985 ). This means to stay in the bracketing mode and be as descriptive as possible. Moustakas (1994) called this stage of data treatment ‘horizontalisation’, as this is where the descriptions of each individual turn to a horizon. The horizon, in the discussion of the phenomenological data treatment, refers to the context from which an experienced phenomenon could appear; it is the source that comprises the core themes and meanings of the experienced phenomenon. The notion of phenomenological ‘horizon’ has been conceptualised differently according to which philosophical perspective is adopted. For example, the term can appear in Nietzsche, Husserl, and Heidegger, wherein it has been used to refer to very different concepts ( Scott, 1988 ; Von Eckartsberg, 1989 ; Husserl and Hardy, 1999 ; Heidegger and Dahlstrom, 2005 ; Christofi and Thompson, 2007 ). Therefore, to avoid confusion around the term ‘horizon’, the term is presently substituted by the expression ‘meaning units’, as this term refers directly to what is being achieved at this stage of data explication. Invariant meaning units are the non-repetitive or overlapping statements that explicitly or implicitly capture a moment, or several moments, of what has been experienced (i.e., the texture of the experience). To develop the meaning units from the participants’ accounts, the following sub-steps come next: listing all statements relevant to the experience , and going through the list of statements by checking each statement against two criteria suggested by Moustakas (1994 , p. 121): (1) Is the statement essential for understanding the phenomenon being studied? (2) Can it be abstracted and labelled? Any statement that conforms to these criteria was included as an invariant meaning unit. The statements that did not meet these criteria—those that are repetitive, overlapping, or unclear—are eliminated.

This process is difficult as well as the most critical one ( Wertz, 1985 ) because the entire investigation depends on these units of meaning. It takes time to be confident in eliminating some statements that do not meet the relevancy requirement.

Clustering Relevant Units of Meaning Into Groups

After developing the list of relevant meaning units, it is necessary to go through them several times in the mode of imaginative variation to identify a significant theme that could be clustered as a possible unit of meaning. Turning the attention to imaginative variation is useful in examining identified meaning units reflectively, adding the dimension that allows subjective judgements. To avoid inappropriate subjective judgements, it is important to keep bracketing one’s own presuppositions to see what might possibly emerge ( Von Eckartsberg, 1972 ; Moustakas, 1994 ). However, it should be acknowledged that the researcher’s prior experience cannot be completely isolated, as the researcher must use their constituted mind ( Al-Jabri, 2011b ) to understand and to identify the emerging themes. To minimise this necessary risk, it is recommended to ask external reviewers to be independent judges and check for consistency under the themes that are selected. At this stage, each case is still being treated individually to identify the unique experience of each participant. This approach is also useful for obtaining an in-depth understanding of the data, rather than rushing into the whole. These clusters are the core themes to use in organising the invariant meaning units (here referred to as “the core themes of the experience” of the phenomenon; Moustakas, 1994 , p. 121), before revisiting them to develop the textural description of the participant’s experience. This step helps organise the textural description of the experience ( Moustakas, 1994 ).

Translating the Meaning Units

In previous stages, the data explication can be kept, as much as possible, to what is expressed by the participants. This should all be done in the primary language spoken by the participants (i.e., native language or most used language, since native language is not always the best know language—especially in individuals who grew up or were educated in a language other than the language of the family of origin) to allow participants to express their experience by using their ‘tools’ ( Vygotsky, 1962 ). This is important for getting a deeper description of the experience because language interacts with thinking and consciousness dialectically. The underlying assumption is that language, as a mediating tool, shapes participants’ experience, and it is also a result of experience, and a significant constituent of the epistemological system of a given cultural group. Furthermore, like Burkitt (2011 , p. 269), we maintain that sociocultural theory and symbolic interactionism theory promote an assumption ‘that language does not express thoughts that already exist but provides the tools to bring thoughts into existence’.

In our previous work, the preferred language during the interviews was Arabic, spoken both by the researcher and the participants. Subsequently, the interviews were translated into English to be accessible to the scientific community internationally.

Developing a Textural Description for Each Individual

The sixth step consists in constructing a description of the texture of the experience from the clustered meaning units. This step provides rich, thick descriptions of each individual’s experience. The textural description, which is by now translated in the language in which the study is conducted (if different from the language in which the participants expressed themselves during the interviews), presents what is experienced by each participant to provide this thick description, it is important to ask the following question for every invariant meaning unit: what can possibly appear as the texture of the participant’s experience?

It should be indicated that as part of the process at this stage, some of the texture can appear in different meaning units, which means there is still some repetition and/or overlapping of the meaning units that are not eliminated in the fourth step.

Searching for Essential Structures That Could Express the Entire Textural Description

After constructing textural descriptions for each participant, it is time to deploy the imaginative variation mode again to search for essential structures that could encompass the entire textural description of the participant: a possible theme that could be the essential structure of the experience of this participant—essential in the sense that the experience could not be described without this theme, or themes. At this stage, the interpretive attitude comes into play to help the investigator to identify the structure of the textual description. The interpretive attitude is important during this process because it involves deep contemplation and reflection on the textural description to capture the structural meaning.

Evaluating the Textural Description and Structural Theme of Each Participant’s Experience

Once the textural and structural descriptions are ready, we have reached the evaluation step. In this step, we suggest adopting the following criteria from phenomenological guidelines of Hycner (1985) : Do the participants agree with the identified textures and structures to represent what they had described in the interview? Did the investigator miss any other essential aspect of the participants’ experiences that the participants would like to add?

Synthesising the Structures From All the Participants’ Accounts

The final step consists in synthesising the structures of the material gathered from all participants’ accounts to ‘communicate the most general meaning of the phenomenon ( Giorgi, 1985 , p. 20). Because this activity is the final activity in terms of the data treatment, the main research question of the study must be addressed directly.

The discussion over the structures that emerge from all participants’ interviews should take the form of writing a composite summary to describe how the experienced phenomenon is seen by the participants ( Giorgi, 1985 ; Hycner, 1985 ; Van Manen, 1990 ; Moustakas, 1994 ). In this summary, it is important to concentrate on the common aspects of the experience as an essence of the phenomenon. At the same time, it is crucial not to ignore the unique and different views of the participants.

In this article, we have presented a hybrid phenomenological method embedded in qualitative analysis that we suggest should be deployed in educational research. Our analysis is relevant to those researchers interested in doing qualitative research and in those interested in adapting phenomenological investigation to understand experiences in different educational groups and social contexts, such as cross-cultural transitions, as we have shown. A phenomenological qualitative method provides a theoretical tool for educational research as it allows researchers to engage in flexible activities that can describe and help to understand complex phenomena, such as various aspects of human social experience.

Author Contributions

All authors listed have made a substantial, direct, and intellectual contribution to the work and approved it for publication.

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

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Phenomenological Research: Methods And Examples

Ravi was a novice, finding it difficult to select the right research design for his study. He joined a program…

Ravi was a novice, finding it difficult to select the right research design for his study. He joined a program to improve his understanding of research. As a part of his assignment, he was asked to work with a phenomenological research design. To execute good practices in his work, Ravi studied examples of phenomenological research. This let him understand what approaches he needed and areas he could apply the phenomenological method.

