lived experience

In phenomenological research, lived experiences are the main object of study,{{Cite book |last=Manen |first=Max van |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1LZmDAAAQBAJ |title=Researching Lived Experience, Second Edition: Human Science for an Action Sensitive Pedagogy |date=2016-06-16 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=9781315421049 |pages=9 |language=en}} but the goal of such research is not to understand individuals' lived experiences as facts, but to determine the understandable meaning of such experiences.{{Cite web |title=Phenomenological Research Guidelines |url=https://www.capilanou.ca/psychology/student-resources/research-guidelines/Phenomenological-Research-Guidelines/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170617013915/http://www.capilanou.ca/psychology/student-resources/research-guidelines/Correlational-Research-Guidelines/ |archive-date=2017-06-17 |access-date=2018-04-02 |website=Capilano University |language=en}}{{Cite journal |last1=Lindseth |first1=Anders |last2=Norberg |first2=Astrid |date=2004-06-01 |title=A phenomenological hermeneutical method for researching lived experience |journal=Scandinavian Journal of Caring Sciences |language=en |volume=18 |issue=2 |pages=145–153 |doi=10.1111/j.1471-6712.2004.00258.x |issn=1471-6712 |pmid=15147477 |doi-access=free}} In addition, lived experience is not about reflecting on an experience while living through it but is recollective, with a given experience being reflected on after it has passed or been lived through.{{Cite book |last1=Marshall |first1=Catherine |url=https://archive.org/details/qualitativeresea00patt/page/104 |title=Designing Qualitative Research |last2=Rossman |first2=Gretchen B. |date=2011 |publisher=SAGE |isbn=978-0761919711 |location=Thousand Oaks, California |pages=[https://archive.org/details/qualitativeresea00patt/page/104 104] |url-access=registration}}

In the philosophy of Wilhelm Dilthey, the human sciences are based on lived experience, which makes them fundamentally different from the natural sciences, which are considered to be based on scientific experiences.{{Cite encyclopedia |year=2004 |title=Lived experience |encyclopedia=The Blackwell Dictionary of Western Philosophy |publisher=Blackwell Publishing |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/book/10.1002/9780470996379 |access-date=2025-03-24 |editor-last=Bunnin |editor-first=Nicholas}} The concept can also be approached from the view that since every experience has both objective and subjective components, it is important for a researcher to understand all aspects of it.{{Cite book |last=Lichtman |first=Marilyn |title=Qualitative Research in Education: A User's Guide |date=2010 |publisher=SAGE |isbn=9781412970525 |location=Thousand Oaks, California |pages=79}}

Feminist epistemologies situate knowing in the lived experiences of each person. Because each person has a unique standpoint that is shaped by their lived experiences and identities, they have different understandings of how the world works, and what is "true" for one person may not be for another. While one standpoint does not have more value than another, feminist philosophers argue that people from marginalized groups tend to have their knowledge discredited, and their lived experiences become undervalued. As such, they believe efforts should be made to highlight and uplift their voices.{{Cite book |last=Poole |first=Monica |url=https://press.rebus.community/intro-to-phil-epistemology/chapter/feminist-epistemologies/ |title=Introduction to Philosophy: Epistemology |date=2021-08-16 |publisher=The Rebus Community |isbn=978-1-989014-26-4 |chapter=Feminist Epistemologies}}

In academia, lived experiences can be seen as valuable sources of information.{{Cite book |title=Re/centring lives and lived experience in education |date=2022 |publisher=Brill |isbn=978-90-04-52118-6 |editor-last=Lyle |editor-first=Ellyn |series=Bold visions in educational research |location=Leiden Boston}}{{Cite book |last=Higgins |first=Maree |url=https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=kh3oEAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PR11&dq=Disrupting+the+academy+with+lived+experience-led+knowledge&ots=Z8lDyODngp&sig=ZJLiRu0iCAXJqqhrrKAcoTMLgtc#v=onepage&q=Disrupting%20the%20academy%20with%20lived%20experience-led%20knowledge&f=false |title=Disrupting the Academy with Lived Experience-Led Knowledge: Decolonising and Disrupting the Academy |last2=Lenette |first2=Caroline |date=2024-03-27 |publisher=Policy Press |isbn=978-1-4473-6633-1 |language=en}} Instead of hiding behind ideals of neutrality, educators are encouraged to be vulnerable and center their humanity, embracing the differences between lived experiences and what they bring to new ways of knowing.

Treating lived experiences as important data points in academic research can also serve to decolonize traditional bodies of knowledge, centering the viewpoints and lives of people from a variety of backgrounds and expanding what we consider truth and thus respect different ways of knowing.{{Cite book |title=Re/centring lives and lived experience in education |date=2022 |publisher=Brill |isbn=978-90-04-52118-6 |editor-last=Lyle |editor-first=Ellyn |series=Bold visions in educational research |location=Leiden Boston}}{{Cite book |last=Higgins |first=Maree |url=https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=kh3oEAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PR11&dq=Disrupting+the+academy+with+lived+experience-led+knowledge&ots=Z8lDyODngp&sig=ZJLiRu0iCAXJqqhrrKAcoTMLgtc#v=onepage&q=Disrupting%20the%20academy%20with%20lived%20experience-led%20knowledge&f=false |title=Disrupting the Academy with Lived Experience-Led Knowledge: Decolonising and Disrupting the Academy |last2=Lenette |first2=Caroline |date=2024-03-27 |publisher=Policy Press |isbn=978-1-4473-6633-1 |language=en}} Similarly, critical disability theory argues that researchers should take the lived experience of people with norm-breaking functionality into account in their studies, further expanding the knowledge that can be gained from diverse perspectives.{{Cite journal |last=Mery Karlsson |first=Mikael |last2=and Rydström |first2=Jens |date=2023-10-02 |title=Crip Theory: A Useful Tool for Social Analysis |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/08038740.2023.2179108 |journal=NORA - Nordic Journal of Feminist and Gender Research |volume=31 |issue=4 |pages=395–410 |doi=10.1080/08038740.2023.2179108 |issn=0803-8740|doi-access=free }} In this way, accepting lived experiences into research is a form of social justice.

The term dates back to the 19th century, but its use has increased greatly in recent decades.{{Cite news |date=2021-12-10 |title=The Grammarphobia Blog: The life of a lived experience |url=https://www.grammarphobia.com/blog/2021/12/lived-experience.html |access-date=2022-07-31 |newspaper=Grammarphobia |language=en-US}}

{{Div col|content=* Anecdotal evidence

• Autoethnography
• Life satisfaction
• Lifeworld
• Lived experience leadership
• Qualia
• Subjective well-being
• Trauma-Informed Care
• Well-being
• Well-being contributing factors|colwidth=20em}}

{{Reflist}}

{{Emotion navbox|state=expanded}}

• {{Wikiquote-inline}}

Category:Phenomenological methodology

Category:Qualitative research