Making Sense of Practice: IPA and the Double Hermeneutic with Dr Gillian Ferguson

What does it really mean for a researcher to make sense of a participant making sense of their experience?In this episode of The Phenomenology Collective, we explore Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) and its distinctive value within practice-based research.We’re joined by Dr Gillian Ferguson, an experienced social worker, educator and IPA researcher whose doctoral study explored how social workers experience learning through their everyday practice. Together, we consider why IPA is more than a method of data analysis—and what it demands from researchers seeking to understand the meanings people make of their professional lives.Gillian helps us unpack the double hermeneutic: the process through which the researcher attempts to make sense of the participant making sense of their experience. We explore how empathy, careful questioning and interpretation work together, and how practitioner knowledge can enrich analysis when brought into a disciplined and reflexive relationship with participants’ accounts.In this episode, we discuss:Why phenomenology, hermeneutics and idiography must run throughout an IPA studyThe difference between describing an experience and interpreting its meaningWhat the double hermeneutic looks like in practiceHow practitioner-researchers can work reflexively with their existing knowledgeWhy skilled questioning matters during phenomenological interviewsThe danger of rushing towards solutions before properly understanding experienceHow small, idiographic studies can influence professional practice and policyA thoughtful and practically grounded conversation about rigorous interpretation, researcher reflexivity and how IPA can help us see familiar professional worlds differently.