What Is Phenomenological Research?

Phenomenological research method, examples of phenomenological research.

A qualitative research approach that helps in describing the lived experiences of an individual is known as phenomenological research. The phenomenological method focuses on studying the phenomena that have impacted an individual. This approach highlights the specifics and identifies a phenomenon as perceived by an individual in a situation. It can also be used to study the commonality in the behaviors of a group of people.  

Phenomenological research has its roots in psychology, education and philosophy. Its aim is to extract the purest data that hasn’t been attained before. Sometimes researchers record personal notes about what they learn from the subjects. This adds to the credibility of data, allowing researchers to remove these influences to produce unbiased narratives. Through this method, researchers attempt to answer two major questions:

• What are the subject’s experiences related to the phenomenon?
• What factors have influenced the experience of the phenomenon?

A researcher may also use observations, art and documents to construct a universal meaning of experiences as they establish an understanding of the phenomenon. The richness of the data obtained in phenomenological research opens up opportunities for further inquiry.

Now that we know what is phenomenological research , let’s look at some methods and examples.

Phenomenological research can be based on single case studies or a pool of samples. Single case studies identify system failures and discrepancies. Data from multiple samples highlights many possible situations. In either case, these are the methods a researcher can use:

• The researcher can observe the subject or access written records, such as texts, journals, poetry, music or diaries
• They can conduct conversations and interviews with open-ended questions, which allow researchers to make subjects comfortable enough to open up
• Action research and focus workshops are great ways to put at ease candidates who have psychological barriers

To mine deep information, a researcher must show empathy and establish a friendly rapport with participants. These kinds of phenomenological research methods require researchers to focus on the subject and avoid getting influenced.

Phenomenological research is a way to understand individual situations in detail. The theories are developed transparently, with the evidence available for a reader to access. We can use this methodology in situations such as:

• The experiences of every war survivor or war veteran are unique. Research can illuminate their mental states and survival strategies in a new world.
• Losing family members to Covid-19 hasn’t been easy. A detailed study of survivors and people who’ve lost loved ones can help understand coping mechanisms and long-term traumas.
• What’s it like to be diagnosed with a terminal disease when a person becomes a parent? The conflict of birth and death can’t be generalized, but research can record emotions and experiences.

Phenomenological research is a powerful way to understand personal experiences. It provides insights into individual actions and motivations by examining long-held assumptions. New theories, policies and responses can be developed on this basis. But, the phenomenological research design will be ineffective if subjects are unable to communicate due to language, age, cognition or other barriers. Managers must be alert to such limitations and sharp to interpret results without bias.

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How phenomenology can help us learn from the experiences of others

• A Qualitative Space
• Open access
• Published: 05 April 2019
• Volume 8 , pages 90–97, ( 2019 )

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• Brian E. Neubauer 1 , 2 ,
• Catherine T. Witkop 3 &
• Lara Varpio 1  

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Introduction

As a research methodology, phenomenology is uniquely positioned to help health professions education (HPE) scholars learn from the experiences of others. Phenomenology is a form of qualitative research that focuses on the study of an individual’s lived experiences within the world. Although it is a powerful approach for inquiry, the nature of this methodology is often intimidating to HPE researchers. This article aims to explain phenomenology by reviewing the key philosophical and methodological differences between two of the major approaches to phenomenology: transcendental and hermeneutic. Understanding the ontological and epistemological assumptions underpinning these approaches is essential for successfully conducting phenomenological research.

This review provides an introduction to phenomenology and demonstrates how it can be applied to HPE research. We illustrate the two main sub-types of phenomenology and detail their ontological, epistemological, and methodological differences.

Conclusions

Phenomenology is a powerful research strategy that is well suited for exploring challenging problems in HPE. By building a better understanding of the nature of phenomenology and working to ensure proper alignment between the specific research question and the researcher’s underlying philosophy, we hope to encourage HPE scholars to consider its utility when addressing their research questions.

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A Qualitative Space highlights research approaches that push readers and scholars deeper into qualitative methods and methodologies. Contributors to A Qualitative Space may: advance new ideas about qualitative methodologies, methods, and/or techniques; debate current and historical trends in qualitative research; craft and share nuanced reflections on how data collection methods should be revised or modified; reflect on the epistemological bases of qualitative research; or argue that some qualitative practices should end. Share your thoughts on Twitter using the hashtag: #aqualspace

Human beings, who are almost unique in having the ability to learn from the experience of others, are also remarkable for their apparent disinclination to do so.—Douglas Adams

Despite the fact that humans are one of few animals who can learn from the experiences of others, we are often loath to do so. Perhaps this is because we assume that similar circumstances could never befall us. Perhaps this is because we assume that, if placed in the same situation, we would make wiser decisions. Perhaps it is because we assume the subjective experience of an individual is not as reliably informative as objective data collected from external reality. Regardless of the assumptions grounding this apprehension, it is essential for scholars to learn from the experiences of others. In fact, it is a foundational premise of research. Research involves the detailed study of a subject (i. e., an individual, groups of individuals, societies, or objects) to discover information or to achieve a new understanding of the subject [ 1 ]. Such detailed study often requires understanding the experiences of others so that we can glean new insights about a particular phenomenon. Scholars in health professions education (HPE) are savvy to the need to learn from the experiences of others. To maximize the effectiveness of feedback, of workplace-based learning, of clinical reasoning, or of any other of a myriad of phenomena, HPE researchers need to be able to carefully explore and learn from the experiences of others. What often curtails these efforts is a lack of methodology. In other words: HPE researchers need to know how to learn from the experiences of others.

Phenomenology is a qualitative research approach that is uniquely positioned to support this inquiry. However, as an approach for engaging in HPE research, phenomenology does not have a strong following. It is easy to see why: To truly understand phenomenology requires developing an appreciation for the philosophies that underpin it. Those philosophies theorize the meaning of human experience. In other words, engaging in phenomenological research requires the scholar to become familiar with the philosophical moorings of our interpretations of human experience. This may be a daunting task, but Douglas Adams never said learning from the experiences of others would be easy.

The questions that phenomenology can answer, and the insights this kind of research can provide, are of foundational importance to HPE: What is the experience of shame and the impact of that experience for medical learners [ 2 ]? What does it mean to be an empathetic clinician [ 3 ]? What is the medical learner’s experience of failure on high stakes exams [ 4 ]? How do experienced clinicians learn to communicate their clinical reasoning in professional practice [ 5 ]? Answers to such questions constitute the underpinnings of our field. To answer such questions, we can use phenomenology to learn from the experiences of others.

In this manuscript, we delve into the philosophies and methodologies of two varieties of phenomenology: hermeneutic and transcendental. Our goal is not to simplify the complexities of phenomenology, nor to argue that all HPE researchers should use phenomenology. Instead, we suggest that phenomenology is a valuable approach to research that needs to have a place in HPE’s body of research. We will place these two approaches in the context of their philosophical roots to illustrate the similarities and differences between these ways of engaging in phenomenological research. In so doing, we hope to encourage HPE researchers to thoughtfully engage in phenomenology when their research questions necessitate this research approach.

