Exploring Rolfe's Reflective Model: A Guide for Practitioners
In today's modern world, reflecting on one's experiences is considered an important skill for any person, irrespective of his profession. Whatever actions we do or whatever emotions we feel, we need to understand them, so that we can improve the place where we are not doing well. That's why Professor Gary Rolfe created Rolfe's Reflective model.
This is the best way to examine self-learning from someone else’s experience. Through critical analysis actions, various thought processes and outcomes, you will easily gain insights. You will be surprised to know that this model is very useful for development and foster growth. Among the many frameworks developed to facilitate this process, Rolfe's Reflective Model stands out for its simplicity and effectiveness.
In this blog, we will discuss the brief details of Rolfe's reflective model. In continuation, we will also understand how Rolfe's model is applied in every field. Let's embark on a journey of reflection and discovery, and unlock the potential within each of us to learn and evolve. We will start with “Why do we need this model?
What is Rolfe’s Model?
Rolfe’s reflective Model is another important model for nursing and healthcare departments. This model is for practitioners as it helps them reflect on their various emotions and actions. Just like we have discussed in our previous blog Driscoll's Model of Reflection, this model also works on three main steps “What?”, “So what?”, and “Now what?”.
In the late 1990s when reflective practice for professional development began to become quite popular (especially in the nursing profession), Professor Garry and his friends jointly created this model. Of course, this model was inspired by the existing selective model in the past but this new model was to prove to be quite useful in the new era.
Rolfe's Reflective Model of Garry was not only suitable for nursing professionals but now this model could be used by people of every profession. It was an updated and universal version. This model can be used for development and growth in every field from teaching to marketing. Rolfe's Reflective Model was a straightforward method and was quite easy to use.
Rolfe's 2001 Reflective Cycle
Developed by Gary Rolfe in 2001, this model is all about providing a structured framework so that individuals can use it to reflect on their experiences and actions. This model is extremely popular in a variety of sectors, but healthcare and education are the prime fields where you can see the benefits of its application. Talking about the main components of this model, it comprises three stages:
Main steps in Rolfe’s model - What? So what? Now what?
Just as you have read above in this model, 3 questions have been used to understand your actions and emotions better in your profession. What? So what? Now what? Let us comprehend why we use these questions in further context.
What? - This step involves describing the event or situation. It focuses on understanding what happened, including the context and the roles of those involved.
- What happened?
- What was I trying to achieve?
- Were the responses of other people?
- What were the consequences for me?
- What was positive about the experience?
So What? - This step is about analysing the event and understanding its implications. It encourages deeper thinking about the significance of the event and what can be learned from it.
- What are the implications?
- Was my thought process as I acted?
- So, what is the importance of this?
- So what have I learned because of this situation?
- So, what more do I need to know about this situation?
Now What? - This step focuses on future actions and how to apply the insights gained from the reflection. It involves planning how to handle similar situations in the future
- What will you do next?
- Now what could I do?
- Do I need to make things better?
- Do I need to avoid it in future?
- Now what would be the best thing to do?
What Is the Significance of Rolfes Model of Reflection?
- Personal Growth: When you undergo all three phases of this model, gradually you become self-aware of your behaviour. You learn to recognise your strengths and weaknesses so that you can work on your shortcomings for better future and personal development.
- Ethical Considerations: Rolfe's Reflective Model encourages individuals to consider ethical implications in their actions. This is particularly valuable in professions where ethical decision-making is paramount, such as healthcare, education, and social work.
- Professional Practice: In a professional space, every day individuals need to make some informed decisions and also solve complex problems. Well, in that case, this model serves as an effective tool as it hones decision-making and problem-solving skills. This is the reason why professionals in the healthcare industry and educators use this model whenever they get stuck in a difficult situation.
- Enhanced Empathy: When individuals learn to examine their own thoughts and feelings, they get better at understanding others’ opinions, perspectives, and experiences without judging them for their actions.
Pros and Cons of this Reflective Model
Every model or theory has some advantages and also some shortcomings. Rolfe's reflective model also has some limitations. Let us understand some pros and cons of the following model so you can use it properly while considering both sides:
Pros
- Rolfe’s reflective model is very easy to understand.
- This model has a strong structure, users can easily cover important experiences.
- Users can think about future actions and improvements.
- This model can be adjusted to different situations and is versatile for various professions.
Cons
- The simplicity of this model can lead to biased opinions or actions.
- Rolfe’s model lacks strong theoretical support as compared to other models.
