Chapter 2 - Orders of Reflexivity

Summary

Introduction

In Chapter 1 we reviewed the significance of reflexivity within the context of contemporary social and cultural theory. We build on this in the present chapter and our goals are twofold. First, we aim to present an account of reflexivity that acknowledges its transformative potential and thus, its relationship to agency. The relationship between reflexivity and agency is an important consideration because, as we show below, discussions of reflexivity are often intertwined with debates about agency, particularly in relation to the capacity for identity work. Reflexivity is usually argued to facilitate agency because an entity that is aware of the circumstances it finds itself in, it is claimed, is then better able to consider the possibility of acting upon and changing those circumstances. There are contrarian voices, however, that are far less sanguine about this characterization of the relationship between reflexivity and agency. Our account recognizes both sides of the debate and, on balance, is cautiously optimistic about reflexivity's potential for agency.

Our second aim is to extend the account we present to accommodate institutional reflexivity. While we are aware of the dangers of reifying institutions as thinking or sentient entities, we also wish to point out that institutional forces are recognized to constrain the activities of individuals and organizations (Greenwood et al. 2008; Scott 2008). Individuals and organizations acting as agents of the state, for example, are vested with responsibilities and powers that would not accrue to them otherwise.