What is phenomenology?

In simple terms, phenomenology can be defined as an approach to research that seeks to describe the essence of a phenomenon by exploring it from the perspective of those who have experienced it [ 6 ]. The goal of phenomenology is to describe the meaning of this experience—both in terms of what was experienced and how it was experienced [ 6 ]. There are different kinds of phenomenology, each rooted in different ways of conceiving of the what and how of human experience. In other words, each approach of phenomenology is rooted in a different school of philosophy. To choose a phenomenological research methodology requires the scholar to reflect on the philosophy they embrace. Given that there are many different philosophies that a scientist can embrace, it is not surprising that there is broad set of phenomenological traditions that a researcher can draw from. In this manuscript, we highlight the transcendental and the hermeneutic approaches to phenomenology, but a broader phenomenological landscape exists. For instance, the Encyclopedia of Phenomenology, published in 1997, features articles on seven different types of phenomenology [ 7 ]. More contemporary traditions have also been developed that bridge the transcendental/hermeneutic divide. Several of these traditions are detailed in Tab.  1 [ 8 , 9 , 10 ].

To understand any of these approaches to phenomenology, it is useful to remember that most approaches hold a similar definition of phenomenology’s object of study. Phenomenology is commonly described as the study of phenomena as they manifest in our experience, of the way we perceive and understand phenomena, and of the meaning phenomena have in our subjective experience [ 11 ]. More simply stated, phenomenology is the study of an individual’s lived experience of the world [ 12 ]. By examining an experience as it is subjectively lived, new meanings and appreciations can be developed to inform, or even re-orient, how we understand that experience [ 13 ].

From this shared understanding, we now address how transcendental (descriptive) phenomenology and hermeneutic (interpretive) phenomenology approach this study in different ways. These approaches are summarized in Tab.  2 .

• Transcendental phenomenology

Phenomenology originates in philosophical traditions that evolved over centuries; however, most historians credit Edmund Husserl for defining phenomenology in the early 20th century [ 14 ]. Understanding some of Husserl’s academic history can provide insight into his transcendental approach to phenomenology. Husserl’s initial work focused on mathematics as the object of study [ 15 ], but then moved to examine other phenomena. Husserl’s approach to philosophy sought to equally value both objective and subjective experiences, with his body of work ‘culminating in his interest in “pure phenomenology” or working to find a universal foundation of philosophy and science [ 13 ].’ Husserl rejected positivism’s absolute focus on objective observations of external reality, and instead argued that phenomena as perceived by the individual’s consciousness should be the object of scientific study. Thus, Husserl contended that no assumptions should inform phenomenology’s inquiry; no philosophical or scientific theory, no deductive logic procedures, and no other empirical science or psychological speculations should inform the inquiry. Instead, the focus should be on what is given directly to an individual’s intuition [ 16 ]. As Staiti recently argued, this attitude towards phenomenology is akin to that of ‘a natural scientist who has just discovered a previously unknown dimension of reality [ 17 ].’ This shift in focus requires the researcher to return ‘to the self to discover the nature and meaning of things [ 18 ].’ As Husserl asserted: ‘Ultimately, all genuine and, in particular, all scientific knowledge, rests on inner evidence [ 19 ].’ Inner evidence—that is, what appears in consciousness—is where a phenomenon is to be studied. What this means for Husserl is that subjective and objective knowledge are intimately intertwined. To understand the reality of a phenomenon is to understand the phenomenon as it is lived by a person. This lived experience is, for Husserl, a dimension of being that had yet to be discovered [ 17 ]. For Husserl, phenomenology was rooted in an epistemological attitude; for him, the critical question of a phenomenological investigation was ‘What is it for an individual to know or to be conscious of a phenomenon [ 20 ]?’ In Husserl’s conception of phenomenology, any experienced phenomenon could be the object of study thereby pushing analysis beyond mere sensory perception (i. e. what I see, hear, touch) to experiences of thought, memory, imagination, or emotion [ 21 ].

Husserl contended that a lived experience of a phenomenon had features that were commonly perceived by individuals who had experienced the phenomenon. These commonly perceived features—or universal essences—can be identified to develop a generalizable description. The essences of a phenomenon, according to Husserl, represented the true nature of that phenomenon. The challenge facing the researcher engaging in Husserl’s phenomenology, then, is:

To describe things in themselves, to permit what is before one to enter consciousness and be understood in its meanings and essences in the light of intuition and self-reflection. The process involves a blending of what is really present with what is imagined as present from the vantage point of possible meanings; thus, a unity of the real and the ideal [ 18 ] .

In other words, the challenge is to engage in the study of a person’s lived experience of a phenomenon that highlights the universal essences of that phenomenon [ 22 ]. This requires the researcher to suspend his/her own attitudes, beliefs, and suppositions in order to focus on the participants’ experience of the phenomenon and identify the essences of the phenomenon. One of Husserl’s great contributions to philosophy and science is the method he developed that enables researchers ‘to suspend the natural attitude as well as the naïve understanding of what we call the human mind and to disclose the realm of transcendental subjectivity as a new field of inquiry [ 17 ].’

In Husserl’s’ transcendental phenomenology (also sometimes referred to as the descriptive approach), the researcher’s goal is to achieve transcendental subjectivity —a state wherein ‘the impact of the researcher on the inquiry is constantly assessed and biases and preconceptions neutralized, so that they do not influence the object of study [ 22 ].’ The researcher is to stand apart, and not allow his/her subjectivity to inform the descriptions offered by the participants. This lived dimension of experience is best approached by the researcher who can achieve the state of the transcendental I —a state wherein the objective researcher moves from the participants’ descriptions of facts of the lived experience, to universal essences of the phenomenon at which point consciousness itself could be grasped [ 23 ]. In the state of the transcendental I , the researcher is able to access the participants’ experience of the phenomenon pre-reflectively—that is ‘without resorting to categorization on conceptualization, and quite often includes what is taken for granted or those things that are common sense [ 13 ].’ The transcendental I brings no definitions, expectations, assumption or hypotheses to the study; instead, in this state, the researcher assumes the position of a  tabula rasa, a blank slate, that uses participants’ experiences to develop an understanding of the essence of a phenomenon.

This state is achieved via a series of reductions. The first reduction, referred to as the transcendental stage , requires transcendence from the natural attitude of everyday life through epoche , also called the process of bracketing . This is the process through which the researchers set aside—or bracket off as one would in a mathematical equation—previous understandings, past knowledge, and assumptions about the phenomenon of interest. The previous understandings that must be set aside include a wide range of sources including: scientific theories, knowledge, or explanation; truth or falsity of claims made by participants; and personal views and experiences of the researcher [ 24 ]. In the second phase, transcendental-phenomenological reduction , each participant’s experience is considered individually and a complete description of the phenomenon’s meanings and essences is constructed [ 18 ]. Next is reduction via imaginative variation wherein all the participants’ descriptions of conscious experience are distilled to a unified synthesis of essences through the process of free variation [ 25 ]. This process relies on intuition and requires imagining multiple variations of the phenomenon in order to arrive at the essences of the phenomenon [ 25 ]. These essences become the foundation for all knowledge about the phenomenon.

