Reflexivity in Research: Disability between the Lines

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to consider the implications to reflexivity in disability research. The author begins by positioning herself in the field of disability studies, disclosing her own experiences. She goes on to trouble the expectation to disclose. The call to confess may be grounded in historical developments within feminist scholarship, including standpoint theory and research reflexivity—methodological tools that are certainly valuable in the pursuit of knowledge, but that are not without criticism. The author explores some key critiques, and considers the implications, specifically regarding her own responsibility to give account. She demonstrates that the sharing of personal experience and the disclosure of identity is not only difficult, uncomfortable, and invasive, but is sometimes useless, for even our confessions may be subject to thematic interpretation.

Keywords: disclosure, standpoint theory, reflexivity, narrative, invisible disability