Module 7: Benefits of and Barriers to Reflective Practice

Objectives for this Module:

• Identify benefits of reflective practice
• Identify barriers to reflective practice
• Justify the one model discussed in training that resonate with and why
• Apply reflection to a case study

Essential Questions

• What are benefits and barriers related to reflective practice?
• What one model of reflective practice resonates with me and why?
• How can one apply a preferred model of reflective practice to a case study?

Benefits of Reflective Practice

     Reflective practice has become widely used as a professional development and skill building tool in a wide variety of academic and professional settings since the 1980s (Hampe, 2013). Reflective practice is common in academic and professional settings, particularly in higher education, and in the health science, education, and management professions. However, one must be convinced that taking time to engage in this structured process provides benefits.

One primary benefit of engaging in reflective practice is that it builds personal skills Hughes, Mylonas, Ballantyne (2017) discussed the benefits of embedding reflective practice in curriculum for students in the tourism industry to improve soft skills:

The difference between a positive or negative service encounter often depends on how well employees can reflect and self-assess their actions. Without the ability to stand back and reflect on what worked well or what could have been done differently, how will the employee develop further strategies for application to similar or more challenging events in the future? (p. 104-105)

Additionally, reflective practice helps one develop cognitive resources to draw upon when solving problems. Ferreira (Reflecting in and on action) discussed that cognitive resources influence our reflective practice. Life is not always predictable, nor is our work. Sometimes we encounter real world situations that are complex, where problems are not clear. Reflective thought allows us to develop our cognitive capacity. One example is that experienced firefighters rely on prior cases. When they arrive to a new fire scene, they compare the current fire situation to other fires, to determine how to approach the new fire. Likewise, physicians use a prior portfolio of cases to determine how to diagnose and treat patients.

Other benefits of reflection include development of creativity, develops emotional intelligence, helps maintain life/work balance, helps us overcome stagnation and identify opportunities for improvement (University of Cambridge). Promotes empathy in physician-client relationships, also improves clinical problem solving and diagnostic decisions (Butani, Bannister, Rubin & Forbes, 2003).  

Barriers to Reflective Practice

Many factors impact reflections. Some barriers to reflective practice can be personal and professional. One must consider how to handle these barriers in academic and professional settings. Some barriers to reflection are:

• Time, motivation, commitment, belief of benefits, confidentiality, trust, individual differences, skills, development and growth levels (Hampe; Butani, Bannister, Rubin & Forbes, 2017).
• Conceptual understanding, belief in value, teaching is difficult due to already crowded curricula, some believe that it is a personality trait that cannot be taught, fear of repercussion, fear of sharing and perceived lack of value (Butani et al., 2017).  
• Novice principals reported lack of  ability to consider new ideas and lack of competence in decision making, lack of time, not wanting to hear other’s ideas, isolation, lack of ability to network, constant changes, work load, as barriers to reflective practice (Bakioglu & Dalgic, 2013).

Preferred Model and Case Study

At this point in the training, one has become acquainted with several different models and frameworks on reflective practice. Based on prior experience, profession, academic background, and personality, one or two of the models probably stand out as preferred structures. At this point, we will identify one of the frameworks that resonates with our “style” and will apply that framework to a case study.

Case: Kelly recently joined a company as a new project manager. The company offers student loan services. You, Spencer, are a senior project manager with the company, and have been assigned to mentor Kelly. One day early in her tenure with the new company, Kelly joined you and another colleague, John, in a meeting with some of the more experienced managers to discuss a project she would be taking over. You joined the meeting as Kelly’s mentor and are not happy with the way she, John, or you handled the meeting. Kelly is taking over a project that is behind schedule. John, another senior project manager and member of the senior leadership team came into the meeting with a “superior” attitude. When he is in this type of mood, he doesn’t want to hear excuses and won’t listen to anyone’s responses beyond a few words. All he wants to hear is that the job will get done, on time, and on budget. The company has established a toxic culture, which makes it difficult to have a reasonable conversation, let alone a productive meeting. When John is in his “superior” mood, most of the staff just keeps quiet and nods their heads in agreement. Well, Kelly, being new to the company is not aware of the usual behavior’s others take on to appease John. In the meeting, she begins to explain to John why his requests are unrealistic. Some of the others try to motion to Kelly to back off, but she just keeps on talking. After a few sentences, John’s eyes begin to roll, and he proceeds to clarify for Kelly, her position in the company’s hierarchy. It was a very unpleasant encounter for the young engineer and project manager. As a more tenured employee and mentor, you try a couple of times to intervene on Kelly’s behalf, but John’s aggressive position makes it difficult to do anything. You figure the best thing to do is let John have his say and then let the situation blow over. After the meeting, you try to discuss the situation with Kelly, but she is very disheartened and hurt that as her mentor, you did not have her back. She just storms off. You are not sure what you could have done differently (adapted from “Jack’s story, Introducing Reflective Learning, Ramsey, OU Business School).

Review Question

1. Many of us have probably experienced a similar situation, regardless of our profession or workplace. Senior leaders and managers often criticize and demean subordinates, leaving negative impressions, which can have long-lasting effects other than just in the moment that the interaction occurs. Using your preferred model, take on the role of Spencer as Kelly’s mentor. Apply the steps of the model to determine how you may have handled the situation differently.

 References

Bakioglu, A. & Dalgic, G. (2013). The Possible Barriers behind Reflective Thinking and Practice: Experiences of School Principals from Turkey and Denmark. Educational Sciences: Theory & Practice, 13(2), 832-838.

Butani, L. Bannister, S. L., Rubin, A., and Forbes, K. (April, 2017). How Educators Conceptualize and Teach Reflective Practice: A Survey of North American Pediatric Medical Educators. Academic Pediatrics, 17(3), 303-309.

Hampe, N. (2013). Reflective practice and writing: A guide to getting started. University of Newcastle. Retrieved from http://www.alia.org.au/sites/default/files/documents/Reflective.Practice.Writing.Guide20130409JB.pdf

Hughes, K., Mylonas, A., and Ballantyne, R. (2017). Enhancing tourism students’ soft skills: The importance of teaching reflective practice. In Handbook of Teaching and Learning in Tourism. Northampton, MA: Edward Elgar Publishing, pp. 95-105.