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Gibbs' Reflective Cycle

Helping people learn from experience.

By the Mind Tools Content Team

gibbs reflective cycle format

Many people find that they learn best from experience.

However, if they don't reflect on their experience, and if they don't consciously think about how they could do better next time, it's hard for them to learn anything at all.

This is where Gibbs' Reflective Cycle is useful. You can use it to help your people make sense of situations at work, so that they can understand what they did well and what they could do better in the future.

What Is Gibbs' Reflective Cycle?

Professor Graham Gibbs published his Reflective Cycle in his 1988 book " Learning by Doing ." It's particularly useful for helping people learn from situations that they experience regularly, especially when these don't go well.

Gibbs' cycle is shown below.

Figure 1 – Gibbs' Reflective Cycle

gibbs reflective cycle format

From "Learning by Doing" by Graham Gibbs. Published by Oxford Polytechnic, 1988.

Gibbs' original model had six stages. The stage we haven't covered here is "Analysis" – we've included this as part of the Evaluation stage.

Using the Model

You can use the model to explore a situation yourself, or you can use it with someone you're coaching – we look at coaching use in this article, but you can apply the same approach when you're on your own.

To structure a coaching session using Gibbs' Cycle, choose a situation to analyze and then work through the steps below.

Step 1: Description

First, ask the person you're coaching to describe the situation in detail. At this stage, you simply want to know what happened – you'll draw conclusions later.

Consider asking questions like these to help them describe the situation:

  • When and where did this happen?
  • Why were you there?
  • Who else was there?
  • What happened?
  • What did you do?
  • What did other people do?
  • What was the result of this situation?

Step 2: Feelings

Next, encourage them to talk about what they thought and felt during the experience. At this stage, avoid commenting on their emotions.

Use questions like these to guide the discussion:

  • What did you feel before this situation took place?
  • What did you feel while this situation took place?
  • What do you think other people felt during this situation?
  • What did you feel after the situation?
  • What do you think about the situation now?
  • What do you think other people feel about the situation now?

It might be difficult for some people to talk honestly about their feelings. Use Empathic Listening at this stage to connect with them emotionally, and to try to see things from their point of view.

You can use the Perceptual Positions technique to help this person see the situation from other people's perspectives.

Step 3: Evaluation

Now you need to encourage the person you're coaching to look objectively at what approaches worked, and which ones didn't.

  • What was positive about this situation?
  • What was negative?
  • What went well?
  • What didn't go so well?
  • What did you and other people do to contribute to the situation (either positively or negatively)?

If appropriate, use a technique such as the 5 Whys to help your team member uncover the root cause of the issue.

Step 4: Conclusions

Once you've evaluated the situation, you can help your team member draw conclusions about what happened.

Encourage them to think about the situation again, using the information that you've collected so far. Then ask questions like these:

  • How could this have been a more positive experience for everyone involved?
  • If you were faced with the same situation again, what would you do differently?
  • What skills do you need to develop, so that you can handle this type of situation better?

Step 5: Action

You should now have some possible actions that your team member can take to deal with similar situations more effectively in the future.

In this last stage, you need to come up with a plan so that they can make these changes.

Once you've identified the areas they'll work on, get them to commit to taking action, and agree a date on which you will both review progress.

Frequently Asked Questions About Gibbs' Reflective Cycle

What is purpose of Gibbs' Reflective Cycle?

The reflective cycle is a way to better learn from experience. It can be used to help people learn from mistakes, to make sense of situations, and analyse and refelct on their reactions to different situations.

What are the six stages of reflection?

The stages of Gibbs' Reflective Cycle are the following: descrition, feelings, evaluation, conclusion, and action. In the original model Gibbs included a sixth stage, analysis, which we've included in the evaluation stage.

What is the difference between Gibbs and Kolb's reflective cycles?

David Kolb's cycle has only four stages: concrete experience, reflective observation, abstract conceptualization, and active experimentation. Kolb's model is more about explaining the concept of what he calls "experiential learning" – whereas Gibbs' cycle is an attempt to provide a practical method for learning from experience.

This tool is structured as a cycle, reflecting an ongoing coaching relationship. Whether you use it this way depends on the situation and your relationship with the person being coached.

Graham Gibbs published his Reflective Cycle in 1988. There are five stages in the cycle:

  • Description.
  • Evaluation.
  • Conclusions.

You can use it to help team members think about how they deal with situations, so that they can understand what they did wel and where they need to improve.

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  • Learn From Your Past Experience with Gibb’s Reflective Cycle
  • Exploring Different Types of Reflection Models with Examples

Jessica Robinson - Image

You must have heard about Gibbs' reflective cycle. It is a widely prominent reflective cycle that helps individuals to work through past experiences and improve future practices. Gibbs' The reflective cycle was developed by Graham Gibbs in 1988 with the main aim of structuring individual learnings from past experiences (Markkanen et al., 2020). Effective utilization of this cycle offers a wide opportunity to examine past experiences and improve future actions.

Table of Contents

Six stages of gibbs' reflective cycle.

  • Example of Gibbs' reflective cycle

Hence, the efficacious use of Gibbs' reflective cycle helps individuals to learn from past experiences that went well as well as past experiences that did not. The 6 stages of Gibbs' cycle include description, feelings, evaluation, analysis, conclusion, and action plan (Smith & Roberts, 2015).

For each step of this framework, you can work on a set of helpful questions given below to properly reflect on your past experiences and situations.

Stage 1: Description

The first step in Gibbs' reflective cycle is a description where you get an opportunity to properly describe a situation based on your experience. The following questions can assist you in describing your experience are

  • What happened? In this, you will explain the factual information about the experience you want to reflect upon.
  • Why did it happen? In this, you will underline the main reason behind the occurrence of the event.
  • What did you do? While answering this question, you will highlight all the actions taken by you.
  • Who was present? In this, you will highlight all the people that were present during the event.
  • What were the major outcomes? In this, you will underline the results of the actions that were taken by you.

Using these questions, you will provide complete background information about an incident as well as a factual description of the event you want to reflect upon.

Stage 2: Feelings

The second step in Gibbs’ reflective cycle is an analysis of your feelings where you can describe your thoughts as well as feelings in detail to reflect on the corresponding experience of your feelings. You can reflect on this phase on the basis of a few assisting questions given below:

  • What did you feel? In this section, you will highlight your feelings during the experience.
  • Why did you feel this way? You will highlight the major reasons behind feeling the way you were feeling.
  • How did other external factors influence your feelings? In this section, you will underline the positive or negative influence of other external factors such as the environment, and other involved people on your feelings.
  • How did other internal factors influence your feelings? In this section, you will highlight the influence of various internal factors such as mindset, attitude, and physical or mental health.

These questions will help you to describe your feelings and the way in detail and will also assist in making the reader understand your emotional aspect from the incident you are reflecting upon.

Stage 3: Evaluation

In the evaluation phase, you get a chance to properly evaluate what worked well and what didn't work well. This phase includes the evaluation of experiences from both good as well as bad points, allowing you to mentally create a report of the experience. Below given are the questions that can be answered in this phase

  • What worked well? In this, you will highlight the positive outcomes of your actions throughout the experience.
  • What didn't work well? This will highlight all the negative outcomes of your actions taken by you throughout the experience.
  • What did you contribute? Through this question, you will highlight your contribution to the whole experience.
  • What did others contribute? While answering this question, you will highlight the actions of others that were involved in the situation.
  • What was missing? In this, you will highlight the actions that were missing in the experience as per your opinion.

Based on these questions, you can honestly and objectively evaluate the past situation which will also help you in setting a base for future actions.

Elaboration of Gibbs reflective cycle

Stage 4: Analysis

In an analysis phase, you can make sense of a whole situation and determine the exact meaning of a situation along with the reasons for its success or failure. Some helpful questions for the analysis phase of Gibbs’ reflective cycle include

  • Why did things not work well? In this, you will point out the reason as per your knowledge that contributed to the failures of your actions in your experience.
  • Why did things go well? Through this section, you will highlight the reasons behind the success of your actions.
  • What is the exact meaning that we can drive from a situation? While answering this question, you will highlight the overall analysis of the situation.

Based on the analysis, you can get a clear picture of the situation and ensure that every aspect of the situation is covered and understood meticulously.

Stage 5: Conclusion

After a proper situation analysis, you can also conclude the whole situation by reflecting on your learnings. In this phase, you can highlight changes that you need to make to your actions while dealing with future situations. In this phase, a list of questions includes

  • What did you learn? In this, you will highlight all of your main learnings of the situation.
  • What skills do you need to gain to handle situations more effectively? Through this, you will highlight the requirements of the skills for handling the situation better in the future.
  • What else could you have done to deal with situations differently? In this, you will highlight the alternative actions that you could have taken to respond to the same situation in a different manner.

