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This paper explores the role of critical reflection in the context of leadership development and how it is measured. The purpose of this paper is to review theoretical and empirical research that captures the application of critical reflection in leadership development.

This study is an integrative literature review of peer-reviewed journal articles on critical reflection in leadership development. The search revealed 172 peer-reviewed journal articles based on the search terms. The authors conducted a staged review of the abstracts and identified a final sample of 27 empirical articles and 12 non-empirical articles for review.

The findings of this review show that critical reflection is an essential tool for leadership development and has been utilized in a variety of ways and through multiple theoretical perspectives. Despite being relied on heavily in leadership development, the measurement for critical reflection is not well established in the literature.

The researchers propose a conceptual model that integrates the phases and levels of critical reflection as well as the desired outcomes in leadership development. Implications for leadership development are also discussed.

The purpose of this paper is to ask how we can think about critical reflection as a pedagogical practice given the “confessional turn”. By the “confessional turn” the author refers to the idea that “subjective, autobiographical and confessional modes of expression” have expanded exponentially across a wide range of social spheres, including education, the legal system, the media and the workplace. Examining these developments, this paper asks what these debates on critical reflection and confession mean for pedagogical practice.

The main approach is a review of key debates in the literature on critical reflection and also in the wider social sciences.

The discussion compares different debates. Thus it shows that for critics, the turn to the “first person” technologies is narcissistic, psychologistic and de‐politicising. On this view, critical reflective practice might be understood as an individualistic and individualising pedagogy in spite of its claims to be critical. The paper discusses how in contrast, others see this move to talk about the subjective and the self as an extension of the feminist project of the personal is political – i.e. that personal stories, feelings and issues have social and political roots and consequences. For them, reflection can be critical, leading to political consciousness‐raising, i.e. a new awareness about social, political and personal processes. It finishes by examining the view that the idea of reflexivity might help us out of the conflict between these debates.

The paper poses a number of questions in relation to critical reflection that can be taken up by practitioners in the field.

The paper brings new literature to bear on the practice of critical reflection and raises important questions relevant to academics and practitioners.

This paper aims to explore the challenges and opportunities for expediting critical reflection in management education and development to highlight particularly how critical reflection has been facilitated within the context of a professionally focused doctoral programme.

The paper draws on empirical research conducted for a broader project, focusing here on two awaydays for DBA supervisors (n=25 in 2005 and n=16 in 2006) and a UFHRD workshop in 2007 (n=12) for members involved and/or interested in doctoral programmes in HRD, where the empirical research findings were presented and discussed. The paper presents selected findings from the perspective of staff through their own critical reflections, drawing on the data from the two awaydays and the UFHRD workshop. Detailed handwritten notes were taken and transcribed, in addition to flipchart material provided by the participants. These qualitative data are analysed using thematic analysis. The quotations presented are as accurate as possible (verbatim) and any ambiguous notes have been deliberately excluded.

Emerging findings include the need to clarify the concept for both staff and students, and embed critical reflection from the beginning of the programme and throughout written assignments. Insights into how staff perceive critical reflection within a DBA programme are offered, including how staff might assume (incorrectly) that advanced practitioners arrive with a high level of maturity to engage in critical reflection, and yet advanced practitioners “worry” about critique and perceive it as negative and/or failure.

It is acknowledged that the subjective experience of student participants is not central to this discussion, and, whilst a limitation of this paper, this presents an avenue for further research.

The paper presents a critical and reflexive account from a facilitator's perspective and offers practical suggestions for incorporating critical reflection within a DBA programme.

Given the dearth of literature of facilitating critical reflection in the context of professionally focused doctoral programmes, this paper makes a small and initial contribution to this field.

The intentions of this article are to contribute reflections of an empirical account of working with critical reflection within an organisational development programme, addressing the following questions: What space is there for critical reflection in organisational development? What issues are raised for in‐company developers and providers by advocating critical reflection in organisation practice?

A case study approach is taken, presenting an empirical account of a management and organisational development programme that integrated action learning and critical reflection.

