Reflexivity in sensitive nursing research: challenges, tensions and methodological insights

Reflexivity is widely recognised as central to qualitative inquiry, yet there remains limited discussion of how researchers navigate it in emotionally sensitive research.

This article critically reflects on the first author's experience of conducting an interpretative qualitative study in adult safeguarding in residential care settings and examines how reflexivity was enacted across recruitment, interviewing, analysis and interpretation.

Drawing on reflexive journaling, supervision and ongoing critical self-questioning, we explore the emotional, relational and methodological tensions encountered during the research process, including uncertainty, emotional proximity and the negotiation of researcher identity.

Rather than presenting reflexivity as a procedural requirement, we illustrate how it operates as an iterative, emotionally embedded practice that shapes ethical sensitivity and analytic decision-making.

By offering practice-based methodological insights, this article contributes to ongoing methodological discussions about the enactment of reflexivity in sensitive qualitative research.