- Three questions often restrict a person to explore more.
- For complicated situations, this model is very basic.
How it is different from other reflective models?
Before ending the blog, let us compare Rollface's model with the previous two models: Driscoll's Reflective model and the Era Cycle.
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Rolfe's Model
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Driscoll Reflective Model
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ERA Cycle
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Structure: What? So What? Now What?
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Structure: What? So What? Now What?
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Structure: Experience, Reflection, Action
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Focus: Encourages a deep understanding of an event, its implications, and future actions.
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Focus: Specifically adapted for clinical practice. However, it was similar to Rolfe’s Model.
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Focus: Emphasizes the cyclical nature of reflection.
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Application: Clinical settings and reflective writing
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Application: Used in nursing and healthcare to reflect on patient care and professional practice.
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Application: Used across various disciplines for self and professional improvement.
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Strengths: Simple and easy to use and thorough analysis.
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Strengths: Being tailored for clinical settings
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Strengths: Encourages continuous learning and improvement.
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Each model has its strengths and can be chosen based on the specific needs and context of the reflection. Would you like to explore any of these models in more detail?
Practical Applications of Rolfe’s Reflective Model
By now you would have understood what Rolfe’s Reflective Model is and what it is used for. Now we will understand how we can use this model to enhance future performance in education, healthcare and professional development.
Education: By using Rolfe’s model, teachers and professors will gain an understanding of their teaching methods. You will get to know now how you approach students, what techniques you use, where are you lacking in understanding students etc. Through this model, as a mentor, you will get the opportunity to improve your teaching methods. Also, you may do student interactions to enhance learning outcomes.
Healthcare: Initially the reflective model was created for development in the nursing profession. This model teaches how to work on clinical decisions, patient care and how to handle different situations in the healthcare department so that there are no mistakes in the future. By using this model, healthcare professionals can achieve growth and development in their practices.
Professional Development: Whether you are working in marketing, media, healthcare or technical departments, you need to always work on your professional development. Rolfe’s reflective Model helps you understand your skills better and helps in continuously improve your skills. You can also adapt to new challenges in your field, and make remarkable changes in personal and professional growth.
Both personal and professional development is important in one’s life. Rolfe’s model is the best way to get a deeper insight into your profession and work on your improvement.
Business: Business owners and entrepreneurs can use this model to analyse workspace dynamics, decision-making processes, motivation tools, and leadership styles. Through the practice of self-reflection, they can come up with better strategies for team collaboration.
With so much to offer, Rolfe’s Reflective Model is undoubtedly an effective tool that works wonders for personal and professional development. With its accurate implementation, you can improve your life for the better.
Step-by-Step Guide to Using Rolfe’s Reflective Model
Anyone who is interested in the reflective model and wants to know how to use it, we have prepared this step-by-step guide for you. To use Rolfe's model correctly you must follow these 2 steps correctly.
Identifying a Reflective Situation
Beginning B Selecting Experiences Had a Significant Impact on You. For this, you can choose any situation, positive or negative it totally depends on you. Choose situations where you thought one thing but the outcome was different than the original one, or where you felt that you were not 100% sure about your decisions. These experiences are ripe for reflection as they offer the most learning potential. For better results, you can also do continuous journaling of such experiences.
Use the "What, So What, Now What" Framework
In the next step, you have to use the "What, So What, Now What" framework of Rolfe's model. First, you will describe your situations in detail using “what”. Try to describe your experience in as objective a way as possible. Here there is no need to tell about anyone else's analysis or their judgment.
Analyse the situation using “so what” to describe What did you learn, what emotions did you face, what influenced your actions, etc. Finally in “Now what” you have to determine how you can make these situations better in future.
For better reflection, you can practice these things regularly. Continue practice will benefit you a lot and you will be able to handle every situation in a better way.
What have we learned so far?
So that was a detailed blog on Rolfe's model of reflection, where we understood how the model has formed a circle around "What?", "So What?" and “Now what” such questions. You can use this model to deeply analyse your past experiences and improve them in the future. Professor Garry Rolfe's model of reflection will help you develop your personal and professional growth skills.
Especially nursing and healthcare students, you all continue to practice this model. It will help a lot in giving valuable insights to everyone and if you have any doubt then feel free to contact our Nursing experts. You can also get help from our experts on many topics including this model. New assignment help's highly qualified nursing experts will give you guidance on each topic. We also offer Nursing assignment help in the UK at an affordable price.
Stay connected and keep reflecting!