The specific processes followed to realize these reductions vary across researchers engaging in transcendental phenomenology. One commonly used transcendental phenomenological method is that of psychologist Clark Moustakas, and other approaches include the works of: Colaizzi [ 26 ], Giorgi [ 27 ], and Polkinghorne [ 28 ]. Regardless of the approach used, to engage rigorously in transcendental phenomenology, the researcher must be vigilant in his/her bracketing work so that the researcher’s individual subjectivity does not bias data analysis and interpretations. This is the challenge of reaching the state of the transcendental I where the researcher’s own interpretations, perceptions, categories, etc. do not influence the processes of reduction. It is important to note that modern philosophers continue to wrestle with Husserl’s notions of bracketing. If bracketing is successfully achieved, the researcher sets aside the world and the entirety of its content—including the researcher’s physical body [ 17 ]. While dedication to this bracketing is challenging to maintain, Husserl asserts that it is necessary. Suspending reliance on and foundations in physical reality is the only way to abandon our human experiences in such a way as to find the transcendent I. Researchers might borrow [ 29 ] practices from other qualitative research methods to achieve this goal. For instance, a study could be designed to have multiple researchers triangulate [ 30 ] their reductions to confirm appropriate bracketing was maintained. Alternatively, a study could involve validation of data [ 18 ] via member checking [ 31 ] to ensure that the identified essences resonated with the participants’ experiences.

Husserl’s transcendental phenomenology has been employed by HPE researchers. For example, in 2012, Tavakol et al. studied medical students’ understanding of empathy by engaging in transcendental phenomenological research [ 32 ]. The authors note that medial students’ loss of empathy as they transition from pre-clinical to clinical training is well documented in the medical literature [ 33 ], and has been found to negatively impact patients and the quality of healthcare provided [ 34 ]. Tavakol et al. [ 32 ] used a descriptive phenomenological approach (i. e. using the methodology of Colaizzi and Giorgi) to report on the phenomenon of empathy as experienced by medical students during the course of their training. The authors identified two key factors impacting empathic ability: innate capacity for empathy and barriers to displaying empathy [ 32 ].

• Hermeneutic phenomenology

Hermeneutic phenomenology, also known as interpretive phenomenology, originates from the work of Martin Heidegger. Heidegger began his career in theology, but then moved into academia as a student of philosophy. While Heidegger’s philosophical inquiry began in alignment with Husserl’s work, he later challenged several key aspects of Husserl’s transcendental phenomenology. A foundational break from his predecessor was the focus of phenomenological inquiry. While Husserl was interested in the nature of knowledge (i. e., an epistemological focus), Heidegger was interested in the nature of being and temporality (i. e., an ontological focus) [ 21 ]. With this focus on human experience and how it is lived, hermeneutic phenomenology moves away from Husserl’s focus on ‘acts of attending, perceiving, recalling and thinking about the world [ 13 ]’ and on human beings as knowers of phenomenon. In contrast, Heidegger is interested in human beings as actors in the world and so focuses on the relationship between an individual and his/her lifeworld. Heidegger’s term lifeworld referred to the idea that ‘individuals’ realities are invariably influenced by the world in which they live [ 22 ].’ Given this orientation, individuals are understood as always already having an understanding of themselves within the world, even if they are not constantly, explicitly and/or consciously aware of that understanding [ 17 ]. For Heidegger, an individual’s conscious experience of a phenomenon is not separate from the world, nor from the individual’s personal history. Consciousness is, instead, a formation of historically lived experiences including a person’s individual history and the culture in which he/she was raised [ 22 ]. An individual cannot step out of his/her lifeworld. Humans cannot experience a phenomenon without referring back to his/her background understandings. Hermeneutic phenomenology, then, seeks ‘to understand the deeper layers of human experience that lay obscured beneath surface awareness and how the individual’s lifeworld, or the world as he or she pre-reflectively experiences it, influences this experience [ 35 ].’ Hermeneutic phenomenology studies individuals’ narratives to understand what those individuals experience in their daily lives, in their lifeworlds.

But the hermeneutic tradition pushes beyond a descriptive understanding. Hermeneutic phenomenology is rooted in interpretation—interpreting experiences and phenomena via the individual’s lifeworld. Here, Heidegger’s background in theology can be seen as influencing his approach to phenomenology. Hermeneutics refers to the interpretation of texts, to theories developed from the need to translate literature from different languages and where access to the original text (e. g., the Bible) was problematic [ 36 ]. If all human experience is informed by the individual’s lifeworld, and if all experiences must be interpreted through that background, hermeneutic phenomenology must go beyond description of the phenomenon, to the interpretation of the phenomenon. The researcher must be aware of the influence of the individual’s background and account for the influences they exert on the individual’s experience of being.

This is not to say that the individual’s subjective experience—which is inextricably linked with social, cultural, and political contexts—is pre-determined. Heidegger argued that individuals have situated freedom. Situated freedom is a concept that asserts that ‘individuals are free to make choices, but their freedom is not absolute; it is circumscribed by the specific conditions of their daily lives [ 22 ].’ Hermeneutic phenomenology studies the meanings of an individual’s being in the world, as their experience is interpreted through his/her lifeworld, and how these meanings and interpretations influence the choices that the individual makes [ 13 ]. This focus requires the hermeneutic phenomenologist to interpret the narratives provided by research participants in relation to their individual contexts in order to illuminate the fundamental structures of participants’ understanding of being and how that shaped the decisions made by the individual [ 37 ].

Another key aspect that distinguishes hermeneutic phenomenology is the role of the researcher in the inquiry. Instead of bracketing off the researcher’s subjective perspective, hermeneutic phenomenology recognizes that the researcher, like the research subject, cannot be rid of his/her lifeworld. Instead, the researcher’s past experiences and knowledge are valuable guides to the inquiry. It is the researcher’s education and knowledge base that lead him/her to consider a phenomenon or experience worthy of investigation. To ask the research to take an unbiased approach to the data is inconsistent with hermeneutic phenomenology’s philosophical roots. Instead, researchers working from this tradition should openly acknowledge their preconceptions, and reflect on how their subjectivity is part of the analysis process [ 16 ].

The interpretive work of hermeneutic phenomenology is not bound to a single set of rule-bound analytical techniques; instead, it is an interpretive process involving the interplay of multiple analysis activities [ 35 ]. In general, this process:

Starts with identifying an interesting phenomenon that directs our attention towards lived experience. Members of the research team then investigate experience as it is lived, rather than as it is conceptualized, and reflect on the essential [phenomenological] themes that characterize the participant’s experience with the phenomenon, simultaneously reflecting on their own experiences. Researchers capture their reflections in writing and then reflect and write again, creating continuous, iterative cycles to develop increasingly robust and nuanced analyses. Throughout the analysis, researchers must maintain a strong orientation to the phenomenon under study (i.   e., avoid distractions) and attend to the interactions between the parts and the whole. This last step, also described as the hermeneutic circle, emphasizes the practice of deliberately considering how the data (the parts) contribute to the evolving understanding of the phenomena (the whole) and how each enhances the meaning of the other [ 35 ] .

