Banca de QUALIFICAÇÃO: MARIA VANESSA MORAIS DA SILVA

Uma banca de QUALIFICAÇÃO de DOUTORADO foi cadastrada pelo programa.
STUDENT : MARIA VANESSA MORAIS DA SILVA
DATE: 21/08/2026
TIME: 09:00
LOCAL: Laboratório de Psicologia
TITLE:

Transgressive Existences: The Experience of Aging Among Lesbian Women from a Phenomenological-
Hermeneutic Perspective

KEY WORDS:

aging; lesbian women; invisibility; phenomenological research.

PAGES: 104
BIG AREA: Ciências Humanas
AREA: Psicologia
SUMMARY:

Aging is a natural part of life and a process of human development. Although humanity understands this,
we are increasingly encountering technological innovations designed to delay and manage the effects of
aging. It is estimated that by 2050, the global population of older adults will have more than doubled,

reaching 2.1 billion, according to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). This
demographic imperative of the 21st century has a considerable impact on society, since aging
encompasses aspects that go beyond age alone, such as social, cultural, political, economic, and existential
issues. Although most older adults face similar challenges related to this process, lesbian women face
specific issues during this stage of life. The scientific literature points to greater invisibility,
marginalization, a scarcity of resources, difficulty accessing healthcare, and a lack of public policies. It is
also interesting to note that what we find in scientific articles and books is old age presented almost
exclusively from a biophysiological perspective. It discusses what is needed for the body to age healthily,
but obscures how these individuals’ bodily experiences are existentially situated in the world. That said,
the aim is to develop a doctoral dissertation with the objective of understanding the experience of aging
among lesbian women residing in the state of Rio Grande do Norte in light of Heideggerian hermeneutic
phenomenology as a theoretical and methodological foundation. The intention here is to reflect on aging
from an ontological analysis, proposing a perspective that goes beyond biology. The dissertation will be
structured into three articles to address the objectives proposed here. The methodological strategies will
include conducting individual narrative interviews and utilizing the researcher’s affective diary. The
research participants will be lesbian women in the process of aging, aged 50 and older, residing in the state
of Rio Grande do Norte. The analysis of the results will be inspired by the structures of Heidegger’s
comprehensive-interpretive hermeneutic circle (“pre-position,” “pre-vision,” “pre-conception”), which
corresponds to engagement with the chosen theme, prior readings, and the state of the art; meetings with
the participants and journal writing; and the identification of themes; hermeneutic interpretation and
analysis based on the theoretical perspective. Thus, it is hoped that this research will contribute to
highlighting the erasure of lesbian aging within the various institutional frameworks of our society, as well
as proposing solutions to combat the invisibility that plagues these lives.

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
Interna - 1879584 - ANA KARINA SILVA AZEVEDO
Externa à Instituição - ANTONIA NATHALIA DUARTE DE MORAES
Interna - 2086520 - CANDIDA MARIA BEZERRA DANTAS