This study aims to understand the life experience of people with psychiatric disabilities in their housing facilities from their own standpoints.
For the purpose, the subjects of this study were seven mentally disabled persons who had lived in a housing facility for mentally disabled people over six months or longer. In-depth interview with them was performed to collect relevant data. As a result of analyzing the data in the manner of reading carefully the transcribed interview data with using Giorgi\'s
phenomenological approach, it was found that the essence of experience of people with psychiatric disabilities living in housing facilities was classified into three elements and eleven sub-elements as follows. The former included the intermediate point of the hospital and society, living together - it\'s stuffy and hope, and it\'s freshly related to as a member. The
sub-elements of‘the intermediate point of the hospital and society\' included out of hospital, selection by persuasion, expelling, stay point of going home; Those of‘living together - it\'s stuffy and hope’included stifling about community life and their rule, endurance, and preparation with hope; Those of‘it\'s freshly related to as a member’ included support and control from staff, similar but different existence of members, invaluable families and
their hurts, and contraction and confronting with neighbors. Based upon the results of this study, concrete suggestions were made concerning the services to be provided in housing facilities for people with psychiatric disabilities in order to help their lives in the facilities and social adaptation.
Key words: people with psychiatric disabilities, housing facilities, life experience in housing facilities, phenomenological study