ABSTRACT
While there exist exemplary texts on phenomenological research, methods to explore the lived experiences of infants, children, and adults, who are unable to describe and reflect on their own experiences, have received limited attention. Indeed, the life of a newborn is a paradigm case for phenomenological human science inquiry. Infancy, from the Latin infantem, means “not able to speak.” In this chapter, phenomenology is introduced as a form of inquiry focused on exploring the human experience of being-in-the-world, recognizing that our lived through experiences may be subtle and elusive, ambiguous and complex. Key phenomenological notions such as lived experience, subjectivity, and intersubjectivity are introduced with the intent of examining the meaning interpretations of observational accounts of infant behavior. As well, some methodological issues are considered for using experimental observations or other such findings of empirical research in service of phenomenological inquiry.
