Existential-phenomenological Analysis Research Articles

Typology of philosophical worldviews: pantheism and its varieties

The article is a continuation of the publication in which the authors proposed the identification of three types in the diversity of philosophical worldviews (naturalistic, pantheistic and transcendental), and also analyzed the first type. In this study, by analogy with the naturalistic worldview, the pantheistic worldview is considered for the adequacy of solving cardinal philosophical problems in it: the existence of the Absolute, the root cause of the universe and the source of movement, theodicy, the possibility of substantiating morality and humanism. According to the authors, unlike adherents of naturalism, which is unable to answer cardinal philosophical questions based on the concept of matter, pantheistic thinkers were fully aware of the necessity and inevitability of thinking about the Absolute. At the same time, it is pointed out that the Absolute of pantheism is not absolute, since it is not perfection. Because of this, within the framework of this worldview, theodicy is impossible (evil is forced to be placed in the Absolute itself), as well as the justification of freedom, without which, in turn, it is impossible to justify morality. The philosophical and methodological basis of the research is the phenomenological approach, according to which the cognitive intention should ensure the achievement of direct contact with an object that has a genuine essence, which makes it possible to fully reveal its existential content. The elements of scientific novelty are possessed not only by the conceptualization of types of philosophical worldviews carried out in a series of articles, but also by the author's division of pantheism into types: naturalistic (God in nature: B. Spinoza), genotheistic ("germination" of God into the world: Empedocles), mystical or panentheism (nature in God: F. Schelling, S. L. Frank), dynamic or dialectical (G. Hegel), existential (M. Heidegger). It is noted that with rare exceptions, Russian metaphysical thought, which developed within the framework of V. Solovyov's philosophy of unity, which was strongly influenced by the philosophical constructions of G. Hegel and F. Schelling, could not overcome the boundaries of panentheism and reach a worldview of a transcendent type, recognizing the transcendent as an ontological category and carrying out transcendence to it, relying on it, which can be to define it as spiritual cognition, the existential-phenomenological analysis of which is planned to be carried out in the next publication.

Exploring the Effects of School-ground Design upon Students' Bullying in Cairo, Egypt

There have been acknowledgments of the potential impact of the physical setting on how children behave in several contexts. School as an environment, where children spend most of their time throughout the year, can affect how they behave in certain situations. Bullying has been highlighted as one of the most prevailing problems occurring in schools, which predominantly takes place in school playgrounds. This study aims to identify how the school playground design attributes can influence bullying amongst school students. Towards this objective, the study adopts a qualitative approach undergoing two phases. The first phase is an analysis of the relevant literature to provide an understanding of bullying, and how it occurs in the school playground, as well as the playground design attributes that promote bullying. The second phase is an ethnographic and existential-phenomenological analysis of purpose-designed semi-structured interviews, and field observations carried out in Cairene schools to fully grasp the different bullying patterns associated with playground spaces. These interviews occurred in the spring of 2020 in 4 schools represented by school principals and teachers responsible for playground supervision. Analyses revealed that bullying occurs mostly in school playgrounds. Different themes emerged for how the school playground spaces, their design, and the absence/ presence of certain features contribute to bullying, aggression, and safety features among students. The study concluded that the following factors should be considered while designing a school playground: 1) assessing the principals’ and teachers’ understanding of bullying, 2) evaluating the playground design features, and 3) promoting more active play. The main goal of the research is to contribute to shedding the light on the relationship between school playground design, and how it exacerbates the bullying phenomenon in schools. The limitations included were being banned from any interactions between the researcher and the students and prohibited taking any footage of the playground during recess.

