Exploring the meaning of occupation: The case for phenomenology

Background. Some authors are beginning to challenge current categorisations of occupation as self-care, productivity, and leisure in favour of categories that address meaning. However, the meaning of occupation receives relatively little attention in the literature.
Purpose. To provide a synthesis of the contemporary literature that considers the meaning of occupation and to argue that phenomenological insights into the meaning of occupation might usefully inform occupational therapy research, theory, and practice.
Key Issues. Meaning is a key aspect of occupation. Three phenomenological meanings of occupation uncovered by a study conducted in New Zealand—the call, Being-with and possibilities—provide a starting point for practice, research, and theory informed by understandings of the lived experience of occupation.
Implications. Occupational therapy's theories would benefit from an evidence base that includes meaning, which in turn would lead to authentic occupational therapy practice.