Reconfiguring Reflexivity in the Era of AI: From “Turning Back” to “Looking Forward” Through Constructivist and Posthumanist Lenses

Abstract

Reflexivity has long been central to qualitative research, supporting ethical, epistemological, and methodological rigor. However, the increasing use of AI, especially generative AI (GenAI), in qualitative inquiry both unsettles and reconfigures reflexive practice. Drawing on constructivist and posthumanist perspectives, this paper examines how GenAI generates distinct but interconnected dilemmas. For constructivism, it may undermine reflexivity through cognitive offloading, speed-driven research cultures, and reduced transparency, thereby challenging human-centered assumptions of meaning-making. For posthumanism, it complicates reflexivity by raising questions about distributed agency and accountability, even as GenAI is positioned as an interlocutor in relational and distributed forms of reflexive engagement. The paper proposes a multidimensional model of forward reflexivity in the era of AI. It argues that reflexivity under the AI condition must become forward-facing, as qualitative outputs increasingly become training data that will shape future knowledge-making, future researchers, and society.