Cultural-historical models of verification the effectiveness of psychotherapy

The article analyses the leading trends and methods used in studies on the efficiency of psychotherapy from the cultural-historical perspective. The article stresses that experimental-examining methods are applied for verification of psycho­therapeutic effects within the classical approach; this approach is represented by meta-analyzes, i.e. a statistical combination of data from several studies. The main effects of cognitive-behavioral therapy were confirmed by this way. During the crisis of modernism, hermeneutic methods and the non-classical approaches to evaluate the psychotherapy results became popular; they were used primarily for psychodynamic therapies. During the early postmodern period, the post-non-classical approach to psychotherapy evaluation was developed; here, existential-phenomenological analysis of psychotherapeutic cases was used. The linguistic turn in late postmodern psychotherapy was based on various discursive analyses and, first of all, the intent-analysis. In addition, narrative analysis could be presented as a verbalized triangular model that takes into account deep intentions and the social context of a client’s life. The latest era of meta-modernism proposes a new turn to performance in psychotherapy, when quantitative and qualitative methods testing psychotherapy efficiency are united and used flexibly, as well as the methods of artistic and aesthetic development of reality are applied in the form of art therapy and involved into result evaluation.

예비유아교사의 경험을 통한 정체성 형성의 의미 탐구

Objectives This study investigated the meaning of identity formation as early childhood teachers through the experiences of preliminary early childhood teachers.
 Methods Six preliminary early childhood teachers enrolled at universities located in Seoul and Gyeonggi-province were selected as research participants, and in-depth interviews were conducted to understand their experiences without exaggeration. Based thereon, Giorgi's “existential phenomenological analysis” was used to understand the meaning of lived experiences of preliminary early childhood teachers more concretely and reveal the meaning of it.
 Results Preliminary early childhood teachers were forming their identity through: first, the memories of their own childhood and early childhood teachers, second, self-esteem and values to pursue that are formed based on personal beliefs as early childhood teachers, and third, the experiences of learning and practice encountered during the preparation process of becoming preliminary early childhood teachers.
 Conclusions Time spent as preliminary early childhood teachers is important in order to form a positive early childhood teacher identity. In addition, it is necessary to provide various opportunities for teachers to talk to each other about the image and meaning of early childhood teachers from their own experiences. Furthermore, it is important to enhance the understanding of the field by strengthening practical training. It is also necessary to bring them to a sense of conviction that they are professionals by striving to improve the low social awareness on early childhood teachers, improving the working environment, and providing appropriate salaries.

The Writing of Wills for Death Experience Activities as the Practice of the Meaning for Life of College Students: an Existential Phenomenological Analysis

<p>研究探討（1）死亡逼近下的感受、（2）遺囑之生命意義實踐及（3）因死而生意義實踐之經驗結構。以存在現象學方法分析26份專四生參與死亡體驗活動所產生的遺囑與心得。遺囑內容呈現出兩結果、兩世界、兩面向之生命意義實踐：（1）完成意義實踐：完成此世存有，安頓此世自己（完成自我夢想與自我修練）、安頓此世人倫（完成或延續對父母之感謝、感恩和報恩，對朋友、戀人與手足之相互關懷；及時解開心結、完成感恩與彌補愧疚）、投入死後世界（安頓自己後事與修行；跨越生死兩界延續人倫）。（2）未完成意義實踐：此世遺憾（未能安頓自己－人生沒目標；）（未能安頓人倫－沒完整的家）、投入死後世界（寄望來生能安頓自己）。心得呈現出避開死與接受死兩趨向，前者僅部分出現因死而轉的意義實踐，後者全部出現。整體活動使人深刻體驗存有之可畏，繼而出現自我在苦中之移動，啟動生命意義轉化，展開向生向死之雙重意義實踐，承擔起自我命運與他人之苦的責任。本研究據此提出「因死與苦而生成之意義實踐：為我與為他之雙重開展」模式，並建議後續研究進一步具體化與精緻化。</p> <p> </p><p>The purpose of this study is to explore (a) feelings when facing death, (b) meanings practice for life, and (c) the experiential structure of the meaning practice induced by death. This study adopts the existential phenomenological approach to analyze wills and reflection-after-participation transcripts written by twenty-six college students who participated in an experiential activity of facing-death.</p> <p> The content of will transcripts indicates the practice of three dimensions with dual characteristics when the participants faced death: outcome (meaning transformation or not), worlds (being-in-this-life-world and the post-death world), and subjects (self and others). (1) Participants who presented the fulfillment of meaning conversion tried to establish harmony in relations not only with the two subjects but also in the two worlds. For themselves in being-in-this-life-world, participants arranged to care for themselves by fulfilling dreams and practicing self-improvement. Meanwhile, for others, practices adopted to care for persons who have had in this life world are as follows: being grateful for parents and paying a debt of gratitude; giving and enjoying mutual caring between siblings, friends, and lovers; and expressing apologies or regrets to those who have experienced harm and then tried to restore relationships. As for the post-death world, practices taken to deal with both the two subjects and the two worlds include making plans of their own funeral, afterlife spiritual practice, and arrangement of care for others across the worlds of life and death. (2) Individuals who failed to present thoughts related to meaning transformation showed regrets both for their lives and for relationships with others in being-in-this-life-world. Nevertheless, they still remained a glimmer of hope in the afterlife, such as finding their own goals of life in the afterlife. The results of reflection transcripts revealed two approaches to death: acceptance and avoidance. All individuals accepting death presented meaning transformation; however, only part of death-avoidance individuals described the transformation.</p> <p> In sum, the facing-death activity facilitates individuals to start a journal of the transformation of meaning for life: Participants profoundly experienced the awe of existence and the emerged suffering. Their selves are immersed in and moving among multiple modes of suffering. Individuals then start to unfold the meanings and started practices of life toward both the two subjects and the two worlds. Individuals assume responsibilities for their own life and others’ suffering in harmony with their expectations.</p> <p> This study proposed a theoretical model based on research findings—the model of the meaning practice induced by facing death and suffering: A dual unfolding for oneself and others. It is recommended that the applications of this study and follow-up research are needed to enrich and refine the model.</p> <p> </p>