After the analysis, in the conclusion phase, using the above questions, you will clearly outline your learnings and the skills gained through the experience.

Stage 6: Action plan

In the action plan stage in Gibbs’ reflective cycle, you can plan to deal with future situations. It is an important phase of this reflective cycle as this phase helps to determine ways to deal with similar situations in the future and actions that you need to take to improve your ability to deal with various situations. Some questions that can be considered in this stage include

  • How will you deal with this situation more effectively in the future? In this, you will highlight the actions that you have thought of that will help you in dealing with a similar situation differently in the future.
  • How will you develop your skills and abilities to deal with similar situations? In this situation, you will highlight the methods in which you will develop the skills for dealing with situations more effectively.

After understanding the cycle, let us now take an example of reflective practice in health education to reflect on the learning situation using Gibbs’ reflective cycle.

Gibbs’ reflective cycle example in health education

Case assessment - This reflective example will highlight the experience of students in a group task of completing a health project. In this, a student will reflect upon a group task assigned to students during their MSc in health practice.

While doing my MSc in health practice, I was required to engage in various group work assignments and during a certain group work task, my team members decided to divide tasks among group members. All team members encouraged me to divide the tasks among the team. I divided tasks among team members according to their knowledge regarding various healthcare practices to ensure that all tasks are completed within a set deadline. All team members encouraged me to divide the tasks among the team. I divided tasks among team members according to their knowledge regarding various healthcare practices to ensure that all tasks are completed within a set deadline. However, I failed to consider the risk of various contingencies in completing projects and the same occurred when one of our team members was hospitalized due to some health emergency which resulted in a lack of task completion assigned to that team member. My whole team was present when I got a call from the injured team member about the accident that occurred to him. This then resulted in an increased burden to complete tasks among team members and failure to complete a task on time.

Before beginning the health project, I was very confident regarding my team management capabilities. I felt that our team will be able to complete assigned tasks on time due to my strong knowledge and abilities. I was already feeling very guilty that our project got delayed because of my lack of planning but the external factors made me feel even worse. Other than that, I felt like it was my overconfidence that made me feel more guilty because things did not work as planned.

During the group health project, a thing that worked well was the effort of team members to complete work within the extended deadline was cooperation as well as motivation among all team members. However, I believe that the hospitalization of one team member resulted in a lack of task completion on time. I felt that contingency planning is one most important requirement in a team project which was missing in this project. Thus, I believe that I am also responsible for the bad repercussions of this situation as I failed to properly plan and did not consider the risks of contingencies in a group. But still, till the end, everyone contributed effectively and did not lose hope till the end and gave their best.

I think the major reasons behind the successful completion were group efforts, cooperation abilities, self-identification of strengths, effective division of tasks, and ability to help others. However, the only thing that created a problem in completing a project is a lack of time management and planning capabilities. Through this whole experience, I believe that I need to focus on improving my time management skills as well as leading the ability to effectively manage group tasks.

After getting into this group health project, I got to know that time management and contingency planning are important skills that every project manager needs to possess to effectively manage group tasks. I also found that team management is possible only through the cooperation of team members as well as their effort to give the best results to a team project. I learned that as a project manager, it is always better to have a contingency plan ready for implementation than to develop one as risk is taking its toll (Heimann, J. F. 2000). However, I found that various problems can arise in a group task which could be managed effectively by making contingency plans for such situations in advance. I would have prepared contingency plans in the beginning and I believe that it would have helped me in dealing with situations differently.

In order to deal with this situation in the future, I have decided that I will use various time management tools such as PERT and CPM while planning various group tasks to keep separate times for various contingencies. For enhancing my time management and planning skills, I have decided to use time management skills such as making time tables and assigning time blocks for each task. If a similar situation occurs again in the future, I will ensure that in the planning phase only, I take time for contingency planning and plan things accordingly.

How to reference Gibbs reflective cycle?

To reference Gibbs' reflective cycle, include the author's name "Gibbs" and the publication year (if available) in parentheses. For instance, in APA style, it would be: (Gibbs, 1988). If you use a direct quote, add the page number as well.

Can Gibbs' Reflective Model be used in any profession?

Yes, the model is versatile and applicable in various professions and fields, including education, healthcare, social work, and more.

What are the disadvantages of Gibb's reflective cycle?

Gibbs' reflective cycle lacks a strong theoretical foundation and may not suit complex or long-term learning experiences. Some of you may even find its structured approach restrictive that could potentially overlook unique aspects of individual experiences. Additionally, it may not be universally applicable to various learning contexts.

Previous Model

Markkanen, P., Välimäki, M., Anttila, M., & Kuuskorpi, M. (2020). A reflective cycle: Understanding challenging situations in a school setting. Educational Research, 62(1), 46-62. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131881.2020.1711790

Smith, J., & Roberts, R. (2015). Reflective Practice. Vital Signs For Nurses, 222-230. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119139119.ch14

Heimann, J. F. (2000). Contingency planning as a necessity. Paper presented at Project Management Institute Annual Seminars & Symposium, Houston, TX. Newtown Square, PA: Project Management Institute.

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gibbs reflective cycle format

  • Gibbs' Reflective Cycle

May 9, 2023

Delve into Gibbs' Reflective Cycle, a powerful tool fostering critical thinking, deep learning, and professional growth through reflection.

Main, P (2023, May 09). Gibbs' Reflective Cycle. Retrieved from https://www.structural-learning.com/post/gibbs-reflective-cycle

What is Gibbs' Reflective Cycle?

Gibbs' Reflective Cycle is a popular model for reflection, acting as a structured method to enable individuals to think systematically about the experiences they had during a specific situation.

Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle is a widely used and accepted model of reflection . Developed by Graham Gibbs in 1988 at Oxford Polytechnic, now Oxford Brookes University, this reflective cycle framework is widely used within various fields such as healthcare, education, and management to enhance professional and personal development . It has since become an integral part of reflective practice, allowing individuals to reflect on their experiences in a structured way.

The cycle consists of six stages which must be completed in order for the reflection to have a defined purpose. The first stage is to describe the experience. This is followed by reflecting on the feelings felt during the experience, identifying what knowledge was gained from it, analyzing any decisions made in relation to it and considering how this could have been done differently.

The final stage of the cycle is to come up with a plan for how to approach similar experiences in future.

Gibbs' Reflective Cycle encourages individuals to consider their own experiences in a more in-depth and analytical way, helping them to identify how they can improve their practice in the future.

A survey from the British Journal of Midwifery found that 63% of healthcare professionals regularly used Gibbs' Reflective Cycle as a tool for reflection.

"Reflection is a critical component of professional nursing practice and a strategy for learning through practice. This integrative review synthesizes the literature on nursing students’ reflection on their clinical experiences." – Beverly J. Bowers, RN, PhD

The Six Stages of Gibbs' Reflective Cycle

The Gibbs reflective cycle consists of six distinct stages: Description, Feelings, Evaluation, Analysis, Conclusion, and Action Plan. Each stage prompts the individual to examine their experiences through questions designed to incite deep and critical reflection. For instance, in the 'Description' stage, one might ask: "What happened?". This questioning method encourages a thorough understanding of both the event and the individual's responses to it.

To illustrate, let's consider a student nurse reflecting on an interaction with a patient. In the 'Description' stage, the student might describe the patient's condition, their communication with the patient, and the outcome of their interaction. Following this, they would move on to the 'Feelings' stage, where they might express how they felt during the interaction, perhaps feeling confident, anxious, or uncertain.

The 'Evaluation' stage would involve the student reflecting on their interaction with the patient, considering how they could have done things differently and what went well. In the 'Analysis' stage, the student might consider the wider implications of their actions and how this impacted on the patient's experience.

Finally, in the 'Conclusion' stage, the student would summarise their reflections by noting what they have learned from the experience. They would then set an 'Action Plan' for how they will apply this newfound knowledge in their future practice.

Gibbs' Reflective Cycle is a useful tool for nurses to utilize in order to reflect on their past experiences and improve their practice. By using reflective questions , nurses can actively engage in reflection and identify areas for improvement. 

  • Description : Start by objectively recounting the experience. Helpful questions to ask include: What happened? Who was involved? When and where did this occur?
  • Feelings : Capture your emotional response to the experience. It's essential to acknowledge both positive and negative emotions, as they significantly affect our interpretation of the event.
  • Evaluation : Assess the good and bad aspects of the experience. What worked well, and what didn't? What were the positive impacts and negative consequences?
  • Analysis : Dig deeper into understanding why things unfolded as they did. This analysis stage is where you draw on relevant literature and professional knowledge to interpret the experience.
  • Conclusion : Determine what you could have done differently and what you've learned from the experience.
  • Action Plan : Develop a plan detailing what you'll do if a similar situation arises in the future.

