Writing and publishing a reflective paper: Three case studies

Reflection refers to having an interactive dialogue with oneself. It is a process in which we ask ourselves questions about the research process, our decisions, conduct and biases. We consider what we can learn from the challenges or mistakes and how we can adapt our approach or improve our skills to ensure our research is of the highest possible quality. Writing reflective articles requires a number of skills and so does trying to get them published. This paper starts with an introduction of reflection as a concept oractivity, followed by three case studies that highlight some of the potential barriers related to getting such reflections published in a scientific journal. The purpose of publishing a reflective article is toshare the critical processes that underpinned the research process so that readers can underst and how the findings were produced, can learn from other researchers’ experiences and mistakes - potentially avoiding similar mistakes. We suggest that reflective articles contribute to a research culture of transparency and growth. Strategies that may help authors of reflective papers to get them published are discussed. We conclude by posing the notion that reviewers and editors may need to be challenged to acknowledge the contribution of critical reflective articles to the quality and trustworthiness of research findings