Many students and practitioners are familiar with critical reflection but struggle to make space for it in their everyday practice. This book provides an accessible and practical introduction not only to doing critical reflection, but to being critically reflective.

- It demonstrates how reflective capacity can be developed in different practice contexts and applied productively to supervision, teamwork and interprofessional working.

- It outlines the different theoretical underpinnings and methods of critical reflection, exploring the use of visual images, writing techniques and group meetings.

- It is rich with engaging case studies and questions for the reader that will help them to make critical reflection an integral part of their everyday practice.


This book is an ideal guide to dealing with challenge and change across a range of social and healthcare services, including social work, nursing, youth and community work, counselling and allied healthcare professions.

'This book is an indispensable resource for practitioners and students, enabling them both to understand and practise critical reflection in the interests of promoting effective engagement with vulnerable individuals and families.' - Gillian Ruch, Professor of Social Work, University of Sussex, UK 'This is a lovely book that provides students and practitioners with a positive and engaging introduction to critically reflective practice.' - Jo Trelfa, Senior Lecturer and Faculty Lead in Research and Ethics, University of St Mark & St John, UK 'This book provides a clear and practical introduction to being critically reflective that is highly useful for professionals from a range of disciplines.'- Ruth Forbes, Senior Social Work Teaching Fellow, University of Edinburgh, UK

Fiona Gardner is Head of Social Work and Social Policy, Rural Health School, La Trobe University, Australia. Her books include Critical Reflection in Context: Applications in Health and Social Care (coedited with Jan Fook) and Critical Spirituality: A Holistic Approach to Contemporary Practice.