selfreflective

Self-reflective is an adjective describing a person, work, or approach that engages in self-examination or self-awareness. It denotes the capacity or tendency to reflect on one's own thoughts, feelings, motives, and actions, often with an aim to understand or improve oneself. In psychology and everyday life, self-reflection is a conscious process of metacognition and introspection that supports learning, emotional regulation, and decision making. Practices such as journaling, mindfulness, and therapy are commonly used to cultivate self-reflection.

In literature and art, self-reflective works draw attention to their own creation, structure, or the act of interpretation; they may use metafiction, self-reference, or commentary on the writing process or the observer's role.

In philosophy and social sciences, reflexivity refers to awareness of the researcher's own influence and perspective on knowledge. A self-reflective stance in inquiry emphasizes transparency about biases, methods, and the limits of objectivity.

Spelling and usage: most common forms are self-reflective (hyphenated). Some sources write it as selfreflective or self reflective; consistency is preferred within a text.

See also: metacognition, introspection, reflexivity, metafiction.