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Abstract
Adults participate in a variety of activities that foster consciousness-raising. Book clubs are popular social settings through which adults can engage in casual, yet intellectually-stimulating dialogue with other individuals. However, since they are often considered informal and inconsequential venues where adults engage with literature and interact with one another through discussions, research about adult participation in book clubs remains scarce. The purpose of this qualitative research study was to understand the lived experiences of consciousness-raising for adults through the context of book clubs. This hermeneutic phenomenological study analyzed in-depth interviews of seven study participants to illustrate adults experiences of consciousness-raising within the contexts of their book clubs. The results revealed three dimensions of the phenomenon: 1) Literature exposes participants to other lives; 2) Dialogue encourages engagement in discussion and communication of perspectives; and 3) Book clubs reflect characteristics of holding environments. Based on the studys findings it was concluded that (a) book clubs are intentional, bounded spaces that function somewhere between communities of interest and communities of practice; (b) book clubs are valuable contexts for researching consciousness-raising because they present similar characteristics to holding environments and they facilitate reflection and dialogue, all of which help foster consciousness-raising experiences; and (c) consciousness-raising in a book club raises questions about how adults view learning, which is particularly significant in regard to andragogical approaches for adult educators.