This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: In 2012, I began an interview study with two multilingual language learners, focusing on their motivations for learning languages. It eventually developed into a nine-year longitudinal study.
The study was first published in English in 2022 by Multilingual Matters and then in Japanese in 2024 by Kurosio Publishers. Over time, I became aware of how conducting research over such a long period affected me both professionally and personally. This became especially clear after one of the two interviewees died soon after the study ended, before the first book was published.
His death had an immense impact, and I was forced to realize that research can sometimes affect the researcher. This study examined my experience through the concept of reflexivity. Reflexivity refers to the process by which researchers critically consider their own role in, and relationship with, their research.
It is widely discussed in fields including applied linguistics (my field), education and medicine. Previous discussions have generally focused on "prospective reflexivity," which considers how researchers influence the research process. Drawing on my own experience, however, I turned my attention to "retrospective reflexivity," which considers how conducting research may, in turn, affect the researcher.
I revisited the original study and a diary I kept from the time I was working on the manuscript until after the book's publication to explore how the research had influenced me. My analysis revealed different types of retrospective reflexivity in the data: theoretical, methodological, disciplinary, practical and personal. I demonstrated that retrospective reflexivity can help researchers view themselves from a third-person perspective, follow their train of thought and reexamine their studies.
The study is published in the journal Research Methods in Applied Linguistics. This process can lead to deeper analysis and reinterpretation of the data, with the researcher's emotions playing a central role. It may also support researcher well-being and the development of subsequent research.
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