Reflection: Importance, theory and practice

University of Leeds
Within healthcare, reflection has been defined as the active process of reviewing, analysing and
evaluating experiences, drawing upon theoretical concepts or previous learning, in order to inform
future actions (Reid, 1993). A competent reflective practitioner repeatedly reflects on experience
and is capable of reflecting-in-action, continually learning from experience to the benefit of future
actions (Schon, 1983). The purpose of this short article is to raise awareness of the pertinence of
reflection in clinical practice and briefly describe the implementation of a structured approach which
has been used to develop reflective practice skills within the University of Leeds BSc (Hons)
Audiology programme.
Introduction
Reflective practice has achieved wide take-up in healthcare such that the benefits of being a
reflective practitioner are well evidenced in several healthcare fields including pharmacy (Owen &
Stupans, 2009), medicine (Walker, 1996; Mamede et al., 2008) and, most prominently, nursing
(Atkins & Murphy, 1993; Walker, 1996; Wilkinson, 1999; Esterhuizen & Freshwater, 2008).
Continual critical thinking and reflection can close the gap between theory and practice, improve
quality of care and stimulate personal and professional development (Argyris & Schön, 1978;
Schon, 1983; Schon, 1987; Boud & Walker, 1998; Epstein & Hundert, 2002). Indeed, it has been
suggested that reflecting from professional experiences, rather than learning from formal teaching,
may be the most important source of personal professional development and improvement (Jasper,
2003).
Accordingly, within the field of Audiology, reflection is a fundamental component in the British
Academy of Audiology Continuing Professional Development scheme and practical guidelines for
fostering reflective practice in an audiological setting are available (DePlacido, 2010). Furthermore,
clinic based learning and reflection in the training of audiology students has been discussed and
noted to be beneficial (Chabon & Lee-Wilkerson, 2006; Goldberg et al., 2006; Ng, 2011). However,
scholarly exploration regarding reflection within an audiology setting and how best to develop
reflective skills in trainee audiologists is limited. Given that proficient reflection skills can
ultimately result in improved practice (Walker, 1996; Jasper, 2003; Mamede, Schmidt et al., 2008;
Owen & Stupans, 2009), it is crucial to highlight the significance of reflection and carefully consider
approaches that promote development of confident reflective audiologists.