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Using Phenomenology:
Understanding group dynamics.
EDUC867
Research Methodology Presentation
By Jia Fei
January, 2010
My Study Design
Understanding Group Dynamics: Examining the influence
of proximity and contact on group interaction.
o
Objective: My study intends to understand and describe
students’ individual experience in group interaction with
respect to proximity and contact.
o
Research Paradigm--Interpretivism
I am not seeking for objective truth in group interaction.
Instead, I am interested in how students interpret their
experience in group interaction. Especially, how
students’ feelings and motivations are affected by
factors like proximity and contact?
o
Methodology chosen – Phenomenology
Overview of phenomenology
o Definition: “Phenomenology is an approach which attempts
to understand the hidden meanings and the essence of an
experience together with how participants make sense of
these.” (Grbich 2007, p. 84).
o Strengths: Phenomenology is used to explore, describe,
document rich details of people’s experiences, especially
changes in feelings and experiences over time.
o Epistemological position -- Interpretivism.
Husserl : Experience is the source of all knowledge.
o Common Research methods: In-depth Interview as well as
observation and documentation.
Key Authors/Texts/Studies
Key Authors:
o Edmund Husserl; Martin Heidegger; Jean-Paul Sartre ;
Maurice Merleau-Ponty; Max van Manen
Key Texts/Studies:
o Husserl, E. (1999) The idea of phenomenology. Dordrecht, Boston :
Kluwer Academic.
o Heidegger, M. (2005) Introduction to phenomenological research.
Bloomington : Indiana University Press.
o Moustakas, C. (1994) Phenomenological Research Methods. Thousand
Oaks, CA: Sage.
o Geelan, D. & P. Taylor. (2001). Writing our lived experience: beyond the
(pale) hermeneutic? Electronic Journal of Science Education. 5 (4).
o Trujillo, J. (2004) An existential phenomenology of crack cocaine
abuse. Janus Head. 7(1). 167-187.
Key Concepts and Blind Spot
o Epoche -Bracketing
To put aside
presuppositions and start
with an open, unbiased
mind to understand the
phenomenon through the
informants’ eyes.
The process is called
phenomenological
reduction.
o Intentionality: “Direction
of experience towards
things in the world” (Gribch
2007, p.85), the property of
consciousness.
Blind Spot
o Debate on the possibility
and indispensability of
phenomenological
reduction (bracketing).
o Bracketing is difficult to
do in practice and unclear
to judge its completeness.
Why use phenomenology
I. Objective of the study:
To understand personal
experience and feelings
II. Methodology choice:
Phenomenology
III. Data Collection Methods:
Observation &
individual Interview
IV. Data Analysis Methods:
Phenomenological
Analysis
•My study is focused on participants’
interpretations of their experiences and
feelings. Phenomenology with a focus on
individual feelings can allow me to see the
group dynamics through the participants’
voices.
•Based on common phenomenological
methods, I will collect data via individual
interviews and videotaped observation. The
latter will allow me look into participants’
experience and help them recall details (their
feelings, actions, etc ) of their experiences.
•My data analysis is based on
phenomenological analysis procedures:
a. Start with bracketing;
b. Analysis of specific statements and themes;
c. A search for all possible meanings by
intuition, imagination and universal structures.
(Miller & Salkind, 2002).
Methodological Question
o Which form of phenomenology is the most suitable for
my study? (Existential phenomenology or transcendental
phenomenology?)
o If adopting existential phenomenology, how to deal with
intersubjectivity?
o How to “bracket” my prejudgments, beliefs and
previous habit of thinking? How do I know if I have done
a good job in bracketing?
o Is it necessary to reflect my personal experience in
group interaction? If yes, how do I connect it with
informants’ descriptions?