Gibbs Reflective Cycle

Examples of the Reflective Model in Practice

The Gibbs Reflective Cycle, a model of reflection, can be a powerful tool for learning and personal development across various vocations. Here are five fictional examples:

  • Nursing : A nurse named Jane had a challenging interaction with a patient. Using the Gibbs Reflective Cycle, she first described the situation and her initial reactions. She then reflected on her feelings, identifying negative emotions that arose. During the analysis stage, she realized that her communication skills needed improvement. She concluded that better communication could have led to a more positive outcome. Finally, she developed a personal development plan to improve her communication skills, demonstrating the positive impacts of deep level reflection.
  • Teaching : A teacher, Mr. Smith, had difficulty managing his classroom . He used the Gibbs Reflective Cycle to reflect on a particularly chaotic day. He identified negative aspects of his classroom management strategy and, through critical thinking, realized that he needed to set clearer expectations for his students. He then developed a plan to implement these changes, showing how the approach to reflection can lead to actionable improvements .
  • Customer Service : Sarah, a customer service representative, received constructive feedback from a customer who was dissatisfied with the service. She used the Gibbs Reflective Cycle to reflect on the interaction, identifying her feelings of disappointment and analyzing what went wrong. She concluded that she needed to improve her problem-solving skills and developed a plan to do so.
  • Management : A manager, Tom, struggled with delegating tasks to his team. He used the Gibbs Reflective Cycle to reflect on a project that was delayed due to his reluctance to delegate. He identified his fear of losing control as a negative emotion and realized during the analysis stage that trust in his team was crucial. He then developed a plan to practice delegation in future projects.
  • Counseling : A counselor, Dr. Lee, felt that her recent sessions with a client were not productive. She used the Gibbs Reflective Cycle to reflect on these sessions . She identified feelings of frustration and, upon analysis, realized that she needed to adjust her counseling techniques to better suit her client's needs. She then developed a plan to implement these changes.

These examples illustrate how the Gibbs Reflective Cycle can facilitate learning and reflection across different vocations, leading to personal and professional growth.

An Exploration of Gibbs' Model

Gibbs' Reflective Cycle offers a structured approach to reflection, making it a helpful tool for educators and learners alike. The model encourages critical reflection , stimulating the ability to analyze experiences through questions and transform them into valuable learning opportunities.

Experiential Learning , a concept closely tied with reflection, suggests that we learn from our experiences, particularly when we engage in reflection and active experimentation . Gibbs' model bridges the gap between theory and practice, offering a framework to capture and analyze experiences in a meaningful way.

By using Gibbs' model, educators can guide students through their reflective process , helping them extract valuable lessons from their positive and negative experiences.

Gibbs reflective cycle

Application of Gibbs' Reflective Cycle in Real-World Scenarios

The flexibility and simplicity of Gibbs' Reflective Cycle make it widely applicable in various real-world scenarios, from personal situations to professional practice.

For instance, Diana Eastcott, a nursing educator, utilized Gibbs' model to facilitate her students' reflection on their clinical practice experience. The students were encouraged to reflect on their clinical experiences, analyze their reactions and feelings, and construct an action plan for future patient interactions. This process not only enhanced their professional knowledge but also fostered personal growth and emotional resilience.

In another example, Bob Farmer, a team leader in a tech company, used Gibbs' Cycle to reflect on a project that didn't meet expectations. He guided his team through the reflective process, helping them identify areas for improvement and develop strategies for better future outcomes.

These scenarios underline the versatility of Gibbs' model, demonstrating its value in both educational and professional settings.

  • ( Gibbs Reflective Cycle , University of Northampton, https://www.northampton.ac.uk )
  • ( Gibbs' Reflective Cycle , Oxford Brookes University, https://www.brookes.ac.uk )
  • ( Reflective Practice , San Francisco State University, https://www.sfsu.edu )

Gibbs reflective cycle template

Gibbs' Reflective Cycle for Personal and Professional Development

The use of Gibbs' Reflective Cycle can have profound effects on personal and professional development. It aids in recognizing strengths, weaknesses, and areas for improvement, providing an avenue for constructive feedback and self-improvement.

In the context of professional development , Gibbs' model promotes continuous learning and adaptability. By transforming bad experiences into learning opportunities, individuals can enhance their competencies and skills , preparing them for similar future situations.

Moreover, the reflective cycle promotes emotional intelligence by encouraging individuals to explore their feelings and reactions to different experiences. Acknowledging and understanding negative emotions can lead to increased resilience, better stress management, and improved interpersonal relationships.

Implementing Gibbs reflective cycle

Transforming Experiences into Learning: The Role of Gibbs' Reflective Cycle

Gibbs' Reflective Cycle is a practical tool that transforms experiences into learning. It incorporates principles of Experiential Learning and emphasizes the importance of abstract conceptualization and active experimentation in the learning process.

In the field of education, Gibbs' model can significantly influence teaching methods. It encourages educators to incorporate reflective practices in their teaching methods, promoting a deeper understanding of course material and facilitating the application of theoretical knowledge in practical scenarios.

Moreover, the model can be used to encourage students to reflect on their experiences, both within and outside the classroom, and learn from them. This process fosters critical thinking, problem-solving skills, and personal growth, equipping students with the skills they need for lifelong learning.

Embracing Gibbs cycle in your organisation

Here's a list of guidance tips for organizations interested in embracing Gibbs' Reflective Cycle as their professional development model.

  • Understanding the Gibbs Reflective Cycle : Before implementing, ensure that everyone in the organization understands the Gibbs Reflective Cycle model. This model consists of six stages: Description, Feelings, Evaluation, Analysis, Conclusion, and Action Plan. The goal is to encourage deep level reflection on experiences to foster learning and improve future actions.
  • Promote a Culture of Reflection : Encourage everyone in the organization to incorporate reflection into their daily routine. Reflection should not be seen as an added task, but rather as an integral part of the professional development process.
  • Use Real-Life Situations : For the methods in education to be effective, use real-life situations when applying the Gibbs Reflective Cycle. This way, employees can relate to the experiences, making the reflection process more relevant and meaningful.
  • Encourage Sharing of Reflections : Create a safe space for individuals to share their reflections. This could be through team meetings, one-on-one sessions with managers, or through online platforms. Sharing allows for collective learning and may provide different perspectives on the same situation.
  • Integrate Reflective Practice in Training Programs : Use the Gibbs Reflective Cycle in training programs. After each training session, encourage participants to go through the reflective cycle. This can help them understand the training content better and apply it in their work.
  • Link Reflection to Personal Development : Connect the outcome of the reflection to personal development plans. The Action Plan stage of the cycle should feed into the individual's personal development plan, helping them identify areas of strength and areas needing improvement.
  • Provide Guidance and Support : Provide guidance and support in the early stages of implementing the Gibbs Reflective Cycle. This could include providing templates or guides, or offering training on how to use the model effectively.
  • Continuous Review and Feedback : Regularly review the use of the Gibbs Reflective Cycle in your organization and provide feedback. This will help ensure that the model is being used effectively and is helping individuals in their professional development.
  • Model Reflective Practice : Leaders and managers should model reflective practice themselves. This shows that the organization values reflective practice and can motivate employees to engage in it themselves.
  • Celebrate Success : Recognize and celebrate when reflective practice leads to positive changes or improvements. This can motivate employees to continue using the Gibbs Reflective Cycle in their professional development.

What is the Difference Between Kolb's and Gibbs' Reflective Cycle?

Both Kolb's Experiential Learning Theory and Gibbs' Reflective Cycle are influential learning methods used extensively in education and professional development. While they share similarities, such as promoting a cyclical learning process and fostering a deeper understanding of experiences, there are key differences.

Kolb's cycle consists of four stages: Concrete Experience, Reflective Observation, Abstract Conceptualization, and Active Experimentation. It focuses more on the transformation of direct experience into knowledge, emphasizing the role of experience in learning.

On the other hand, Gibbs' cycle, with its six stages, places a greater emphasis on emotions and their impact on learning. For example, a team leader might use Kolb's cycle to improve operational skills after a failed project, focusing on what happened and how to improve. However, using Gibbs' cycle, the same leader would also reflect on how the failure made them feel, and how those feelings might have influenced their decision-making.

Other notable Learning Methods and Cycles

Please note that each of these theories or models has been developed and refined over time, and they each have their own strengths and weaknesses depending on the specific learning context or goals.

