Reflexive spaces of appearance: rethinking critical reflection in the workplace

Some scholars have concluded that critical reflection may be too difficult to operate in a workplace context. Yet this is in tension with the rise of normative theories calling for its operation in practice, and linking this with critical HRD’s hope for a more reflexive practitioner world. This looks like an impasse, as critical reflection is rejected where it is supposedly needed most. The purpose of this article is to present a theoretical framework that can point beyond this problem. The framework is inspired by Hannah Arendt’s concept of the public space of appearance. Leaning on this idea, critical reflection is provided with important spatial inflections that can supply current theory with the political reflexivity it seems to lack. Critical reflection is theorized as a challenging, but intrinsically reflexive space of honesty, critique and new beginnings. Implications for future thinking about critical reflection in critical HRD are discussed. Conclusions are also drawn for how this framework may help advance this field’s praxical project.