Purpose : In order to care for patients well, nurses should understand the life style, environment and cultural modes of their patients. Among Koreans, nunchi is very common, being a live language in ordinary life. With this basic conception in mind, the study was done to identify nunchi phenomenon in hospitalized elderly women. Method: Colaizzi\'s phenomenological method was used to review the human relationships and interactions of the women, hospitalized elderly women who were willing to speak out on their condition and agreed to participate in the study. Sample size was \'six\' when data collected reached a point of saturation. Data were collected from April 1 to May 7, 2002, through in-depth interviews. Result : The significant results from analyzing the interviews can be grouped into 33 themes, 16 clusters of themes and 7 categories. The essential themes for the nunchi phenomenon were \'cautiousness\', \'considerateness\', \'calming down oneself\', \'obedience\', \'avoidance\', \'cowardliness\' and \'discomfort\'. Conclusion: The results show that the women positioned themselves so as not to glare at others but to study the faces of others\'. The results suggest that Korean people have a reserved culture. By reviewing the essence of socio-psychological traits, or nunchi phenomenon in hospitalized elderly women, the reserved culture of Korean people is illustrated.