Adopting the Cycle in Education

Gibbs' Reflective Cycle is an invaluable tool for nurturing professional skills and fostering personal growth. By systematically integrating this reflective model into educational practices, institutions can significantly enhance their students' professional development.

Here are seven innovative ways educational institutions can harness the power of Gibbs' Reflective Cycle to boost skill acquisition , operational proficiency, leadership capabilities, and personal skills mastery.

  • Incorporate Reflective Practice in Curriculum: Educational institutions can incorporate Gibbs' Reflective Cycle into their curriculum, making it a regular part of learning. This can encourage students to develop professional skills by continually reflecting on their experiences and learning from them.
  • Real-World Scenarios: By using real-world situations or case studies, educational institutions can provide practical instances for students to apply the reflective cycle. This will help them understand the type of situation they might encounter in their professional life and how to handle it.
  • Promote Skill Acquisition: Gibbs' cycle can be used as a tool for skill acquisition. By reflecting on their performance in various tasks and projects, students can identify their strengths and areas that need improvement. This can aid in the development of operational skills, leadership skills, and personal skills.
  • Professional Development Workshops: Educational institutions can organize workshops that focus on the application of Gibbs' Reflective Cycle for professional development. These workshops could provide hands-on training on how to use the cycle effectively.
  • Reflective Journals: Encourage students to keep a reflective journal. This practice can help students regularly apply Gibbs' cycle, promoting introspection, and the development of key leadership skills.
  • Mentorship Programs: Implement mentorship programs where experienced professionals guide students in applying Gibbs' Reflective Cycle. This can provide students with valuable insights into how reflective practice can enhance their professional skills.
  • Assessments Based on Reflection: Design assessments that value reflective practice. Instead of solely focusing on theoretical knowledge, consider students' ability to reflect on their experiences and learn from them. This approach can make learning more engaging and relevant to real-world situations.

In the journey of life and work, we continuously encounter new situations, face challenges, and make decisions that shape our personal and professional trajectory. It's in these moments that Gibbs' Reflective Cycle emerges as a guiding compass, providing a structured framework to analyze experiences, draw insights, and plan our future course of action.

Underlying the model is the philosophy of lifelong learning. By encouraging critical reflection, it empowers us to not just passively experience life, but to actively engage with it, to question, and to learn. It's through this reflection that we move from the realm of 'doing' to 'understanding', transforming experiences into knowledge.

Moreover, the model emphasizes the importance of an action-oriented approach. It propels us to use our reflections to plan future actions, promoting adaptability and growth. Whether you're an educator using the model to enhance your teaching methods , a student exploring the depths of your learning process, or a professional striving for excellence in your field, Gibbs' Reflective Cycle can be a powerful tool.

In an ever-changing world, where the pace of change is accelerating, the ability to learn, adapt, and evolve is paramount. Reflective practices, guided by models such as Gibbs', provide us with the skills and mindset to navigate this change effectively. They empower us to learn from our past, be it positive experiences or negative experiences, and use these lessons to shape our future.

From fostering personal growth and emotional resilience to enhancing professional practice and shaping future outcomes , the benefits of Gibbs' Reflective Cycle are manifold. As we continue our journey of growth and learning, this model serves as a beacon, illuminating our path and guiding us towards a future of continuous learning and development.

  • Reflection in Learning and Professional Development
  • The Reflective Practitioner
  • Reflective Practice: The Teacher in the Mirror
  • The Impact of Reflective Practice on Teaching Effectiveness
  • Reflective Practice: A Guide for Nurses and Midwives
  • Reflective practice in nursing
  • Learning by Doing: A Guide to Teaching and Learning Methods
  • Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle

gibbs reflective cycle format

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Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle

What is the gibbs' reflective cycle.

The Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle is a Tool that helps professionals Grow and Learn from their past Experiences .

To do this, it proposes to analyze the Situations in which someone wants to Improve.

  • Drawing Conclusions that allow us to do things better in the future.

It consists of  6 Repetitive Steps (a cycle):

  • Description .
  • Evaluation .
  • Conclusion .
  • Action Plan .

This cycle must be repeated until Obtaining the Desired Results .

The Six Steps of Gibbs' Reflective Cycle

1. Description : Describe in detail the Situation in which you want to improve .

  • A Negotiation, A Decision you made, a Discussion with your employees, etc.

2. Feelings : Reflect on How you Felt in that Situation, How you Coped with it.

  • Did you feel Insecure? Did you feel Determined? Did you Hesitate?

3. Evaluation : Evaluate the Experience and its Outcome , Objectively.

  • What Consequences did it have, What worked, What did not, etc.

4. Analysis : Analyze the Reasons that explain the Result of this Situation.

  • Why something worked or didn’t work. Why you Made that Decision, etc.

5. Conclusion : Get the Lessons from this Analysis; How to do things better.

  • What could have been done better? What could be done in a different way?

6. Action Plan : Develop and Implement a Plan to do things better.

  • Applying the Conclusions obtained in this Cycle.

Repeat the Cycle until Reaching the Desired Results .

Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle Template

Now, before sharing some examples , we want to explain one important thing:

  • How to use this Cycle .

We know that it can get a bit Confusing (Feelings, Action Plan, etc).

That is why we’ll offer you a Guideline that you can Follow .

  • It can be used for your Personal Analysis or, in Coaching Situations.

How to use the Gibbs Reflective Cycle

Description : Details are important, as is the Context of any Situation.

  • The Place and People Involved.
  • What Interactions happened.

Feelings : They Can give us a Clue as to what we need to Improve .

  • If we feel Insecure, it is usually because we do not know the Subject well enough.
  • What made you feel Uncomfortable?
  • What made you feel Determined?

Evaluation : Here, you should not try to find Reasons , only Facts .

  • What worked, What didn’t work, and under What Circumstances.
  • The Outcome: What happened After the Situation?

Analysis : Now it is the time to find the Whys .

  • Why is the Reason something Worked? The Root Cause.
  • Potential Root causes causing you a Problem.

Conclusions : Time to “Connect the Dots” and obtain Solid Conclusions .

  • What Solid Conclusions have you Obtained?
  • What Could have been done better?

Action Plan : Now, you have to put things into Practice .

  • Set Specific, Measurable, Realistic and Time-Related Goals.
  • Use Objective Metrics.

Let’s see some examples:

Gibbs Reflective Cycle examples

Now, let’s Imagine that you have recently been Promoted to Manager .

You are very happy about it, but you do not feel very Comfortable when you face your employees .

  • Sometimes you have to impose yourself, so that what you say is done.

Also, it is something you would like to Improve on .

That is Why you decided to use Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle .

Let’s see How you use it:

Description - Gibbs Reflective Cycle example

The Situation in which you want to Improve :

  • It is You and your Employees (no matter Who).
  • You are In front of them alone or in a collective meeting.
  • You Want things to be done in a New way.
  • You Tell them how they have to do things from now on .

Feelings - Gibbs Reflective Cycle example

After thinking Carefully about it, you Discover that you Felt :

  • Anxious about Compelling People to do Something.
  • Insecure about you Authority.
  • Determined about the Need of doing the Things in a New Way.

Evaluation - Gibbs Reflective Cycle example

You then Evaluate what happens in these Situations :

  • You Compel your employees to do what you say.
  • They obey you.
  • Those who know you best Respond much better to your Commands .
  • Those who don’t know you are more Reluctant to change .

Analysis - Gibbs Reflective Cycle example

Now, you start thinking about the Whys :

  • This makes you Feel Insecure.
  • They don’t make you Feel Anxious or Insecure .
  • That and , the fact that you are New in the Position .

Conclusion - Gibbs Reflective Cycle example

You Obtain important Conclusions from this Analysis :

  • Or People that don’t know your Skills when making decisions.

This People are Reluctant to “obey” you, and make you Feel Insecure and Anxious.

  • So they will Trust you more.
  • And they will Trust your Authority more.

Action Plan - Gibbs Reflective Cycle example

Finally, you decide to Develop an Action Plan :

  • Starting with those who know you least.
  • Comparing the Previous Results with the Current ones.

You Estimate that you will need 2 months to have met with all your employees.

  • And decide if you need to repeat this Cycle again.

The Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle is a Tool that helps professionals Grow and Learn from their past Experiences.