Phenomenology of offense

Introduction.Everyone tends to deal with offense sometimes in his/her own life, and understanding of this phenomenon may be classified as an “eternal” philosophical issue. However, the current situation creates conditions for the massiveization of its experiencing and for the new dangerous mindsets, which darken individual and social being. Despite the need for a holistic understanding, in the scientific literature, offenseis studied rather fragmentarily, the definitions appear to be contradictory, reflecting diverse aspects, but not grasping the uniform ground of the phenomenon. Hence an urgent task consists in searching for the offense essential core, which does not depend on concrete manifestations, and, on this basis, in tracing a strategy for overcoming this destructive feeling.Materials and Methods.Since the aim is to understand the essence of offense as a phenomenon of human being, the existential-phenomenological approach seems to be the most productive for this study. In contrast to the abstract-theoretical and reductionist, this methodology allows analyzing the phenomenon in its entirety and paradoxicality. Also it helps to outline the ways to deal with offense through the analysis of its real manifestations, of its experiencing and understanding by individuals “from within” the concrete situations.Results. Phenomenological analysis of offense shows that it is a distorted (wrong) vision of the human “I” either byOther(s), or byhim-/herself. Offense is experienced as a painful dissonance between the represented/desired and the real state of affairs, therefore its source may be found entirely in the individual imagination, and its “vector” appears to be ultimately directed towards self-destruction. Even being inflicted from the outside, the offense must pass into the plane of personal representations in order to become such, threatening the integrity of a person’s “worldview”. In this regard, the offense should be opposed to the understanding of “the own” as a unique individual existential ground, unapproachable for the Other. The practice of “accepting” is helpful: to return to the present (real) as it is; to struggle with unproductive fears and desires; to aware of the purpose of the own existence as self-realization.Discussion and Conclusions.An existential-phenomenological analysis of offense was carried out; life examples were used to highlight its similarities and differences with close phenomena of envy, hatred, resentment, etc.; its ontological grounds and opposite phenomena were studied to trace possible ways to overcome this destructive feeling.

