Exploring dimensions of artistry in reflective practice

Abstract

Abstract This paper explores concepts of artistry and the relevance of artistry for professional practice, especially in those disciplines concerned with educating reflective practitioners and promoting reflective practice. Through a review of key literature, we connect reflective practice with practice wisdom, professional artistry, and a new construct of judgement artistry. This construct has been elucidated in recent doctoral research conducted in the field of occupational therapy by the first author, who was supervised by the other authors. Using an interpretive qualitative approach, this hermeneutic research involved 53 participants from four countries (Australia, Britain, Canada and New Zealand). During focus group sessions and individual interviews the participants were asked to describe how they conceptualized their judgement processes and to detail their observations of expert reasoning in others. We highlight reflexivity, one of the dimensions of judgement artistry with particular significance for professionals committed to reflective practice.