Graduate Journal of Social Science

Critical approaches to qualitative research in social sciences mandate researcher reflexivity with respect to researchers’ biases, values, and experiences. Researchers’ self-awareness of their social, cultural, and political location(s) vis-à-vis research relationships and practices is a crucial element of the research process that helps enhance trustworthiness. It is also important for researchers to acknowledge and address the inherent asymmetry of power between themselves and the research participants. For this special issue, we are interested in exploring in-depth the role of reflexivity in qualitative social science research, especially in relation to addressing power and privilege in research relationships and practices. We are looking for papers that demonstrate ways in which reflexivity can be practiced in qualitative social science research, and how it can contribute to research ethics and quality. We are particularly interested in first person narratives or research stories of early career researchers; tell us what helped you become and stay reflexive during your research journey(s), and help us see what reflexivity in action looks like from the perspective of your experiences. Paper topics may include (but are not limited to):

• Role of reflexivity in co-construction of knowledge through research.
• Critical reflexivity as a tool to help decolonize research.
• Struggles and challenges with regard to practicing reflexivity.
• Feminist approaches to reflexivity in research.
• Reflexivity in participatory research methods.
• Role of mentorship in practicing reflexivity for early career researchers.
• Practicing reflexivity during the writing process.

SUBMISSIONS: Submit a 200-250 word abstract for original and unpublished papers (5,000-8,000 words) or research-in-progress articles (2,000-3,000 words) by March 15, 2018 via email to editors Alankaar Sharma and James Beresford at reflexivity.in.research@gmail.com. Authors with selected abstracts will be informed by April 2, and invited to submit full papers by June 15. Full submissions will go through a double-masked peer-review process; final acceptance of submitted papers will be contingent on the outcome of the peer-review process. The journal issue will be published in 2019.

We welcome submissions from PhD students and early career researchers, and also from scholars from the Global South countries.