Consists of 6 Repetitive Steps that must be repeated until getting the desired Results:

  • Description : Describe in detail the Situation in which you want to improve.
  • Feelings : Reflect on How you Felt in that Situation, How you Coped with it.
  • Evaluation : Evaluate the Experience and its Outcome, Objectively.
  • Analysis : Analyze the Reasons that explain the Result of this Situation.
  • Conclusion : Get the Lessons from this Analysis; How to do things better.
  • Action Plan : Develop and Implement a Plan to do things better.
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How To Lead a Gibbs Reflective Cycle Exercise (+Template)

Picture of Michelle Bennett

When was the last time you or your team stepped back and learned from an experience or situation at work? For many who are fighting to meet tight deadlines and deliver on pressing projects, taking time to learn from experience and reflect on situations falls by the wayside. 

However, new research shows that is a mistake, as taking time to reflect on scenarios at work improves performance in the long run. Harvard Business School Professor Francesca Gino explains why: "When we stop, reflect, and think about learning, we feel a greater sense of self-efficacy. We're more motivated, and we perform better afterward." To make reflection an intentional activity for your team, you’ll want to run a Gibbs Reflective Cycle exercise to help you make reflection an intentional activity. In this article, we’ll review the Gibbs Reflective Cycle, the corresponding model, and how to run the exercise, as well as provide you with a template you can use with your own team.

What is the Gibbs Reflective Cycle?

  • What is the Gibbs Model of Reflection?
  • How To Lead a Gibbs Reflective Cycle Exercise
  • Gibbs Reflective Cycle Template

The Gibbs Reflective Cycle is a systematic process that individuals and teams can use to reflect upon and learn from their experiences at work. Originally put forth by Professor Graham Gibbs in his 1988 book, Learn by Doing , the Gibbs Reflective Cycle is a step-by-step approach to analyzing and understanding the complexities of workplace situations. The purpose is to gain valuable insights and improve decision-making in the future.

gibbs reflective cycle format

What is the Gibbs Model of Reflection? What Are the Six Stages? 

The Gibbs Reflective Cycle centers on a model that consists of six stages, known as the Gibbs Model of Reflection. The model outlines the process by which individuals and teams follow to learn from different experiences at work. Here are the six stages and a brief description of each: 

  • Description
  • Action Plan 

The Gibbs Reflective Cycle - Niagara Institute

1. Description

The Gibbs Reflective Cycle starts by objectively describing the situation or experience that is to be evaluated and reflected upon. In this stage, you will provide details regarding the context and individuals involved, as well as any relevant background information.

2. Feelings

The second step in the Gibbs Reflective Cycle is to explore your emotions during the experience in question. Here, you will note the positive and negative feelings you had during the experience. Identifying and acknowledging emotions is critical to gaining a deeper understanding of the situation.

3. Evaluation 

At this stage of the Gibbs Reflective Cycle, you break down the experience into two areas - what went well and what could have been improved. It is in this stage that you will assess the strengths and weaknesses of your approach, considering both your actions and the outcomes.

4. Analysis

Now, it’s time to dig deeper into the situation to determine the root cause of the underlying factors contributing to the outcomes. Here is where you’ll begin to make sense of what happened by taking the details of what happened (steps one to three) and the meaning behind it.

5. Conclusion

Equipped with your analysis of the situation, you will want to summarize the key learnings from your reflection. Here, you will identify what you learned from this experience and the insights you will apply to similar situations in the future.

6. Action Plan

The last step of the Gibbs Reflective Cycle is to create an action plan based on your analysis and conclusions outlining the specific steps to be followed to improve performance or address any skill gaps. In this final reflection step, you will want to set measurable goals and define actionable strategies, such as a training plan , to help you implement the lesson learned and grow as an individual or team.

Instructions: How To Lead a Gibbs Reflective Cycle Exercise to Learn from Experience

Gibbs Reflective Cycle Template from Niagara Institute

Step 1: Pick the Situation and Detail What Happened

You will likely already have an idea of the situation in which you want your team to learn from experience. Situations often include when something goes wrong, a mistake is made , negative feedback is received, there is a conflict , a timeline isn’t met, or a goal is not achieved. Once the situation is determined, ask your team a series of questions to help describe the situation in detail. Here is a list of example questions you might ask:

  • When did this happen?
  • Who was involved?
  • What happened?
  • What was the team’s/individual’s response?
  • What was the response of the other people involved?
  • What was the outcome of this situation?

Step 2: Explore Feelings and Reactions

The next step is to explore the feelings and reactions related to the situation. The goal is to bring awareness to how certain feelings may have impacted the experience. Here is a list of example questions you might ask to encourage this level of reflection: 

  • What were your/the team’s feelings during the situation?
  • What were your/the team’s feelings before and after the situation?
  • What do you think other people were feeling about the situation?
  • What do you think they feel about the situation now?
  • What were you thinking during the situation?
  • What do you think about the situation now that some time has passed?

Step 3: Evaluate What Worked and What Didn’t

Once the situation has been clearly defined and feelings have been explored, it’s time to evaluate the situation by looking at the positives and negatives. While it may be hard, it is important that you and your team are objective and honest in your evaluation. Here are a few example questions you might ask during this step: 

  • What worked? What was good about the experience?
  • What didn’t work? What was bad about the experience?
  • What positive aspects did you, the team, and others contribute to the situation?
  • What negative aspects did you, the team, and others contribute to the situation?
  • Was the situation resolved in the end?

Step 4: Determine the Root Cause of the Situation

Next, you will want to identify the root cause of the situation or experience. You should draw upon theory or literature to help explain what happened. The Niagara Institute has a robust library of articles on teamwork, leadership, communication, and conflict management, to name a few. Here are a few questions to ask to help your team get to the bottom of the root cause: 

  • Why did things go well/badly?
  • Could you/the team respond in a different way?
  • What could have been done differently to improve the situation?
  • Is there any theory or literature that can explain what happened?

Step 5: Summarize What Happened and What Was Learned

Once that is complete, you and your team will need to come to a conclusion regarding what happened and what you have learned from it. Encourage your team to review the situation again by assessing the information you’ve gathered and tracked from the previous steps. To get them to do so, ask the following types of questions: 

  • What was learned from this situation?
  • What could have been done differently to make this a more positive experience for everyone involved?
  • What can you/the team now do better?
  • What skills (individual or team) are needed to ensure a better outcome next time?
  • Are there any new processes that should be implemented to ensure a better outcome?

Step 6: Create An Action Plan

The final step is to create an action plan that will help ensure similar situations are avoided or handled more effectively in the future. You’ll want to address any skill gaps, process improvements, or behavioral changes that need to be made. Doing so will show your leaders and those you lead that you’re proactive in making changes to ensure the outcome of a similar situation in the future will be different. Here are a few questions you may ask at this point: 

  • What skills or behaviors need to be developed?
  • What plans, policies, or procedures need to be implemented?
  • How will you/your team hold each other accountable to ensure the outcome is different next time?

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Reflection Toolkit

Reflecting on experience

A range of models that can be used to prompt and structure reflection on experience.

Using reflective models is one of the easiest ways to engage with the reflective process. The ones highlighted below will support you with structure, guidance and questions. Your use of these models might change depending of why you are doing reflection:

  • Private reflections can take on any form and language you want. You can be as creative or structured as you want as long as you ensure you go through the reflective process of self-questioning.
  • Reflection for an assignment often requires a particular language and structure. You should therefore always follow the guidelines provided by the staff who assess the assignment. Moreover, here you might want to keep somethings private – that’s okay. You should never share something you are not comfortable with.

More information about the different places reflection may happen and how to produce reflections for assignments can be found on:

Producing reflections (within Reflectors’ Toolkit)

The last thing to consider is that viewing the reflective process as a structured model is just one approach; you might prefer to reflect freely with no structure. In that case see:

Free-form reflection (within Reflectors’ Toolkit)

Gibbs' Reflective Cycle

gibbs reflective cycle format

What? So what? Now what? 

gibbs reflective cycle format

The Integrated Reflective Cycle

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The four F's of active reviewing

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The CARL framework of reflection

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The 5R framework for reflection

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  • J Med Libr Assoc
  • v.108(3); 2020 Jul 1

Elevation through reflection: closing the circle to improve librarianship

Jolene m. miller.

1 [email protected] , Director, Mulford Health Science Library, and Assistant Professor, Library Administration, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH

Stephanie Friree Ford

2 gro.srentrap@drofeerirfs , Manager, Library Resources, Mental Health Sciences Library, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA

3 ude.etatsonserf.liam@98gnaya , Science Librarian, University Library, California Health Sciences University, Clovis, CA

Associated Data

There are no data associated with this article.

Reflective practice is a strategy promoted as a way to improve professional performance and to develop expertise. Intentional reflection on work situations can lead to improved understanding of a specific situation, identify strategies for similar situations in the future, and uncover assumptions that hinder service to patrons. Research has identified lack of knowledge to be a barrier to health sciences librarians engaging in reflective practice. This article introduces the use of intentional reflection at work: what it is, how it helps, and how it can be applied in librarianship. It also provides practical advice on how to choose a format, how to use a model to guide reflection, and how to incorporate it into work.