Perceptions and meanings of living with Parkinson’s disease: an account of caregivers lived experiences

ABSTRACT Purpose: Current study looked into caregiving process of those dealing with family members suffering from Parkinson’s disease, within the changing social milieu in India. It aimed to understand the experiential and existential impact on the lifeworld of caregivers. Method: Narrative interviews of 10 female caregivers referred by neurologists were gathered. Employing Existential Phenomenological Analysis, the caregiver experiences were understood phenomenologically within an existential framework, six themes were generated. Results: Themes were – Becoming a caregiver: Undertaking immeasurable and unrelenting responsibilities; Rising patient-hood of one’s family member: pain of losing the person in the patient; Experience of altered temporality: living in pain with the uncertainty and duration of the disease; Encountering meaninglessness: dwindling faith in principles of life; Existing as a “Being For” and not “Being With”: a caregiver’s self-estrangement and blurring of Identity and lastly Self-Preservation through brief moments of respite: coping with caregiving. Conclusion: The study illuminated how caregiving is experienced by an individual at a process and psychic level by shedding light on the conflicts, concerns and exhaustions endured by them. Adopting an existential approach in healthcare setups can aid in moving closer to felt experiences of these caregivers and in developing integrative and meaningful interventions for enhancing their well-being.

The experience and meaning of aging with multiple sclerosis: An existential phenomenological approach

ObjectivesOver the past 3 decades there have been significant advances in the development of pharmaceutical and rehabilitative treatments for persons with multiple sclerosis (MS), such that life expectancy is continuing to increase. Whilst these advancements are exciting, there are also concerns and unknowns regarding what it is like to age with MS. The objectives of this research were to explore the lived experiences and meaning of aging in conjunction with having MS. MethodsSemi-structured interviews with 40 persons with MS over 60 years were conducted. Thereafter data were subject to an existential phenomenological analysis. ResultsFour different ways were discussed with regards to embodied experiences of aging with MS: aging makes MS worse; MS makes aging worse; aging makes MS better; and MS makes aging better. DiscussionThis research highlighted the complexity of aging with MS and the various of ways persons over 60 with MS experience and interpret this phenomenon.

От зова совести к голосу друга в философии М. Хайдеггера и Х. Арендт

The problem of conscience is not reduced to ethical problematics and constitutes a major research area of modern ontology, which considers the problems of subject’s existence, consciousness, selfhood and its structure. The authors compare M. Heidegger’s existential-phenomenological analysis of conscience and interpretation of conscience in H. Arendt’s philosophy. The comparison of these approaches shows that involvement initially postulated in the conception of conscience does not mean commitment to ethical values or to a society represented as a multitude of abstract others but rather empathy for the Other personified in the image of a close friend. The thesis that friendly dialogue is an essential aspect of conscience is postulated.

Hell is other people? An existential-phenomenological analysis of the local gaze in tourism

The “Gaze” is a complex and overarching phenomenon comprised of diverse “Gazers” and “Gazees”. This paper adopts an existential-phenomenological perspective to understand tourists’ lived experiences of being gazed upon by local people. Based on thirty experiences collected from interviews with ten participants, we show that experiencing the “Local Gaze” exposes the tourist as Sartrean “Tourist-esque”: an inauthentic experiencer of positivity, discrimination, alienation and self-consciousness. Moments of true human connections are at best ephemeral. Through an existentialist lens, the study questions the possibility of authentic host-guest relationship in tourism and argues that to maintain hopes for an authentic relationship, the concepts of “Gaze” and – perhaps even of “Tourism” – need to be transcended.

Enacted Narrative and Recovery: An Existential Analysis Based on, Hermeneutic- Phenomenological Interpretation

Background: In a European funded, international mental health nursing educational project (called eMenthe), it was found that there is a need for a conceptual framework that encompasses key concepts related to emotional intelligence to support mental health nurses in recovery-oriented care. Objectives: How to ground this conceptual framework in hermeneutic phenomenology. This framework may provide nurses with the concepts for an existential phenomenological analysis of the service user’s lived experiences. The focus of this paper is on discussing how these experiences get translated through narrative. Research design: A discursive argument is developed that links recovery-oriented care with mental health nursing by focusing on narrative, hope and existential topics of identity formation and self-representation. Ethical considerations: There is a strong focus on moral aspects how nurses can help service users to tell a more authentic narrative. Findings: Narrative is seen as the medium and the vehicle by which service users frame new perspectives and develop hope for a better life. The narrative is connected with an existential analysis of important life themes. Conclusion: Two models (a hermeneuticphenomenological and a moral one) are combined to create an outline of how nurses can facilitate and support service users in the telling of an empowered (recovery) narrative.

