Background:

Nursing care is essential for the social relationship between mental health professionals and patients.

Objective:

This study aims to reflect on the contributions of Alfred Schutz’s theory of Social Phenomenology to developing mental health nursing care.

Main topics under analysis:

Mental health nursing care is based on understanding the other as a unique being in the “life-world”. The direct social relationship established between nurses and patients, resulting from their shared and immediate connection, is essential to providing mental health care.

Conclusion:

Alfred Schutz’s theory of Social Phenomenology promotes the Ego’s reflection as a caregiver and understanding of the “other self” as beings integrated into the “social world” and mediated by direct social relationships.

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