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Object name is jmla-108-3-353-g003.jpg

Jolene M. Miller, MLS, AHIP

INTRODUCTION

In her 2017 article in the Journal of Information Literacy , Corrall captures the challenge of incorporating intentional reflection into professional practice: “reflection is a deceptively simple idea that is easy to grasp at a basic level but may be hard to put into practice in a professional [librarian] context” [ 1 ]. It is an everyday process that often happens without conscious thought, but reflection with the goal of improving professional practice requires intention. Reflective practice is the process of bringing intentional reflection to one's work to improve practice: providing better instruction, managing electronic resources more effectively, interacting with coworkers more collaboratively, and so on. It closes the loop: new understandings are applied to personal and organizational processes to improve performance. Discoveries about oneself have an impact on thoughts, feelings, and behavior; and relationships improve.

The good news is that no one is a blank slate with respect to reflection at work. The language of reflective practice and the use of models may be new, but the experience of thinking back on a situation and trying to make sense of it is universal. Having a formal process of reflective practice can help health sciences and medical librarians identify and develop best practices. This article, born out of an immersion session offered at the Medical Library Association (MLA) 2019 annual meeting [ 2 ], is designed to help readers incorporate reflection into their professional practice.

There are many diverse published models of reflective practice ( supplemental Appendix A ). They all have three main components: (1) description of the experience, (2) reflection on and exploration of why things happened as they did, and (3) identification of changes to thinking and behavior to improve the outcomes of future experiences. Reflective practice usually starts with consideration of a specific experience that had an unexpected outcome. Most models include guiding questions to make sure that all aspects of the experience are considered, such as external aspects (what happened, who was involved) and internal aspects (how one was feeling before, during, and after the experience). External sources of information such as observations of other people or data from evaluation forms may also be included.

After describing the experience, one reflects on it. This is the core of reflective practice. “Why” questions are common in this stage, guiding analysis and interpretation of the experience [ 3 ]. This stage includes judgments: What went well in the experience? What could have gone better? What was one's role in the outcome? What important aspects still need to be identified and considered? After reflection, there is an invitation to action. What could have been done differently? How might the outcome have been different? What needs to be done to improve practice in the future? This could be a change in how things are done or how other people are treated. It could also be a change in thinking about and approaching situations with a different mindset [ 4 ].

In addition to having different stages and questions, models approach reflective practice from different perspectives [ 5 ]. While all reflective practice models encourage deeper thought about a situation, critical reflection models encourage exploration of the assumptions underlying situations, which is a key step in critical librarianship. Use of critical reflective practice can “direct and inform action that carries social and ethical implications beyond the technical execution of library work” [ 6 ]. It provides a method for identifying personal and professional values, exploring where thoughts and actions diverge from these values [ 7 , 8 ], and identifying courses of action that are consistent with these values. It uncovers hidden biases that influence decision making and hinder high-quality service. In the context of critical librarianship, it is used to identify opportunities to dismantle oppressive social structures and systems such as white supremacy, patriarchy, and capitalism [ 9 ].

REASONS TO TAKE THE TIME TO ENGAGE IN REFLECTIVE PRACTICE

One of the greatest human attributes is the ability to think about and reflect on actions and experiences, whether an unexpected flash of self-reflection, a well-thought-out journal entry, or somewhere in between. As Taylor states, “Thinking can be a gift and a curse, depending on how we employ it in our daily lives” [ 10 ]. Based on one's mindset, an experience can be used for good or for ill. For example, an employee may use a negative evaluation as a reason to place full blame for their poor performance on others, rather than use it as a sign to explore their strengths and weaknesses, structural challenges, and ways to improve their performance.

Making the deliberate choice to engage in reflective practice harnesses the power of thought to improve professional practice. Using intentional reflection at work offers a variety of benefits. While the process directly benefits the librarian doing the reflecting, the resulting changes can extend out to the library, institution, and the profession. Some of the ways that reflective practice improves professional practice are explored below.

Uncovering inconsistencies in thought and action

There are often inconsistencies between what people say they believe and how they act. Critical reflective practice can be used to examine espoused theories (what one says one believes) and theory-in-use (how one acts) [ 11 , 12 ]. Identifying inconsistencies is the first step in understanding them and resolving them. Are they true inconsistencies or nuanced distinctions? What next actions are needed? Reflection can also facilitate the application of professional standards and ethics in practice [ 13 ].

Improving regulation of emotions

Reflective practice can improve regulation of emotions. It allows librarians to approach situations more objectively and less reactively by the process of cognitive reappraisal. Cognitive reappraisal is a way of thinking differently about a situation that changes internal emotional experiences and, in turn, external emotional expression [ 14 ], with the goal of modifying emotions that hinder effectiveness. Reflective practice provides space to explore situations and new ways of thinking about them, reducing their emotional impact and the emotional impact of future situations.

Reducing burnout

Health sciences and medical librarians provide an array of intensive services: systematic reviews, liaison support, evidence-based practice or critical appraisal instruction, and in-depth research assistance. Managing and providing these services can increase stress and burnout. As noted above, reflective practice facilitates cognitive appraisal, which in turn reduces the risk of burnout caused by emotional labor and suppression of emotions.

While reflective practice in and of itself cannot solve organizational issues that lead to burnout, it can be used to explore how role ambiguity and overload contributes to personal stress and burnout [ 15 ]. The results of this reflection can be used in conversations with supervisors to improve position-related and structural issues. In addition, reflective practice can reduce the chance of burnout resulting from “over-learning” repetitive and routine tasks [ 16 ]. Taking time to reflect interrupts the “hamster wheel” of activity, reconnecting daily work to the importance of health sciences librarians' role in patient care, education, and research.

Maximizing professional development

Library school cannot prepare graduates for every possible future, especially health sciences and medical librarians. They must take an active role in their continuing professional development. Many attend webinars and training, while others obtain their credentials through MLA's Academy of Health Information Professionals. Reflective practice can be used to get the most out of the time and money invested in both continuing education and the development of a portfolio for the academy. Taking time to reflect before and after continuing professional development activities can improve learning and assist in the application of new knowledge and skills. Reflective practice can also be used for big-picture planning for professional development [ 17 ]. While some continuing education courses include reflection, many do not, requiring librarians to take a more proactive role. Suggestions on how to apply reflective practice in continuing professional development are provided in Table 1 .

Using reflective practice for professional development

Demonstrating professional performance

While reflective practice works best when the librarian wants to be engaged in reflection, some institutions require self-reflection as a part of the performance evaluation process, such as part of a portfolio [ 18 , 19 ]. Because meaningful reflection requires privacy and a trusted environment, reflection on one's performance takes place before the self-evaluation document is written. The document reports on the outcomes of the self-reflection, rather than the full reflective process.

FORMATS FOR REFLECTIVE PRACTICE

Reflective practice can take on a variety of formats that can be used with a model, combination of models, or no model. Find the formats that work best, remembering that as needs change, so might preferred formats.

Reflecting alone without recording the reflections

The simplest way to engage in reflective practice is to reflect alone without recording the reflections. This is somewhat similar to meditation in that it is internal reflection; however, analysis and judgment occur that are absent in meditation. This format is a good option if time for reflective practice is short. It is better to think about a situation and not record, than to skip reflection altogether because of lack of time. One drawback to this format of reflective practice is that it relies on memory to track the outcomes of reflection.

Reflecting alone and capturing the reflection

Reflecting alone and recording the reflection is a popular format for reflective practice. Reflective writing (handwritten journal entry or typing an electronic document) is a common way to reflect, though audio or video recordings can also be used. The obvious benefit of this format is that the reflection is captured for future review. A less obvious but more important benefit of reflective writing is that the writing “is the reflective process,” rather than just a recording of the reflection [ 20 ], because the physical process of writing helps clarify thoughts and conclusions. Librarians who are not comfortable with writing could use a form (perhaps based on steps in a reflective practice model) to jot down key ideas from reflection.

Talking with another person, such as a colleague or mentor

For some, talking through reflection can be effective. Reflective conversation with another person, such as a colleague or a mentor, can lead to additional insight. An outsider's perspective and questions might shed some light on the situation and increase understanding. These conversations need to take place in an environment that is confidential in order to explore situations fully and honestly. Reflective conversations can also be held with a supervisor, though the power differential may hinder deep reflection and honesty. Reflective conversations have additional aspects that need to be considered, which are listed in supplemental Appendix B .

