Social Phenomenology brings together insights from the tradition of phenomenology and recent discussions of collective intentionality. In doing so, it offers a unique account of how consciousness is formative of the social world. That is, how our thinking things to be so can, in some cases, actually make them so. For instance, that the money one uses day in and day out is worth something is not because of its physical characteristics, but because we accept that those physical traits, printed by the right institutions make it so. The book argues for a position between atomism and collectivism. That is, the book denies there is any such thing as collective consciousness, while also denying the atomic conception of subjects which views subjects as islands unto themselves, free of relation to others.

"The question of intersubjectivity was perhaps one of the most debated and attended-to philosophical problems of the last century. But what is really interesting about it is the fact that the same question seems to play a pivotal role in both analytical and continental (phenomenological) traditions which otherwise appear to continually drift away from each other, or try to sever all connections to one another in their attempt to assert their self-sufficiency. And this alleged self-sufficiency is precisely what Eric Chelstrom is trying to overcome in his clear and well-argued work on intersubjectivity and collective intentionality, which attempts to develop a solid and productive dialogue between the two philosophical perspectives. ... By successfully using the compass of clear-cut Husserlian terminology, Chelstrom succeeds in finding his way through the dangerous and murky waters of social phenomenology, not only avoiding the hazards of the established analytical perspectives on the same matter, but also constructing a bridge between the two antagonistic traditions which invites other thinkers belonging to the said traditions of thought to cross it for the sake of "the things themselves"." - Metapsychology Online