In the hermeneutic approach to phenomenology, theories can help to focus inquiry, to make decisions about research participants, and the way research questions can be addressed [ 22 ]. Theories can also be used to help understand the findings of the study. One scholar whose engagement with hermeneutic phenomenology is widely respected is Max van Manen [ 38 ]. Van Manen acknowledges that hermeneutic phenomenology ‘does not let itself be deceptively reduced to a methodical schema or an interpretative set of procedures [ 39 ].’ Instead, this kind of phenomenology requires the researcher to read deeply into the philosophies of this tradition to grasp the project of hermeneutic phenomenological thinking, reading, and writing.

A recent study published by Bynum et al. illustrates how hermeneutic phenomenology may be employed in HPE [ 2 ]. In this paper, Bynum et al. explored the phenomenon of shame as an emotion experienced by medical residents and offer insights into the effects of shame experiences on learners. As a means in scholarly inquiry, this study demonstrates how hermeneutic phenomenology can provide insight into complex phenomena that are inextricably entwined in HPE.

Incorporating phenomenological research methodologies into HPE scholarship creates opportunities to learn from the experiences of others. Phenomenological research can broaden our understanding of the complex phenomena involved in learning, behaviour, and communication that are germane to our field. But success in these efforts is dependent upon both improved awareness of the potential value of these approaches, and enhanced familiarization with the underlying philosophical orientation and methodological approaches of phenomenology. Perhaps most critically, HPE scholars must construct research processes that align with the tenets of the methodology chosen and the philosophical roots that underlie it. This alignment is the cornerstone for establishing research rigour and trustworthiness.

Following a specific checklist of verification activities or mandatory processes cannot buoy the quality and rigour of a particular phenomenological study. Instead, beyond maintaining fidelity between research question, paradigm, and selected methodology, robust phenomenological research involves deep engagement with the data via reading, reflective writing, re-reading and re-writing. In Moustakas’s approach to transcendental phenomenology, the researcher reads the data, reduces the data to meaning units, re-reads those reductions to then engage in thematic clustering, compares the data, writes descriptions, and so on in an ongoing process of continually engaging with the data and writing reflections and summaries until the researcher can describe the essence of the lived experience [ 18 ]. In hermeneutic phenomenology, scholars describe engaging in a hermeneutic circle wherein the researcher reads the data, constructs a vague understanding, engages in reflective writing, then re-engages with the text with revised understandings [ 40 ]. In cycles of reading and writing, of attending to the whole of the text and the parts, the hermeneutic researcher constructs an understanding of the lived experience. In both traditions, deep engagement with the data via reading, writing, re-reading and re-writing is foundational. While this engagement work is not standardized, Polkinghorne suggests that rich descriptions of phenomenological research might be characterized by qualities such as vividness, richness, accuracy, and elegance [ 41 ]. While we question how these qualities might be evaluated in a qualitative study, they confirm that attention to the depth of engagement in reading and writing of the phenomenological data is a necessary condition for rigour.

Phenomenology is a valuable tool and research strategy. For those who are not familiar with its philosophical underpinnings or methodological application, it can seem challenging to apply to HPE scholarship. We hope this manuscript will serve to relieve some of the apprehension in considering the use of phenomenology in future work. We believe that the appropriate application of phenomenology to HPE’s research questions will help us to advance our understanding by learning from the experiences of others.

The views expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, the United States Department of Defense or other federal agencies.

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Neubauer, B.E., Witkop, C.T. & Varpio, L. How phenomenology can help us learn from the experiences of others. Perspect Med Educ 8 , 90–97 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40037-019-0509-2

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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Living in fear at the unpredictability of mental health issues in the classroom: a phenomenological study of secondary school teachers in encountering students with mental health issues.

• 1 School of Nursing, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
• 2 Clinical Nursing Teaching and Research Section, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
• 3 The Interdisciplinary Centre for Qualitative Research, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China

Background: The prevalence of mental health issues among secondary school students is on the rise. Secondary school teachers, outside the home environment, are often in a prime position to identify adolescents facing mental health challenges. Limited knowledge regarding the experiences and perspectives of secondary school teachers when encountering this particular group of students, particularly in Asian countries.

Objectives: This study aimed to describe the lived experiences of secondary school teachers exposed to students with mental health issues in the classroom in a Chinese context.

Methods: A descriptive phenomenological approach within the tradition of Husserl was used. A purposive sampling method was used to collect the participants in Changsha, Hunan, China. Sixteen secondary school teachers participated in this study. Individual, face-to-face interviews were conducted, tape-recorded, and transcripted. Colaizzi’s seven-step descriptive phenomenological method was used to do the data analysis.

Results: One Central theme: Living in fear at the unpredictability of mental health issues in the classroom and four sub-themes emerged: (1) Worried and anxious by the uncertainty of student mental health issues; (2) Scared and afraid by students’ unpredictable behaviors; (3) Afraid of students’ failure and its potential outcome; (4) Students having mental health issues are dangerous.

Conclusions and implications: The teachers in this study found managing the unpredictability of mental health issues in the classroom deeply distressing and challenging. A comprehensive approach to address the cultural, social, and educational factors influencing secondary school teachers’ experiences is encouraged.

1 Introduction

Over the past few years, there has been a growing global concern regarding the increasing prevalence of mental health issues among secondary school students. This rising trend not only has an impact on the academic performance of students but also affects their general well-being and long-term life outcomes ( 1 ). Abundant research suggests that approximately 20% of adolescents experience a diagnosable mental disorder, and around 50% of all lifetime cases of mental illness commence before the age of 14 ( 2 ). The intricate interaction of biological, psychological, and social factors during the adolescent developmental stage makes teenagers especially susceptible to mental health difficulties. Furthermore, the present-day environment, marked by heightened academic demands, cyberbullying, and societal expectations, has additionally contributed to the escalation of mental health issues among young individuals ( 3 ).

Based on Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory, schools (along with other microsystems, including the family) are the most immediate developmental context for adolescents ( 4 ). Teachers are expected to play a significant role in school mental health. However, previous studies found that secondary school teachers experience the challenges by observing students with mental health issues ( 5 – 7 ). Secondary school teachers mostly rely on their prior training or judgment to identify students with mental health issues ( 8 ). In addition, criteria reported by secondary school teachers in China, such as “tired of learning”, “rebellious”, and “falling in love” at a young age, none of these would be considered to be a symptoms of mental illness by mental health professionals, however, some established signs of mental illness appeared to be normalized by some teachers, such as “self-harm” ( 9 ). Indeed, secondary school teachers were just trying their best to identify students with mental health issues despite not knowing what they were doing. Therefore, it is vital to explore their lived experience when encountering adolescents with mental health issues.

