4. Variation in understandings of structural relationships in phenomenography

The notion of ‘structure’ and ‘structural relationships’ in phenomenography is perhaps the most distinctive and educationally useful part of the methodology. But it is also the most difficult and commonly misunderstood part. In order to clarify what we need to notice about the phenomenographic notion of structure and structural relationships to develop a sophisticated understanding of it, the phenomenographic study of phenomenography initially described in Chapter 3 continues in this chapter. In Chapter 4, I describe five qualitatively different ways of understanding structural relationships in phenomenography, and discuss associated implications for phenomenographic research practice and outcomes.

Contributors

Gerlese S. Åkerlind

(author)

Professor Emerita at Australian National University

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3937-7732

Gerlese Åkerlind, PhD, is a professor emerita at the Australian National University (ANU). She was previously Director of the Centre for Educational Development and Academic Methods at the ANU, Director of the Teaching and Learning Centre at the University of Canberra, and a long-term honorary Research Associate of the Oxford Learning Institute at Oxford University. Gerlese has particular expertise in the phenomenographic research tradition, with numerous publications on phenomenographic theory and methods. In addition, her empirical research has primarily used phenomenographic methods, investigating the nature of academic practice, including university teaching, research, research supervision and academic development.