The value and credibility of reflexivity and the use of the “I” in counseling and psychotherapy research continue to engender much controversy. Some of the many issues related to this debate are explored in this article, including the purpose of counseling and psychotherapy; the value of therapeutic writing; the place of autoethnography and collective biography in this increasingly positivist field of research, and their ethical implications; and the restraints imposed by funding paradigms. Three fictional research students and their lecturer offer diverse views.
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