Phenomenography — an avant-garde approach to extend the psychology methodological repertoire

Phenomenography was initially developed as a qualitative response to the limitations of quantitative approaches to higher education research. Following on its success in deepening understanding of higher education and improving teaching and learning strategies, phenomenography has been applied in research in various fields, including nursing, health care, human resource and business management, physiotherapy, psychiatric care, guidance and career counselling, and sport science. However, this approach is virtually nonexistent in psychology research and is not mentioned in any of the prominent psychology texts the authors have read. This article provides qualitative psychology researchers with an introduction to the ontology, epistemology, and methods of phenomenography and advocates for its acceptance into the psychology methodological repertoire.