Psychologic health of women: a phenomenologic study of women's inner strength

This article describes a phenomenologic research study of psychologic health--the inner strength of women. The research objective was to identify and to describe the meanings, qualities, and structures of the lived experiences of inner strength for women. Nine women were selected who acknowledged and articulated their subjective experience of inner strength. Data were generated using unstructured, in-depth, face-to-face interviews. Data analysis incorporated the methods of Colaizzi, van Manen, and Spiegelberg. The results revealed nine essential themes that add to the cumulative knowledge base of psychologic health by generating new meanings of the nature and essences of inner strength from female perspectives.