Exploring the Schizoid Defense of the Closet Through the Existential–Phenomenology of R. D. Laing

This article applies the existential–phenomenological analysis of schizoid persons in R. D. Laing’s The Divided Self to the phenomenology of closeted gay individuals, as described by various autoethnographies and memoirs about the lived experience of being in the closet. It explores how schizoid and closeted gay individuals employ similar defenses and suffer similar traumas as they attempt to survive within a persecutory social world. The purpose of this comparison is to help psychologists gain understanding of what being-in-the-world is like for members of a marginalized population who lack a world in which it is safe to really be. Psychologists are thereby invited to question mainstream assumptions about clinical diagnoses and to consider reframing individual psychopathology as social pathology, particularly among patients whose psychic distress may be symptomatic of the daily trauma of trying to conform to hostile sociocultural contexts that enforce oppressive social norms.

Parkour as acrobatics: an existential phenomenological study of movement in parkour

The aim of this paper is to pursue a novel understanding of parkour. Through an existential phenomenological analysis based on the phenomenology of embodiment and spatiality found in Merleau-Ponty and drawing on Sloterdijk’s philosophical account of acrobatics, we will examine the bodily experience of practitioners in parkour and analyse their process of practising and performing tricks as an acrobatic movement phenomenon. The practitioners use three central terms to describe this process: challenge, break and clean. We use these terms to frame the analysis of how the practitioners are bodily related to what is not yet possible (challenge), how they repeat towards making new tricks possible (break) and how they perfect their bodily experience of moving (clean). Parkour as acrobatics describes the circular and vertical process of revising and refining one’s bodily relation to the world, through which practitioners are continuously attracted to new challenging moves and carve out new possible movements for themselves and others.

An Existential-Phenomenological Investigation of the Experience of Gay Men Acknowledging to Themselves that They are Attracted to Other Men

There are an abundance of studies regarding the development of sexual identity and sexual orientation that have served as the foundational underpinnings for exploring sexual orientation development. To date, however, findings from these studies have failed to constitute a significant resource for understanding the gay man’s experience of acknowledging to himself that he is attracted to other men. By identifying the essential constituents of this experience, this existential-phenomenological study provides a starting point for further exploration. Written narrative accounts were obtained from seven men who identified sexually as gay and a method of existential-phenomenological analysis was applied to reveal the prereflective constituents of the experience described. The analysis yielded a new perspective on the experience of gay men and their attraction to other men that has the capacity to change the way practising clinicians, educators, counsellors and future researchers treat and understand the Queer community.

Nishitani on Emptiness and Historical Consciousness

This essay focuses on Nishitani Keiji’s 西谷啟治 early and late thinking, in the discourse on world history and modernity during wartime and the postwar meditation on emptiness and historicity in Religion and Nothingness. Following the first part of the analysis, I will trace Nishitani’s critical indebtedness to Heidegger’s existential-phenomenological analysis of historicity in Being and Time, and thereby analyze how Nishitani attempts to solve the aporia of modernity by recourse to the Buddhist doctrine of emptiness. The essay will conclude with some critical remarks that discern the limits and hidden dangers in Nishitani’s philosophical project.

Running, Being, and Beijing—An Existential Exploration of a Runner Identity

In this research, we explore the negotiation of a conflicted runner identity in a Finnish runner’s short-term migration to Beijing, China. We examine the historical and cultural construction of the runner identity and discuss the current discourses that constitute the modern runner subjectivities. From there, we continue with a Heideggerian existential-phenomenological analysis of the “boundary situation” when the project of competitive running is challenged due to environmental and cultural barriers in the migration. Our empirical inquiry is based on the first author’s autoethnographic account, written during and shortly after her 10-week stay in Beijing in March–June 2011. Two main themes, the loss of control and isolation, are examined, and an existential interpretation is paired with insight from Buddhist psychology. Finally, we conclude with implications for future research in sport and migration studies as well as practical considerations for the use of autoethnography in psychological research and practice.

