Gadamer's philosophy of interpretation: Creative dialogue among researchers of diverse professional and personal backgrounds
Location
1054
Format Type
Plenary
Format Type
Panel
Start Date
January 2019
End Date
January 2019
Abstract
Hans-Georg Gadamer’s (1976) primary focus was on the concept of understanding, which he posited could be achieved through four key philosophical constructs: prejudice, the hermeneutic circle, dialogue, and fusion of horizons (Koch, 1996; Matheson, 2009). The hermeneutic experience, according to Gadamer, takes place within a framework of multiple voices. This presentation will consist of a dialogue among three researchers of very diverse backgrounds (cultural, academic, professional) who collaborated on a research project about the experiences of adults whose fathers died prior to their birth. We attempted to expand the boundaries of the interpretative framework during the various stages of the textual analysis to incorporate our very different interpretive stances. It is the questions, says Gadamer (1981), that are of crucial importance, not the answers, which are only a resting place on the way. Since every interpretive endeavor is limited and raises questions that spur further investigations, we will describe the simultaneous entrances and exits in a number of interpretive circles: researchers-text, colleague-supervisor-student, interviewer-research participants. Different research partnership positionings, contracts, dialogues, and deadlocks that we experienced will be illustrated and conceptualized.
Keywords
Hermenuetics, qualitative analysis, textual interpretation, researcher diversity
Gadamer's philosophy of interpretation: Creative dialogue among researchers of diverse professional and personal backgrounds
1054
Hans-Georg Gadamer’s (1976) primary focus was on the concept of understanding, which he posited could be achieved through four key philosophical constructs: prejudice, the hermeneutic circle, dialogue, and fusion of horizons (Koch, 1996; Matheson, 2009). The hermeneutic experience, according to Gadamer, takes place within a framework of multiple voices. This presentation will consist of a dialogue among three researchers of very diverse backgrounds (cultural, academic, professional) who collaborated on a research project about the experiences of adults whose fathers died prior to their birth. We attempted to expand the boundaries of the interpretative framework during the various stages of the textual analysis to incorporate our very different interpretive stances. It is the questions, says Gadamer (1981), that are of crucial importance, not the answers, which are only a resting place on the way. Since every interpretive endeavor is limited and raises questions that spur further investigations, we will describe the simultaneous entrances and exits in a number of interpretive circles: researchers-text, colleague-supervisor-student, interviewer-research participants. Different research partnership positionings, contracts, dialogues, and deadlocks that we experienced will be illustrated and conceptualized.
Comments
Breakout Session G