Community-Based Participatory Research Self-Reflection

Community-Based Participatory Research

Self-Reflection Exercise 2

Purpose

Self-reflection Exercises: Self-reflexivity is critical to CBPR work. If you can’t be self-reflexive then you cannot do CBPR. It is an essential skill and practice of CBPR. These exercises will give experience in what self-reflection or self-reflexivity is and how to develop your own practice. In a nutshell, self-reflexivity is thinking about what you think – why do you think that? What purpose does it serve? What does it harm? In self-reflexivity you explore your biases and judgments (we all have them!). It’s not about “getting rid” of your biases and judgments and beliefs but rather developing an awareness of them and cultivating those beliefs that keep you honest within yourself while giving those less helpful judgments a gentle nudge in a more positive direction.

These exercises are due weeks 1 and 2. Please submit each assignment by Sunday, 11:59 MT at the end of week 1 and week 2. These are your private thoughts and feelings, and I will treat them as confidential and sacred. I will offer feedback on how to continue to develop your self-reflexive practice. I will never judge or critique your experience or thoughts – they are too precious! These assignments are about the practice not the content.

Course Outcomes

Through this assignment, the student will meet the following course outcomes:

CO 7: Demonstrate the methods and skills used in the development, implementation, and evaluation of CBPR projects.

Self-Reflection Exercise #2 – A Difficult Encounter

Think of a challenging situation you had with another person.  This situation should be one where your judgments or biases contributed to the difficulty of the interaction.

How did the interaction start, progress, and end?

Now ask yourself: What were the judgments and biases that surfaced during the interaction? What were your initial thoughts or reactions to these biases and to the interaction itself?

Explore where these biases might come from. How would you like them to be different? How were your judgments/biases helpful?

What was positive from this interaction? If you could do it again, what would be different?

How have your biases shifted as a result of this interaction? How do you see yourself thinking differently about this other person/group as a result of this interaction?

Post any questions you might have about this exercise to the Q&A Forum.