Reflexivity in Qualitative Research

This case study explores two qualitative research projects investigating physical activity and health in Copenhagen and the UK. The researchers, Evans et al., foreground reflexivity as an essential part of their methodological approach. Drawing on their own biographies, they adopt automethodological techniques—where the researcher becomes both subject and analyst—allowing personal experience to inform and interrogate the research process.

The authors explicitly reflect on how their own assumptions and preconceptions might have shaped the study design and interpretation of findings. This transparent engagement with positionality serves as a model of good practice in qualitative research, where the res­earcher’s influence on data collection and analysis is both acknowledged and critically examined. The case reinforces the value of reflexivity as a tool not only for rigour and integrity, but also for generating more nuanced, context-sensitive insights.

Reflexivity in Qualitative Research: Two Figurational Studies by Evans et al.