Interpreting language used in reflective practice (original) (raw)
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On reflection in action: Unaddressed issues in refocusing the debate on reflective practice
1998
On reflection in action: Unaddressed issues in refocusing the debate on reflective practice Reflective practice is now widely debated as a means of improving nursing practice. However, assumptions about reflective practice are rarely clarified and seldom subjected to critique. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to take up Clarke, James & Kelly's suggestion that limits to the scope and depth of reflection be considered. This is achieved by reflecting on what these authors claim it means to reflect in action. Four arguments are presented: (i) that nurses cannot be conscious of all aspects of nursing practice because there are aspects of practice that cannot be represented in consiousness, (ii) that those aspects of practice that can be represented in consciousness can be so only imperfectly, (iii) that all such representations are not reflexive, and (iv) that any representation in the form of an internal dialogue that could be regarded as reflection is overdetermined. Implications for reflexivity are then considered.
Governing nursing through reflection: a discourse analysis of reflective practices
Journal of advanced nursing, 2008
Aim. This paper is a report of a study analysing reflection as discourse and a technology of confession which produces a certain desirable subjectivity within nursing practice. Background. Reflection and reflective practice are common themes in nursing practices and in the literature on nursing. These practices are often construed as positive and empowering, and more critical analyses of them are needed. Method. A Foucauldian-inspired discourse analysis based on the concepts of governmentality and technologies of the self was conducted. Interview transcripts from 42 managers, supervisors, teachers and participants in an in-service programme to prepare health care assistants to become Licensed Practice Nurses in the elder care sector were analysed. Findings. Reflection as confession operates as a governing technology within the nursing practice analysed. Programme participants are encouraged to reflect and scrutinize themselves about their work as a way to improve their competencies and practice. Through appraisals, they are invited to reflect about themselves as way to achieve their desires. In this way, active, responsible, problem-solving, self-governing practitioners are constructed. Conclusion. Through a Foucauldian reading of reflective practices it is possible to illustrate that reflection is not a neutral or apolitical practice. Instead, it is a governing practice that does something, in discursive terms, to nursing subjectivity -something that can create a space for reflection about what reflection discursively does to subjectivity.
Nursing forum, 2015
This paper reports on an analysis of the concept of reflective practice. Reflective practice, a concept borrowed from the field of education, is widely used in nursing. However, to date, no study has explored whether this appropriation has resulted in a definition of the concept specific to the nursing discipline. A sample comprised of 42 articles in the field of nursing drawn from the CINAHL database and 35 articles in education from the ERIC database (1989-2013) was analyzed. A concept analysis using the method proposed by Bowers and Schatzman was conducted to explore the differing meanings of reflective practice in nursing and education. In nursing, the dimensions of the concept differ depending on context. In the clinical context, the dimensions may be summarized as theory-practice gap, development, and caring; in training, as learning, guided process, and development; and in research, as knowledge, method, and social change. In education, the concept is also used in the context...
A Phenomenological Approach to Teaching Reflective Writing
When students are developing their academic literacy, the complex relationship between developing their own voice and referring to the work of others is central. Reflective writing is first-person writing in that it starts with a description in context of personal experience. In our academic contexts, we can also emphasize the post-descriptive stages of analysis and evaluation of our own experience which can be informed by reference to relevant literature. In this paper, we attempt to provide a new insight into reflective writing from the recent philosophical past. We outline a potentially relevant contribution from the philosophy of phenomenology, especially in the way it explores the essential relationship between a so-called 'subjective' first person voice and 'inter-subjectivity' and 'objectivity'. Reflective writing is justified as a pedagogical activity or as a professional training activity if it helps 'us' make sense of our own experience, with a view to making the next experience more satisfying or successful. Our own reflection in this paper on the experience of reflection itself attempts to respect the tradition of confronting first-person experience with external knowledge. We conclude (and so attempt to argue) that there is value in using the arguments from a philosophy that calls itself a (or the) philosophy of life. Using our own hermeneutic readings of examples from our own students' reflective writing, we attempt to ground and enrich a potentially valuable holistic activity which can transcend subjectivity and take learning well beyond the classroom.
Reflective Practice: Implication for Nurses
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Reflective practice is a frequently used but inadequately defined concept in nursing. This may be attributed to the inadequate conceptualisation of the process of reflection. This paper agreed that now is an appropriate time to critically examine the notion of reflective practice and maintains that there is a need for more robust debate and research into the nature of reflection in nursing. Although reflective practice has been identified as a valuable tool to help nurses recognise their own strengths and weaknesses, even though many still find it difficult to embrace. This article dispels some of the myths surrounding reflective practice and offers examples on how it can benefit nurses both on personal and professional level. The study however observed that reflective practice is associated with learning from experience, and is viewed as an important strategy for health professionals who embrace lifelong learning. This paper extensively examined the attraction of reflective practic...
Professional knowledge and the epistemology of reflective practicen up_428 3..14
Reflective practice is one of the most popular theories of professional knowledge in the last 20 years and has been widely adopted by nursing, health, and social care professions. The term was coined by Donald Schön in his influential books The Reflective Practitioner, and Educating the Reflective Practitioner, and has garnered the unprecedented attention of theorists and practitioners of professional education and practice. Reflective practice has been integrated into professional preparatory programmes, continuing education programmes, and by the regulatory bodies of a wide range of health and social care professions. Yet, despite its popularity and widespread adoption, a problem frequently raised in the literature concerns the lack of conceptual clarity surrounding the term reflective practice. This paper seeks to respond to this problem by offering an analysis of the epistemology of reflective practice as revealed through a critical examination of philosophical influences within the theory. The aim is to discern philosophical underpinnings of reflective practice in order to advance increasingly coherent interpretations, and to consider the implications for conceptions of professional knowledge in professional life. The paper briefly examines major philosophical underpinnings in reflective practice to explicate central themes that inform the epistemological assumptions of the theory. The study draws on the work of Donald Schön, and on texts from four philosophers: John Dewey, Nelson Goodman, Michael Polanyi, and Gilbert Ryle. Five central epistemological themes in reflective practice are illuminated: (1) a broad critique of technical rationality; (2) professional practice knowledge as artistry;