Phenomenology in Psychiatry as an Ethical Obligation
Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice July 19, 2026 Beatriz de Faria Sousa
Phenomenology offers a disciplined method for investigating patients' lived experience that can serve as a methodological foundation for ethical psychiatric practice, not merely a humanistic supplement. By clarifying how illness reorganizes the patient's lived world, phenomenological inquiry deepens psychiatric assessment alongside conventional diagnosis. This enriched understanding strengthens autonomy, informed consent, shared decision-making, diagnostic humility, and psychiatric education. The paper argues that attending to lived experience should be regarded as a professional obligation within psychiatry, complementing diagnostic reliability, neuroscience, and evidence-based treatment rather than replacing them.