Talking with a group of people

Small group discussions are another format for those who would like to verbalize their reflections. Group members can support one another in their reflections and learn from each other's successes and mistakes. It can be a regularly scheduled meeting or one called specifically when someone is looking for outside perspectives. Health sciences and medical librarians who work in different environments (e.g., academic, hospital, corporate) can consider forming groups with the intention of conducting reflection. Having some commonalities and some differences supports rich discussion. While reflecting in a group has similar considerations as reflecting with one other person (confidentiality and potential power differentials), it has additional considerations, such as how the group will be facilitated. Supplemental Appendix B lists considerations for being part of a reflective small group.

Reflecting alone, followed by talking with others

Another option is a combination of reflecting alone and then talking with others, either one-on-one or in a group. This is particularly helpful for those who have trouble identifying the outside perspective or overcoming other challenges in the reflective process. Talking to one or more colleagues can foster deeper individual reflection. Personality, preference, and opportunity will have an impact on format choice. Regardless of the chosen formats, reflection can be freeform or follow a model.

USE OF A MODEL

There is no formal model for conducting reflection that is geared toward health sciences and medical librarians; however, there are many published models in other professions. A reflective practice model can be used exactly as described in the literature or it can be used as a loose guide. As noted above, it can be turned into a form, where brief answers or comments can be jotted down without extra narrative. Models often provide a visual structure of the reflective process, which allow individuals who are reflecting to incorporate a process for thinking about their experiences, rather than have thoughts float around out of context [ 10 ]. Using a model can be particularly helpful for people who are new to reflective practice or for those who want to deepen their practice. Three example models are described below. Additional models can be found in supplemental Appendix A .

Situation, Evidence, Action (SEA)-Change Model

There are varied reflective practices models from many disciplines, yet the nature of intentional reflection requires the three components described earlier: description of the experience, reflection on and exploration of why things happened as they did, and identification of changes to thinking and behavior to improve the outcomes of future experiences. Some models—such as the Situation, Evidence, Action (SEA)-Change Model ( Table 2 ) that originated in professional library education—focus on these three elements. Instead of including generic questions to guide reflection, the SEA-Change Model identifies characteristics of deep reflection, as defined by Moon [ 21 ]. While the complete model includes a de-scaffolding component to help instructors facilitate student autonomy during reflection, leading to independence, the core of the model is three steps: identify the situation, provide the evidence, and follow through with an action or change [ 22 ].

Situation, Evidence, Action (SEA)-Change model

Adapted by permission of Barbara A. Sen.

Gibbs Reflective Cycle Model

Other models, such as Gibbs' Reflective Cycle Model ( Table 3 ) from the literature of teacher education, include more stages—"Description,” “Feelings,” “Evaluation,” “Analysis,” “Conclusion,” and “Action Plan”—and provide guiding questions to foster a more complete reflection [ 23 ]. Even with these extra stages, the three core components of reflective practice are present.

Used under Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License by Oxford Centre for Staff and Learning Development, Oxford Brookes University, Wheatley Campus, Wheatley, Oxford, UK, OX33 1HX.

Kim's Critical Reflective Inquiry Model

Some models apply the three main elements of reflective practice to a specific focus. Kim's Critical Reflective Inquiry Model ( Figure 1 ), from the literature of advanced nursing practice, describes three phases: “Descriptive,” “Reflective,” and “Critical/Emancipatory” [ 24 ]. In addition to reflection on the situation, it explicitly calls for reflection on one's espoused theories and intentions. This provides appropriate material for the final stage: critiquing practice and participating in the process that leads to change. The key aspect of this model requires critiquing beliefs, assumptions, and personal and professional values. Because of the nature of critical reflective practice, this model benefits from a combination of individual reflection and reflective conversation with others.

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These three models are a small sample of published reflective practice models. When reviewing models for possible use, consider whether you are:

  • New to reflective practice? Consider a model that includes guiding questions.
  • Short on time? Consider a simple three-component model.
  • Interested in a specific theoretical underpinning? Some models are highly informed by specific theories; others are more practical. Make sure to review the theories used and the assumptions made by potential models. For example, Ghaye offers a strengths-based model [ 25 ].
  • Interested in creative expression? There are models that incorporate storytelling [ 26 ] and poetry [ 27 ] as part of the reflective process.

Remember that all models include describing a situation, using reflection to make sense of it, and identifying and making appropriate changes.

REFLECTIVE PRACTICE IN ACTION

The beauty of reflective practice is that it can be used by health sciences and medical librarians in any type of library, in any type of work, and at any stage in their careers. There are many ways in which reflective practice can be applied to librarianship.

Evidence-based library and information practice

Reflective practice is an important component of evidence-based library and information practice (EBLIP) [ 28 , 29 ]. Koufogiannakis and Brettle state that “EBLIP asks librarians to think critically about their practice and the process they use in making decisions” [ 30 ]. Reflection is embedded throughout the process, starting with an articulation of the problem to solve or decision to be made and ending with evaluation of the implemented solution or decision made. The journal Evidence-Based Library and Information Practice has a column called “Using Evidence in Practice,” which provides a place for librarians to share their experiences with applying evidence to a situation, including a reflection on their processes.

Reflective practice can also be used to improve librarians' skills as creators of evidence. Some authors focus on specific techniques, such as reflective writing [ 31 ], while others situate reflective practice in the broader context of research [ 32 , 33 ]. Hypothesis , the journal of the MLA Research Caucus, recently introduced a column called “Failure,” which is an opportunity for health sciences library researchers to reflect on challenges in the research process and how the challenges could have been avoided, allowing others to learn from their experiences [ 34 ].

Critical librarianship

Critical librarianship, “bringing social justice principles to…work in libraries” [ 35 ], relies on critical reflection to explore areas where libraries and librarians are supporting systems of oppression and to identify alternatives [ 36 ]. Articles on critical librarianship often identify examples and questions from librarianship or other disciplines that can be incorporated into critical reflection. For example, the #CritLib moderators post questions to be discussed at upcoming Twitter chats that can be adopted for individual critical reflection [ 35 ], and questions from parts of the chats are archived on the website. Regardless of the source of guidance for critical reflection, it is important to critical librarianship that the reflection results in action: “linking reflection to action is the enactment of critical practice ” [ 6 ].

Improvement of teaching

Teacher education has a long tradition of reflective practice to improve instruction and classroom management, resulting in a large body of knowledge that has informed the professional development of librarians in teaching roles. Reflective practice has been promoted as a tool for improving teaching skills [ 37 – 39 ] and as a technique for developing one's identity as a teacher [ 4 , 38 ]. The Association of College & Research Libraries' Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education has been suggested as a tool to guide reflection with the purpose of improved instruction [ 40 ]. Reflective practice is a key component in the development of a teaching portfolio [ 18 ].

Management and leadership

Reflective practice is a helpful tool for administrators, both for helping employees improve their performance and improving the supervisor's own practice. An institution may require employees to complete self-evaluations of their performance prior to the supervisors' evaluations. These annual self-evaluations can be difficult as employees struggle to remember a year's worth of activity. Reflective practice can mitigate the process. Supervisors can encourage their employees to reflect on a regular basis, whether it be monthly, quarterly, or biannually, as an effective way for employees to review their own work and track what was done, constructively gain insight into their performance, and document outcomes of practice improvement processes. This use of reflective practice enables thoughtful consideration of performance and can be used in informal or structured ways.

Reflective coaching can be used with employees between annual evaluations [ 41 ]. Reflective practice is beneficial to individual managers and to management teams. Just as the act of reflecting on one's own past work is a helpful tool for employees, it is also helpful for managers. It is a learning process itself, and that learning enables future change and a higher understanding of one's own strengths and weaknesses. Beyond specific work situations, resources are available to use reflection to explore core aspects of leadership [ 19 , 42 ].

It is not easy to engage in reflective practice. It takes time, dedication, and energy, any or all of which can be in short supply. Investing in one's self and one's career to become a better health sciences or medical librarian is worth the cost. Here are some tips to support exploration of reflective practice.

Pay attention

Reflective practice includes aspects of mindfulness, as only through paying attention can situations that would benefit from reflection be identified, such as surprising outcomes or uneasy feelings [ 43 ]. With a mindful approach, one can explore situations and alternatives in a way in which defensiveness is reduced, improving one's ability to plan and take action.

Be intentional and purposeful

Start each reflection with an intention to guide the time: why reflect on the identified situation? It is easy to start reflecting on a particular situation and then drift to something else. Granted, the tangent might lead to an important discovery, but an intention can help maintain focus. Sample intentions are how to improve an instruction session with negative evaluations or how to work more efficiently with the information technology (IT) department to streamline access to library resources.

