Promoting Rigorous Research by Examining Lived Experiences: A Review of Four Qualitative Traditions

Counseling researchers often use qualitative research methods to explore phenomena. In particular, lived experience designs seek to answer how, what, and why questions to develop meaning or theory from the context and the people who lived the phenomenon. We review four lived experience traditions: phenomenology, consensual qualitative research, narrative inquiry, and case study. The appropriateness of these methods for counseling research and guidelines for design are presented. Recommendations for reporting coherence among the essential elements of a qualitative design are discussed to strengthen counseling researchers' adherence to exemplary practices.