The account illustrates difficulties of employing critical reflection within the workplace arising from the more complex power relations between the multiple stakeholders in a commercial context. In particular, dissonance provoked by critical reflection confronts the client with a tension over whether to see organisation members primarily as customers to please or as participants in a change process which inevitably will disrupt.

In making sense of the perspectives of different stakeholders a model is presented to help practitioners in development of this kind to anticipate potential issues.

The paper presents a rare account of employing critical reflection in a work organisation development programme.

This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies.

This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context.

This literature review paper concerns itself with understanding how critical reflection applies in the context of leadership development. The model designed to support leadership development practitioners in achieving effective critical thinking journeys revealed various insights, such as that although critical reflection begins on a personal level, with appropriate support it creates positive change in leader behaviors and in perceptions present throughout the workplace. Practitioners are advised to gain an understanding of the desired outcomes of critical reflection, so that this may guide them in selecting the most beneficial habits to develop.

The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the direct and indirect effects of managerial coaching on critical reflection mediated through learning goal orientation.

The authors conducted a questionnaire survey of 169 employees in 53 teams at an IT firm in Japan. The data were examined using multi-level analyses.

Managerial coaching has a direct positive effect on critical reflection, and the relationship is mediated by learning goal orientation.

The characteristics of the sample may limit the generalization of the findings. Future research should verify the model in other industries and countries.

The organizations should note that managerial coaching is useful not only for facilitating employees’ problem-solving but also for enhancing their critical reflection. It should also be noted that employees can reflect critically on their beliefs and work routines when they have learning goals.

Although few quantitative studies have investigated the determinants of critical reflection, the present research reveals the overlooked functions of managerial coaching in promoting employees’ learning.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of managerial coaching, as well as interactive and diagnostic uses of management control systems (MCS), on reflection and critical reflection, which are important for team learning.

Data were collected using a questionnaire survey. Hierarchical regression analyses were performed to test hypotheses using data from 235 employees in 50 teams from a Japanese automotive supplier.

The results indicated that: MCS used interactively have a positive influence on critical reflection in teams; MCS used diagnostically have no significant effect on reflection or critical reflection in teams; and managerial coaching has a positive influence on team reflection.

These findings suggest that the interactive use of MCS should be combined with managerial coaching in promoting reflection and critical reflection within teams. Because this study used data from employees of a Japanese automotive supplier, the results may have been influenced by the Japanese management style.

Organizations need to implement interactive MCS at the team level, while coaching programs should be provided for managers to enhance team learning.

This study extends the existing literature by examining the effect of MCS at the team level, and identifying that managerial coaching plays a complementary role, supporting the interactive use of MCS in promoting reflection within a team.

In this paper critical reflective working behaviour will be operationalized. Second, the question will be raised which factors have impact on critical reflective working behaviour. The following dimensions of critical reflective working emerge: reflection, vision sharing, challenging group‐think, asking for feedback, experimentation and awareness of employability. In a survey amongst 742 respondents these dimensions are validated. Important influencing factors seem to be self‐efficacy and participation.

The article presents a theoretical analysis of the concept of reflection. The author argues in favour of the necessity of conceiving the concept of reflection in a broad sense, and not using the concept in the meaning of introspection. To grasp reflection in its complexity and as a core process in organisational learning it is necessary to distinguish between different kinds of reflection – reflection and critical reflection – and different levels of reflection: individual, interaction level and reflection as organised practice. This terminology is used as lenses through which a case of organisational development of production groups is interpreted. This interpretation is related to criteria mentioned for organisational learning. It is concluded that most of the criteria are met. This way the concept of reflection may be a fruitful way of understanding organisational learning.

This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies.

This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context.

The ability to self-reflect on experiences in a critical way is a higher-level skill that provides many advantages for employees and businesses. Employees who reflect critically are more able to meet challenges in the workplace and solve problems. This leads to increased efficiency and better development and performance. Critical reflection can be increased by a coaching style of management – listening to, questioning, challenging, encouraging, and providing feedback can all inspire employees. If an employee is challenged and motivated, they may set increased learning goals for themselves, which encourages critical reflection as they work toward achieving those goals and reaching success.

The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.