Phenomenology Glossary
Phenomenology:
(1) A description of the givens of immediate experience. (2) An attempt to
capture experience in process
as lived, through descriptive analysis. (3) A method of knowing that
"begins with the things themselves, that tries to find a 'first opening'
on the world free aof our
perceptions and
interpretations, together with a methodology for reducing the interference of
our preconceptions. (4) A method of learning about another person by listing to
their descriptions of
what their subjective world is
like for them, together with anb attempt to understand this in their own terms
as fully as possible, free of our preconceptions and interferences.
Phenomenology is the act of trying to experience the total reality of the
consciousness of someone who experiences his or her world in a certain place
and time.
Phenomenology has roots in the
greek word "phenesti," which means to show forth, bringing into the
light of day. In traditional orthodox natural science,, the more one pursues
the nature of something, the more one is taken away from what one experiences,
from one's own being, to abstractions and formulations. Everything gets captured and conceptualized,
turned by the mind into something other than what it actually is, one or two
steps removed from direct unfiltered experience. Because of our cultural filter
systems, we may not always be getting a clear reception of actual experience.
Phenomenologies see scientific, quantitative analysis as only one possible
avenue to the interpretation of phenomena, and instead stress qualitative
research. Rollo May says, "Phenomenology is the science that makes the
bridge between nature and the world and our personal immediate
experience." Phenomenology strives not to gain power or control over
nature or the mind, but to work holistically with mind and nature. Reality
which gives birth to the appearances, returns things to themselves.
Becoming:
existence is seldom static; it is always in the process of becoming something
new, of transcending itself, with the goal of fulfilling one's possibilities.
Being‑in‑the‑world: Acting with awareness, responsibility, and
freedom within a context of given world‑conditions.
"Bracketing": Suspending, setting aside our biases, everyday understandings,
theories, beliefs,
habitual modes of thought, and judgments. For example, analyses of
cause and effect must be bracketed in
order to understand the phenomenon as it shows itself. Part of the larger
process of epocheŽ.
Closed and open attitudes: Closed: an approach of constant narrowing or zeroing in on a
phenomenon. Open: Consists of
gaps as well as "filled" sections, and we remain open to notice what
happens and evolves.
Descriptive approach: describing our behavior and experience as
we observe and experience it.
Dialogical phenomenology:
oral interview of the co‑researcher, and involving the co‑researcher
in thematizing during the interview.
Empirical phenomenology: The researcher examines descriptions written by the co‑researcher.
Engaged attitude:
Both researcher and co‑researcher are engaged in attitudes and b ehavior
that reflect their involvement in the world.
EpocheŽ:
Learning to look at things in a way such that we see only what stands before
our eyes, only what we can describe and
define. This attempt to suspend any and all beliefs as we observe
and listen is an attempt to minimize interpretation.
Existentials:
basic structures which comprise the ground of existence, like space, time,
motion relation, embodiment.
Facticity: a
belief in factual characteristics of real objects . In phenomenology, by
bracketing our facticity,l we
transfer our focus from assumed things "out there" to our experience.
Intentionality:
consciousness actively reaches out toward the object in a directed way. It
provides a structure which gives experience meaning.
Introspection: a
method of inner observation which involves assuming an external viewpoint
toward oneself, stating the facts about oneself as others might if they could
observe what the introspector observes.
Intersubjectivity:
The process of several, or many people, coming to know a common phenomenon,
each through his or her subjective experience.
Life‑world (lebenswelt): the world as we live in and experience it
Meaning: lies in
the relationship between a person and his or her world of objects
Noema: the
appearance of an object or or item as the perceiving subject apprehends it.
Noetic:
harboring a meaning or meanings of some sort.
Noesis: How
beliefs are acquired; how it is that we are experiencing what we are
experiencing.
Objectivism:
positing the procedures of the natural sciences as THE procedures for
establishing objectivity and conducting science.
Ontology: The
study of our mode and process of existing in the world
Phenomenological reduction: (1) an attempt to suspend the observer's viewpoint. (2) Hearing
another person's reality and
focusing on the central, dominant, or recurring themes which represent the
essential qualities or meanings of that person's experience.
Subjectivity :
Recognizing that I can only apprehend you from an inherently subjective
position,
modified by such devices as
epoche, bracketing, and an intention to understand you in your terms. It is
impossible, phenomenologists hold, to truly understand another's experience
objectively. But one of the dangers of phenomenology is its inherent
subjectivity.
Themes: layers
of meaning which are less basic than existentials, but are often related to the
latter.
Umwelt, mitvelt, & eigenwelt: Umwelt: biological or physical surroundings or landscape; Mitwelt:
the human environment; Eigenwelt: the person himself or herself, including the
body.
verstehen (German for "understanding") through influence and
empathy people can understand each other. Experience is not just hidden inside
the person, but appears in the words, on our faces, and in our language.
World‑design:
the all‑encompassing pattern of a person's mode of being in the world.