reflektiv

Reflektiv is an adjective used in several languages to denote self-reference or reflection. It is commonly translated as reflexive in English and is used across fields such as linguistics, philosophy, sociology, and mathematics.

In linguistics, reflektiv describes forms that refer back to the subject of the clause. These are usually reflexive pronouns or reflexive verbs that indicate the subject acts upon itself. A typical example is the sentence “John shaved himself.” Reflexive constructions help express actions directed at the actor and are found in many languages with varied syntactic realizations.

In philosophy and sociology, reflexivity refers to the capacity to reflect on one’s own thinking, actions, and social conditions. Methodological reflexivity asks researchers to examine how their own position influences findings. Social reflexivity describes how individuals and groups reflect on social structures and may modify behavior as a result. The concept is central to theories of modernity and social practice, with thinkers such as Anthony Giddens and Pierre Bourdieu contributing to its development.

In mathematics and logic, a relation is reflexive if every element is related to itself (for all a, a is related to a). This property, called reflexivity, is a basic part of equality relations and various order relations, and it informs the construction of reflexive closures in graph theory and set theory.

Outside these domains, reflektiv may describe processes, designs, or surfaces that invite contemplation or are oriented toward self-reference. The term thus spans practical grammar, theoretical analysis, and abstract reasoning, all centered on the idea of turning back onto the object of reference.