Lecture 2: Check for Understanding

1. Descriptive phenomenology focuses on:

a) How we begin to study the lifeworld. b) Explaining the causes of social problems. c) Creating new social theories. d) Personal self-expression.

2. The "challenge of pure description" refers to:

a) The difficulty of writing long essays. b) The need for advanced statistical skills. c) Our habit of quickly explaining and interpreting what we see. d) The absence of any observable phenomena.

3. "Bracketing" (epoché) is a technique for:

a) Proving your initial beliefs. b) Ignoring all sensory input. c) Immediately judging what you observe. d) Temporarily setting aside assumptions and judgments.

4. Which of the following is characteristic of good phenomenological description?

a) Explaining the underlying causes. b) Using concrete language and avoiding interpretation. c) Focusing on the researcher's feelings. d) Drawing immediate conclusions about meaning.

5. Premature explanation is dangerous because it:

a) Makes the research too long. b) Distorts experience and replaces observation with assumptions. c) Prevents the researcher from being creative. d) Is always factually incorrect.