In qualitative phenomenological research, lived experience refers to a representation of the

experience Experience refers to conscious events in general, more specifically to perceptions, or to the practical knowledge and familiarity that is produced by these conscious processes. Understood as a conscious event in the widest sense, experience involv ...

s and choices of a given person, and the knowledge that they gain from these experiences and choices. It is a category of qualitative research together with those that focus on society and culture and those that focus on language and communication. In the philosophy of Wilhelm Dilthey, the

human sciences Human science (or human sciences in the plural), also known as humanistic social science and moral science (or moral sciences), studies the philosophical, biological, social, and cultural aspects of human life. Human science aims to expand our ...

are based on lived experience, which makes them fundamentally different from the

natural sciences Natural science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer review and repeatab ...

, which are considered to be based on scientific experiences. 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. In phenomenological research, lived experiences are the main object of study, but the goal of such research is not to understand individuals' lived experiences as facts, but to determine the understandable meaning of such experiences. In addition lived experience is not about reflecting on an experience while living through it but is recollective, where experience is reflected on after it has passed or lived through. The term dates back to the 19th century, but its use has increased greatly in recent decades. The concept has been criticised as solipsistic and redundant.https://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/magazine/leith-on-language-lived-experience

References

Phenomenological methodology Qualitative research {{Philosophy-stub