In qualitative phenomenological research, lived experience refers to the first-hand involvement or direct experiences and choices of a given person, and the knowledge that they gain from it, as opposed to the knowledge a given person gains from second-hand or mediated source.

Phenomenology is all about making meaning of primal lived experiences. But it is often a huge challenge to know where to start interpreting the experiences as they are lived. van Manen has described the lifeworld existentials of phenomenology to be interwoven within the lived body, lived space, lived time, and lived human relations.