Dissertation
A Phenomenological Study of the Hidden Life of Teams
(1999)
Abstract
The purpose of this research is to understand the lived experienced of being in a team and to question what it means to experience teams. What is the nature of the lived experience of being in a team? What is being like in a team? What is it like to be in a team? What is the essence of the team experience?
The teams that are the focus of this study are part of a large geographically dispersed school district, the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA). DoDEA serves over 115,000 students, many who are ethnically and or linguistically diverse, in over 220 schools. The teams included in this research are central office staff responsible for the curriculum, instruction, and assessment/accountability systems in DoDEA. A total of three teams participated in this research, which constitutes close to 30 per cent of the central office staff responsible for the functions identified above.
In this study, I use Max van Manen's (1990) framework for human science research, that is, I use a hermeneutic phenomenological approach to explore the nature of teams by engaging in the following six research activities: a) turning to the nature of the lived experience: b) investigating the experience existentially; c) reflecting phenomenologically on the experience; c) describing the experience through writing and rewriting; d) keeping a strong orientation to the phenomenon; and e) balancing the inquiry by considering parts and whole.
The themes that emerged from my conversations with the participants include meetings as possible encounters with others, the presence and absence of members to one another, and the underworld of teams. Throughout this study, I consider what came to be seen as the shadows of team life, or the hidden aspects of life in teams. The experience of being in teams seems to be characterized primarily by absence: I am not here and you are not there for me. This study illuminates the essence of the experience of being in teams and attempts to give an account of human beings with one another. To dwell with others in the team world, to encounter others in meetings, to be there for one another, we need to learn to live with the shadows of the team world. More than merely learning to live with these shadows, as though we were only tolerating them, we need to romance the shadows and learn from the tensions associated with them. By living in this tension, we increase our awareness of being present for one another.
Keywords
- Phenomenology,
- teams,
- organizations,
- lived experience,
- human science research,
- meetings,
- teamwork
Disciplines
Publication Date
1999
Degree
Doctor of Philosophy
Department
Graduate School of the University of Maryland
Advisors
Professor Francine Hultgren, Chair/Advisor; Visiting Professor, J. Edward Andrews; Associate Professor, Susan Komives; Dr. Bruce McKay; Associate Professor, Frank Schmidtlein
Citation Information
José M. Torres. "A Phenomenological Study of the Hidden Life of Teams" (1999) Available at: http://works.bepress.com/jose_torres/15/