Although Western scholars have used a variety of qualitative research methods to examine teachers’ experiences from different perspectives, limited studies have been conducted in the Asian context. The Chinese government has recognized the importance of mental health in schools and has implemented various policies to promote mental health well-being. However, the school mental health system in China faces several challenges: There is often a shortage of trained mental health professionals in schools, the quality and availability of mental health services can vary significantly between different regions and schools. Moreover, as there is a difference in the education system and culture in the Chinese context, the secondary school teachers’ experience of encountering students’ mental health in China could be very different. Therefore, this study aims to understand secondary school teachers’ lived experiences of encountering students with mental health issues in a Chinese context.

2.1 Research question

What is the experience of encountering students with mental health issues in the classroom?

Based on Husserlian descriptive phenomenology ( 10 ), this study aims to understand the essence of encountering students with mental health issues based on the lived experience of secondary school teachers. This study was conducted in Changsha City, Hunan, China. China is a country where public education is the mainstay, with approximately 82% of students enrolled in public institutions. Therefore, secondary school teachers interviewed for this study all come from public schools in Changsha City.

2.3 Data collection and sampling

To select the participants for this study, purposive sampling was used. The inclusion criterion for this study was individuals who were particularly familiar with or experienced in a relevant phenomenon. In this context, the relevant phenomenon refers to secondary school teachers who had supported students with psychological issues ( 11 ). Sixteen secondary school teachers voluntarily participated in the study. Each participant was invited for a 45–60 minute face-to-face interview, which was audio-recorded. Subsequently, the recorded interviews were transcribed verbatim, and the accuracy of the transcripts was verified by comparing them with the original audio recordings. The interview had been completed when data saturation is achieved. Saturation means there was a sufficient understanding of the phenomenon. The interviews were conducted by the first author, who used to work as a psychiatric nurse in a public hospital. The study received ethical approval from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University’s Human Research Ethics Committee (HSEARS20221215002).

2.4 Data analysis

The transcripts underwent an initial reading using Colazzi’s seven-step analysis method to gain a comprehensive understanding of the data ( 12 ). Phenomenological reduction was employed during this stage to ensure that the author’s personal experiences did not influence the interpretation of the data. Following Whitting’s approach, meaningful units within the transcripts were identified, leading to the development of significant statements ( 13 ). These statements were then formulated into meaningful themes, which were further organized into theme clusters. Ultimately, a central theme emerged from the analysis. Throughout this process, reflection was crucial in ensuring that the formulated meanings, sub-themes, and central themes accurately reflected the phenomenon being investigated (refer to Appendix Table 1 for further details).

3.1 Participants’ socio-demographic characteristics

The mean age of secondary school teachers was 40.06 years old, and the mean teaching period in secondary school was 16.63 years. There were 11 female teachers and 5 male teachers. The teaching subjects were Math, English, Biology, Physics, Chemistry, Geograph, Computer, Political, etc. ( Appendix Table 2 ).

3.2 Findings regarding secondary school teachers’ experiences

One central theme was formed: living in fear at the unpredictability of mental health issues in the classroom. Four sub-theme were: “Worried and anxious by the uncertainty of student mental health issues”; “ Scared and afraid by students’ unpredictable behaviors”; “ Afraid of students’ failure and its potential outcome”; “Students having mental health issues are dangerous”.

3.2.1 Worried and anxious by the uncertainty of student mental health issues

The participant highlighted the uncertainty of when these students may face problems. Many of them acknowledged that initially, they may not be aware of the students’ mental health issues. Some of the participants further explained that under normal circumstances, students with mental health issues tended to exhibit reserved behavior in the classroom. The participant described those students as a “transparent” presence in the classroom, meaning that they were easily overlooked or blended into the background. This can be challenging for teachers as they may not be fully aware of the specific challenges these students face or how their mental health issues may manifest. As a result, it became difficult for teachers to anticipate or predict the situations that may arise when these students were dealing with mental health problems. As Guoa and Luo stated:

You never know when they might encounter problems. Therefore, you must constantly pay attention to them. Initially, we may not be aware that these children have mental health issues. (Guo) In regular circumstances, due to his classroom behavior, he tends to be introverted. However, his behavior does not significantly impact the overall pace of the class or the teacher’s instruction. In the classroom , he is not the type to actively participate in answering questions, but he also does not disrupt the order of the class. Therefore, in the classroom, he somewhat resembles a ‘transparent’ presence. (Luo)

The teacher also expressed surprise and a sense of disbelief because the unwell student did not exhibit any previous indications or signs of mental health issues. They acknowledged that educators may not possess the professional expertise to fully comprehend what was happening inside a student’s mind. Additionally, they noted that another challenging part was that issues could only be identified after they had already happened. As Liao said:

I was surprised because the student did not show any signs of this situation before. I genuinely thought he was a normal person. Usually, whether he was interacting with teachers, other children, or classmates, he appeared very normal and behaved in a typical manner. (Liao)

Moreover, the participant expressed a genuine feeling of being overwhelmed and inadequate in handling the situation when students had suicidal thoughts. They mentioned that the suicide attempt signs were extremely subtle, especially given the heavy workload of being a teacher. They felt that the sheer volume of tasks makes it difficult to effectively address the subtle signs exhibited by students. Additionally, they highlighted that students did not directly seek help in an obvious manner but instead hint at their issues indirectly. As a result, the participant found it particularly challenging to navigate the complexities of the situation. As Chen mensioned:

I genuinely feel that I am unable to handle it because it’s simply impossible to find out, right? Some signs are subtle, especially with the workload of being a head teacher being so heavy. There are various tedious tasks, constant complaints, numerous activities, meetings to attend, and still the need to teach classes. There are just too many things to handle. It is really difficult to effectively address these subtle signs because the students won’t directly seek help in an obvious manner. They will only hint at the issue indirectly. So, it becomes quite challenging, I believe it is quite challenging. (Chen)

3.2.2 Scared and afraid by students’ unpredictable behaviors

The participants like Hu, expressed her lack of comprehension and confusion regarding self-harm. She stated that she did not understand why this particular emotion and behavior had emerged. She questioned the motive behind self-harm, as she believed that hurting oneself would naturally cause pain. The participant further expressed her inability to grasp why some students would resort to cutting their wrists as a form of self-harm.

