The Phenomenology of Research : The Construction of Meaning in Composition Research

Much composition research, even qualitative research, posits a world "out there" waiting to be understood and sees causes of phenomena without considering the subjective states of either researchers, study participants, or readers. Because ofthis attitude, many researchers consider social phenomena as "things" which coerce human behavior (Bogdan and Taylor 2). This "things-out-there-to-be-understood" attitude even affects much qualitative research. Supposedly, this objective distancing is the only way to understand "things." However, even when composition research is solely concerned with "things" which affect behavior or with a world which is "out there" waiting to be understood, the uncovered reality is still an intentional reality because objects acquire structure and meaning through the involved, intentional consciousness of researchers (Swingewood 270). Instead of asking "What does the social world mean to me the observer?" researchers should be asking questions such as the following: "What does the social world mean for the observed actor within this world?" "How did I, the observer, contribute to the creation of this meaning?" and "How will the readers of my research interpret my creation?" By asking these questions, we can begin to understand the process by which actors establish meaning. To explore further how the above questions affect our research, I want to briefly summarize the philosophical phenomenology of Edmund Husserl, show how it might inform composition research, and discuss how phenomenology affects both design and analysis in composition research.