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Embodiment in Research Practices

The Body in Qualitative Research

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Creative Spaces for Qualitative Researching

Abstract

The purpose of this chapter is to inquire into how attention to embodiment can enhance qualitative research practices. The chapter begins with an overview of the notion of embodiment from a phenomenological perspective. This is followed by an examination of three dimensions of embodiment – the body as a path to access the world, the body’s skilled intelligence, and the body’s intercorporeality – and a consideration of the implications for research practices. The chapter draws on examples from the literature, and from Anna’s doctoral research, “the End-of-Life study” (Park Lala & Kinsella, in press a,b), a phenomenological study that investigates what people do (occupations) at end-of-life.

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Lala, A.P., Kinsella, E.A. (2011). Embodiment in Research Practices. In: Higgs, J., Titchen, A., Horsfall, D., Bridges, D. (eds) Creative Spaces for Qualitative Researching. Practice, Education, Work and Society, vol 5. SensePublishers. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-6091-761-5_8

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