I don’t understand. I don’t know why this emotion arises. I mean, why? Doesn’t hurting oneself cause pain? Why would someone resort to self-harm? I don’t understand why someone would want to cut their wrists. (Hu)

Xie also described being greatly scared by the severity of the situation when she received a letter written in blood. Xie was concerned about the student’s health and mental state, recognizing that the act of writing such a letter may indicate significant distress and a cry for help. Additionally, the sight of blood and the disturbing nature of the situation evoked feelings of disgust and nausea in Xie. As she said:

I was scared. There was one time when I received a letter written in blood. She said she wanted to go home and handed it to someone else. When I saw that blood, I couldn’t even dare to open my eyes. It was truly nauseating to see it. (Xie)

Others like Yang expressed profound shock and disbelief at how the students reached a state where they took their own lives. The participant was left with a deep sense of confusion, questioning what thoughts might have been going through the students’ minds and how they arrived at such a drastic decision. Yang struggled to understand the complex factors that led to such a tragic outcome and the lasting impact it had on them. As he said:

I am deeply shocked by how this young person ended up in such a state (commit suicide). He had a promising future ahead, yet he didn’t seem to value his own life. How could a person become like this? What thoughts were going through his mind? How did he come to make such a drastic decision? This profound shock lingers in my heart. (Yang)

3.2.3 Afraid of students’ failure and its potential outcome

Participants believed that mental health issues had an impact on students’ learning abilities. They observed that students with mental health problems tended to be introverted and face challenges in their studies. At the same time, participants agreed with parents’ perspectives that lower expectations for students’ academic performance. Others expressed the belief that the child previously had the potential to be admitted to a more prestigious school, but their mental health issues hindered their academic progress. As Peng stated:

Because he has mental health issues, his learning abilities are naturally affected. From what I observed, including one very introverted student in the class, his learning abilities have always been in this state since childhood. His parents also don’t have high expectations for him. (Peng)

Some participants indicated a concern about the student’s ability to cope with adversity and negative feedback. They expressed their observation that the psychological resilience of the students they teach was relatively low. The students tended to attribute setbacks solely to external factors, such as difficult exam questions, instead of their understanding and mastery of the knowledge. The participants further highlighted that these students were more responsive to praise and encouragement, but they found it difficult to effectively handle criticism. Indeed, some participants observed that the students displayed weaker psychological resilience in urban cities and lots of students lacked any significant personal responsibilities for their families’ tasks or chores. As Li said:

Some students may have difficulty accepting setbacks and failures. I feel that the psychological resilience of the students we teach is quite low, which may be closely related to their experiences in junior high school. They are only receptive to praise and encouragement, but they struggle to handle criticism. If you try to criticize or provide feedback, they tend to have significant stress reactions. (Li)

Other participants expressed their concern about a prevalent trend within the education system. The participants expressed a sense of frustration and acknowledged the existence of a general atmosphere among educators characterized by fear of potential issues and a reluctance to address students’ weaknesses. This atmosphere resulted in a lack of constructive criticism and hesitancy in providing feedback that could contribute to students’ growth and improvement. The teacher also noted a shift in the perspectives of the student’s parents, who now prioritize encouragement above all else. As Yangmensioned:

We all have become only focused on discussing the strengths of students and dare not talk about their weaknesses. This situation exists throughout the entire education system, including what I have observed in other schools and our school. It seems that there is a general atmosphere among teachers where they are afraid of potential issues and hesitant to criticize or talk about students’ shortcomings. (Yang)

3.2.4 Students having mental health issues are dangerous

Some teachers highlighted that when students with mental health issues were faced with triggering events or circumstances, their ability to regulate their emotions becomes greatly compromised. This can manifest as intense emotional outbursts, difficulty managing anger or frustration, feeling overwhelmed by sadness or anxiety, and even self-harm or suicide. Others noted that students facing mental health challenges displayed reluctance to share their problems with others. This hesitance can create a situation where emotions and experiences were suppressed over an extended period, potentially resulting in a dangerous build-up, comparable to a hidden time bomb. Some participants worried about their safety and were afraid that the student might physically assault them or engage in other aggressive behaviors. As Wang and Zhu described:

Students with mental health issues are similar to normal individuals when nothing has triggered their emotions. However, if something happens that triggers an emotional explosion, their emotional control becomes extremely poor. (Wang) I believe this is a mental health issue. Many people are reluctant to share their mental health problems, experiences, and thoughts with others to have effective communication. As a result, this problem remains like a time bomb. (Zhu)

The majority of the participants felt they were concerned about the safety of students both during school hours and beyond. For example, some participants mentioned that they had noticed an increase in her phone usage, both at school and at home. On the other hand, Luo also expressed concern about a student’s absence from the classroom and the potential risks or dangers that the student may face outside of the school environment. Some of the participants expressed their genuine fear regarding the possibility of their students engaging in self-harm unexpectedly. Others, like Chen, also spoke of her fear and worry when a student openly expressed thoughts of self-harm or suicide in front of her.

The first time he disappeared was during our orientation program when he just entered the first year of middle school. He went missing for the whole afternoon, and that was the first time I faced his situation of being absent. At that moment, I felt very worried, and my mind was filled with thoughts of news stories about such incidents. I was afraid that something bad might have happened, and I felt a sense of fear. (Luo) He sat there and said, “The teacher wants me to stay, but I might just jump from here.” He said it right in front of me, and I was quite scared at that moment because I was genuinely afraid that he might be unstable and do such a thing. (Chen)

Some participants expressed concerns about the potential consequences that may arise if safety issues occur. Participants were genuinely concerned that their reputation and professional image would be damaged as a result. Others recognized that the loss of a student’s life affected the entire school community. Some explained that since they were all located on the same floor if a student from an adjacent class experiences a mental health problem or difficulty, it would inevitably have an impact on the students in the neighboring class. As Peng shared:

If a serious issue arises, particularly involving personal harm, it would greatly impact me in terms of my reputation. Since I will be staying in this institution for many years, should I prioritize the preservation of my professional image? (Peng) I feel a bit worried myself. I’m afraid that the student might engage in more intense behaviors towards me in the future. Because he is a boy, I perceive him as having significant physical strength and height, which added to my apprehension. I was afraid that he might strike me or engage in other aggressive behaviors towards me. (Peng)

Having taught students with mental health problems, teachers were inclined to amplify the students’ problems. For example, when they noticed that a student was exhibiting some unusual behavior or phenomena, they became overly concerned about the problem and tended to amplify it. Other participants felt anxious and concerned about the prospect of having a student with mental health issues appear in their classroom again. They anticipated that it could be a challenging experience, causing them distress and making it difficult to manage the student’s behavior or academic performance. As Yang and Liao articulated:

As soon as you see that the student has some abnormal behavior, you will think in that way, that is, it is easy to expand this matter. It is easy to cause sensitivity and hypersensitivity. (Yang) I don’t know if the student (with mental health issues) will be assigned to my class next semester. If they are, I feel it would still be tormenting. If they are not in my class, perhaps they would be a torment for another teacher. (Liao)

4 Discussion

Mental health issues in the classroom for the secondary school teachers in this study were unpredictable — something they were unaware and students usually did not show any signs. They did not know what signs or symptoms they should be looking for, especially for the signs of attempting suicide. Besides being unaware of the mental health issues, factors such as class size and the subject matter of the course seemed to affect faculty members’ capacity to identify and assist students with mental health illnesses. For instance, due to the class size ranging from 50 to 60 students, participants in our study tend to pay more attention to students at the top, who excel in various aspects such as academic performance, or students at the bottom, who struggle with poor grades and disciplinary issues. However, students who fall in the middle receive comparatively less attention from teachers, making it even more challenging to predict whether this group of students may have mental health issues. The participants in Kalkbrenner’s study also highlighted the challenges of recognizing students facing mental health illness in a large lecture hall (150 students) compared to a smaller classroom setting (10–15 students) ( 14 ). Like Buchanan, secondary school teachers decided to assume that every student in the school might be experiencing some form of crisis due to the impossibility of accurately identifying all at-risk students ( 15 ). Due to the uncertainty of students’ mental health issues, teachers in our study felt astonished when they aware certain students had mental health issues. Buchanan also found that secondary school teachers expressed shock and surprise upon being informed about the attempted suicide, particularly because they did not expect such an incident to occur and did not know the student even had emotional problems or issues at all ( 15 ).