Embodiment of discrimination and overseas nurses’ career progression

To examine empirically and in-depth how discriminatory attitudes and practices are experienced by overseas nurses and how the discrimination may affect their well-being and career progression and, furthermore, to apply the theoretical perspective of embodiment in understanding these processes. The UK healthcare sector has, in recent years, relied on overseas-trained professionals to fill up vacancies in nursing and other professions. Research shows that overseas nurses claim that their UK colleagues, managers and patients express discriminatory, racist and xenophobic attitudes. The paper provides an existential phenomenological analysis of in-depth interviews with two overseas nurses. The data are drawn from a study of overseas-trained healthcare workers' experiences working and living in the UK. The two cases have been purposively selected to provide an illumination and discussion of personal experiences with discrimination, how individuals may respond to these and how their professional career is affected. Discrimination towards migrant workers may, at times, be experienced as 'blatant racism' or, in more subtle forms, as 'aversive racism'. It is demonstrated how such discrimination may impact on the afflicted person's sense of self, suggesting a theoretical model of the embodiment of discrimination. Discrimination not only works at an interpersonal and institutional level, but is a form of 'symbolic violence' that may be internalized to affect the person's 'habitus'; it can be resisted through meaning-making activity that explains and hence objectifies and embodies the experience in a way that allows individuals to positively influence their situation through agency. This article details how social and institutionalized discrimination in the UK healthcare sector may be internalized by overseas workers and affects their professional careers. The study allows a theoretical reflection on the damage inflicted by discrimination, and it may contribute to the eradication of discriminatory practices and the development of necessary support and monitoring mechanisms.

MEANINGS OF DEATH SEEN THROUGH THE LENS OF GRIEVING

Through the lens of grief we can discern many meanings of death, human existence, suffering, the life of the deceased, the life of the mourner, and love. This essay summarizes what the author, in part inspired by Herman Feifel, has learned about such meanings in nearly three decades of thinking, teaching, and writing about grieving as an active response to what happens in bereavement and the suffering that loss entails. It recasts his rethinking of grief within the broad categories of philosophical reflection, including meta-theory and philosophy of science, conceptual analysis, existential–phenomenological analysis, philosophy of mind, epistemology, metaphysics, and ethics.

An Existential-Phenomenology of Crack Cocaine Abuse

This paper explores the human significance of crack cocaine abuse by submitting its manifestation (logos) to existential-phenomenological analysis. The author conducted over fifty, first-hand interviews of recovering and active crack cocaine abusers toward disclosing the meaning of his to-be.What is revealed is the way the addiction reacts upon the with-structure of existence. Active crack cocaine addiction is being-high-and-free-of-craving. The singularity of this event eclipses the interhuman significance that substantially constitutes concern, as the meaning and Being of There-being, and radicalizes existence such that the “other” is unceasingly projected as a means to free transcendence. The crack abuser forsakes the existentials being-with and There-being-with-others, ways of to-be that accommodate and gear into the existence of “others,” to being-with-crack, a way of Being that is exclusively for the sake of the dependent’s “self.”

The intertwining of body, self and world: A phenomenological study of living with recently-diagnosed multiple sclerosis

AbstractThis paper describes the lifeworld of one individual, Ann, in an attempt to elucidate the existential impact of early stage multiple sclerosis. Drawing on Ann's own reflections captured in a relatively unstructured interview, I construct a narrative around her first year of living with the diagnosis. Then, existential-phenomenological analysis reveals how Ann's life - lived in and through a particular body and lifeworld context - is disrupted. The unity between her body and self can no longer be taken for granted. The existential possibilities inherent in her lived body are diminished and have to be renegotiated. Her sense of identity, project, relations with others and present/future plans are threatened. Ann's illness is encountered in the context of her life activities and relationships. This is the intertwining of body, self and world. To live with multiple sclerosis is to experience a global sense of disorder - a disorder which incorporates a changed relation with one's body, a transformation in the surrounding world, a threat to the self, and a change in one's relation to others.