Despite the difficulty in identifying students with mental health issues, teachers were afraid of unwell students’ failure and its potential impact on the classroom. Teachers observed the psychological resilience of the students was relatively low, students tended to attribute setbacks solely to external factors and had difficulty in handling criticism, they behaved indifferently and broke the school regulations and rules without any sense of concern, and they even lacked responsibility for the home chores and tasks in their family, especially for the students in the urban Changsha city. Therefore, teachers concerned about unwell students impacted other students, and worried about their ability to adjust and overcome challenges as they transition into society in the future. There was also a perception that university students today are less resilient compared to previous generations ( 16 ). Furthermore, if children’s social, emotional, and behavioral challenges were left unaddressed, it could hindered their ability to learn and thrive academically ( 17 ).

Despite their fear of student failure and the adverse effects on the classroom and school environment, teachers harbored fear towards students with mental health issues due to concerns for their safety and the potential negative impact on their professional reputation. On the one hand, they expressed apprehension that the student’s behavior might escalate and become more severe. The teachers were particularly concerned about their own safety and harbored fears of potential physical assault or other aggressive actions from the students. Some college teachers in Allie White’s study also justified their reluctance to initiate conversations about university students’ mental health, as they harbored concerns that such discussions could potentially trigger violent behavior from the students ( 18 ). They feared that addressing a university student’s mental health could lead to aggression towards the faculty member, themselves, or others—both during and after the conversation initiated by the teacher ( 18 ). On the other hand, teachers expressed apprehension regarding the potential ramifications that could arise from significant incidents, especially those related to students’ safety. Therefore, they were genuinely concerned that their reputation and professional image would be negatively impacted as a result. In addition, three adolescents in Tally Moses’s study also reported that teachers were afraid of adolescents because of their emotional or behavioral volatility ( 19 ).

One special facet of this theme, different from the participants in Buchanan’s study, experience with student suicide seemed to make secondary school teachers less shocked and more realistically address the subsequent occurrences of suicide ( 15 ). For secondary school teachers in our study, they were concerned about teaching students with mental health issues in the future. The teacher experienced anxiety and apprehension regarding the potential arrival of a new student with mental health issues in their classroom. They anticipated that this situation could present significant challenges, leading to personal distress and making it difficult to effectively handle the student’s behavior and academic performance.

The lived experiences of secondary school teachers encountering students with mental health issues in China were influenced by various cultural, social, and educational factors. In China, there is a social stigma attached to mental health issues, and many teachers fear admitting their struggles due to concerns about professional image and social perception ( 20 ). The “zero-COVID” policy in China has also been noted to contribute to increased pressure on teachers and students, impacting mental well-being. Moreover, the traditional exam-oriented education system in some parts of China has been identified as a factor contributing to the mental health challenges faced by both students and teachers ( 21 ). On the other hand, the reasons for increasing mental health issues in adolescents in China were exam-oriented education system, parental expectations, and cultural and societal stressors, stigma and misconceptions, which were different from Western countries, such as social media and technology, adverse childhood experiences, access to mental health services ( 22 , 23 ). Therefore, those differences highlight the need for a comprehensive approach to address the cultural, social, and educational factors influencing secondary school teachers’ experiences in facing students with mental health issues. Our study provide the evidence for future study and interventions.

4.1 Implications

The secondary school teachers in this study found managing the unpredictability of mental health issues in the classroom deeply distressing and challenging. The worry about student safety calls for a dual approach: improving teacher preparedness through specific training in crisis management and enhancing proactive measures within schools to identify and support students at risk before crises occur. Such training should include simulation-based learning, which could help reduce the shock factor by providing realistic scenarios for teachers to engage with in a controlled environment. Future research should explore the effectiveness of proactive mental health programs in reducing both student incidents and teacher anxiety.

4.2 Strength and limitations

There are some limitations to interpreting our study findings. The secondary school teachers all came from Changsha City in China, making the findings inapplicable to secondary school teachers in other cultures. However, the strength is that our study is the first study to use a descriptive phenomenological design to explore the lived experience of secondary school teachers in encountering students with mental health issues in a Chinese context.

5 Conclusion

The participants in our study described their feelings of uncertainty about whether students had mental health issues and found it challenging to identify students who may have such issues, leading to the potential overlooking of students with mental health problems. They also notice a decreased psychological resilience among current students. Over time, teachers begin to develop an understanding of students’ mental health issues and their impact on the classroom, they grow increasingly concerned that mental health issues as dangerous. Our recommendation is for adolescents to enroll in at least one course per semester that has a small class size, typically consisting of approximately 25 students or fewer. This approach can foster more frequent interactions between secondary school teachers and students. Additionally, the finding of our study that teachers’ experience of living in fear when encountering students with mental health issues encourages secondary school nurses to develop questionnaires and interventions for future studies.

Data availability statement

The original contributions presented in the study are included in the article/supplementary material. Further inquiries can be directed to the corresponding author.

Ethics statement

The studies involving humans were approved by Hong Kong Polytechnic University’s Human Research Ethics Committee. The studies were conducted in accordance with the local legislation and institutional requirements. The participants provided their written informed consent to participate in this study.

Author contributions

ML: Conceptualization, Data curation, Formal analysis, Investigation, Methodology, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing. GH: Conceptualization, Supervision, Writing – review & editing. MC: Conceptualization, Formal analysis, Methodology, Supervision, Validation, Writing – review & editing.

The author(s) declare that no financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Publisher’s note

All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article, or claim that may be made by its manufacturer, is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

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Table 1 Living in fear at the unpredictability of mental illness in the Classroom – From Formulated Meaning to Central Theme.

Table 2 The demography of the secondary school teachers participated in the interviews.

Keywords: secondary school, mental health issues, phenomenology, qualitative study, teachers

Citation: Liang M, Ho GWK and Christensen M (2024) Living in fear at the unpredictability of mental health issues in the classroom: a phenomenological study of secondary school teachers in encountering students with mental health issues. Front. Psychiatry 15:1367660. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2024.1367660

Received: 09 January 2024; Accepted: 30 April 2024; Published: 15 May 2024.

Reviewed by:

Copyright © 2024 Liang, Ho and Christensen. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) . The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

*Correspondence: Mining Liang, [email protected]

Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.