Use a model to get started

As noted above, using a model can help visualize the process and provide a structure for the reflection. Most reflective practice models include a series of questions that can be used to guide reflection. Pick one that seems likely to work well for the current situation (time available, experience with reflective practice, complexity of the intention, and so on). If it does not work as well as expected, try another.

McCorquodale advises: “Value yourself enough to take time to reflect on your practice” [ 44 ]. One of the most common factors identified as a barrier to engaging in reflection is lack of time [ 45 , 46 ]. Everyone leads busy lives, and scheduling time for reflection is the first step to incorporating reflective practice into work life. What is needed: scheduling reflection time regularly or reflecting when a situation arises? If regular reflection is desired, when would be the best time and day to schedule it? Is it scheduled after certain kinds of events, such as after each instruction session? How long might a reflection period last? Block out reflection time on the schedule and defend it. Remember why investing time and effort in reflective practice is worthwhile.

Finding a space to reflect is as important as making time. The office is not ideal as there are often too many distractions and interruptions. Whether it is a couch in the library or a table at a coffee shop, find a space to conduct reflection. The space should be a place where one feels confident, protected, free from discrimination, and secure to conduct efficient reflection.

Find support

There are many different types of support that can be utilized to help to make the reflection process easier. Support from a supervisor can help facilitate the process by helping to find time to reflect. This support will allow the supervisor to see an interest in assessing the quality of the employee's work for professional growth. Supplementing independent reflection with conversation with trusted colleagues (individually or in a group) can provide feedback, clarity, support, and accountability. There are multiple opportunities to find a mentor through professional organizations such as MLA, the Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries, and regional or state associations.

Be consistent

Reflective practice is not a skill learned overnight. Like all skills, experience brings improvement both in the reflective process and the application of insights from reflection to professional practice. Consider keeping track of reflections and outcomes in order to reflect on them. Reviewing that history can help identify how reflective practice skills have improved. Reflective practice is not a “one-size fits all” methodology, and there will be some trial and error to find what works best. Additional resources about reflective practice can be found in supplemental Appendix C .

Developing a practice of using intentional reflection does not happen quickly or spontaneously. It requires practitioners to be purposeful and build processes for reflective practice. The investment of time and energy in intentional reflection allows health sciences librarians to learn from their experiences and most importantly, helps them close the circle and apply what they have learned to improve their professional practice.

DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT

Supplemental files.

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gibbs-reflective-cycle

What is Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle? The Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle In A Nutshell

Gibbs’ reflective cycle was developed by Dr. Graham Gibbs in 1988 – a research leader in the Department of Behavioral and Social Sciences at the University of Huddersfield. Gibbs’ reflective cycle is a framework giving structure to the process of learning from experience through six stages: description, feelings, evaluation, analysis , conclusions, and action plan.

gibbs reflective cycle format

Table of Contents

Understanding Gibbs’ reflective cycle

In his work entitled Learning by Doing, A Guide to Teaching and Learning Methods, Gibbs noted that it was

“ not sufficient simply to have an experience in order to learn. Without reflecting upon this experience it may quickly be forgotten, or its learning potential lost. It is from the feelings and thoughts emerging from this reflection that generalisations or concepts can be generated and it is generalisations that allow new situations to be tackled effectively. ”

Fundamentally, Gibbs’ reflective cycle supports experiential learning through a structured debriefing process.

Experiential learning is simply the process of learning by experience, but it’s worth noting that the technique also considers that one’s education and work also impact the way they learn and understand new knowledge.

The nature of the framework as a cycle means it can be used for continuous improvement of repeated experiences, enabling the practitioner to learn and plan based on things that went well and others that did not.

With that in mind, the cycle can also be used to reflect on singular, standalone experiences unlikely to be repeated.

Whether by accident or by design , Gibbs’ reflective cycle has been an influential force in teacher development programs and also across a variety of different health professions.

In truth, however, the cycle is useful for any practitioner who finds themselves studying, practicing, or teaching the skills of critical reflection.

Gibbs’ reflective cycle advantages and disadvantages

Learning can happen both in structured and unstructured ways.

At the business level, having a framework like Gibbs’ reflective cycle can be extremely helpful as a review process for individuals within the organizations.

It’s therefore critical, for the framework to work, to follow its steps, from description to action plan.

Gibb’s reflective cycle  structures  the process of learning from experience through six stages: description, feelings, evaluation,  analysis , conclusions, and action  plan , thus enabling anyone within an organization to assess what happened and how to improve.

In that respect, this framework helps individuals within organizations to develop a better understanding of their capabilities as they move to a structured way to assess any situation by first analyzing it objectively.

And only after looking at it from an emotional standpoint.

The analysis and action plan make it possible to improve and become way more balanced in assessing business situations moving forward.

In that respect, Gibbs’ reflective cycle is a simple to implement model , with clear and structured steps that can help improve professionally.

Disadvantages

For Gibbs’ reflective model to work, it needs to be done objectively, and there needs to be a sincere analysis of the situation at hand by the person using it.

A superficial assessment of the situation and a lack of judgment about what happened can make the framework useless.

Indeed, especially in the analysis part, it’s critical to frame the event as objectively as possible, making it possible later to assess it from an emotive standpoint.

Only by following the process with an open-minded approach (where you’re ready to get involved in the process) can the model really enable you from a professional standpoint.

The six stages of Gibbs’ reflective cycle

Each of the six stages of Gibbs’ model encourages the individual to reflect on their experiences through questions.

Following is a look at each stage and some of the questions that may result.

  • 1 – Description

In the first stage, the individual has an opportunity to describe the situation in detail.

It’s important to remain objective – feelings, thoughts, emotions, and inferences can be described later.

Individuals should provide a detailed account of what happened, who was involved, and what actions were taken.

The purpose of this initial stage is to provide a clear and objective picture of the experience so that the individual can reflect on and recall the event in more detail.

Some helpful questions include:

  • What happened?
  • Who was present?
  • When and where did it happen?
  • What were the actions of the people involved?
  • What was the outcome?
  • 2 – Feelings

Now is the time to explore feelings or thoughts associated with the event.

To do this, it is important for the individual to look back on their emotional state and any rational thoughts about the situation itself.

The purpose of this stage is primarily to help someone understand the impact of the event on their emotions and how it affected them.

The feelings stage also allows them to derive insights from their emotional responses and identify any underlying problems that require attention.

Some questions to ask in the second stage include:

  • What were you feeling before, during, and after the event?
  • What do you believe other people were thinking or feeling?
  • What do you think about the situation now that some time has passed?
  • 3 – Evaluation

Evaluation means determining the positive and negative aspects of the event – regardless of whether you consider the event to be one or the other. Again, objectivity is key. 

Objectivity enables the individual to make value judgments, which are evaluative statements of how good or bad they believe an idea, action, or situation to be.

Value judgments are often prescriptive in the sense that they reveal how the individual perceives the world via certain attitudes and behaviors.In the third stage, objectivity can also be increased when the individual considers the experiences and perspectives of other people.

Some pointers include:

  • What was good and bad about the experience?
  • What did you contribute to the situation? 
  • Did your actions have a positive or negative impact? Repeat the question to consider the contributions of others.
  • 4 – Analysis

During the analysis stage, you have a chance to understand what happened using theory and context.

This step should comprise the bulk of your reflection and should take into account any insights gleaned from the previous steps.

In the process of analyzing the situation, the individual should always try to make sense of it and distinguish fact from fiction.

It can also be helpful to consider whether their experiences differ from others.

To do this, co-workers and those who can provide quality input can be consulted for assistance.

However, diverse opinion should be balanced with research of the literature and relevant theories to better understand what transpired.

  • Why did things go well or go badly?
  • How does your experience compare to academic literature, if applicable?
  • Could you have responded differently?
  • Are there theories or models that can help you understand what happened?
  • Are there factors likely to have contributed to a better outcome?
  • 5 – Conclusions

In the fifth stage, conclude what happened by summarising key findings and reflecting on changes that could improve future outcomes. 

When making conclusions, the individual must consider how they will impact them on a personal level.

After which, they can think about what the conclusions mean for their immediate context and then more broadly when others are involved (such as in a team, workplace, or department).

This step should be a natural and intuitive response to the previous steps. It may incorporate questions such as:

  • What did the situation teach you? You can be rather general or more specific.
  • How might the situation have been more positive for all concerned?
  • What skills or competencies are required to handle the situation more effectively?
  • 6 – Action plan

Lastly, an action plan is crafted to detail how you will respond differently to a similar situation in the future. The plan is important in making sure good intentions are backed by action. 

The action plan stage is one of the most important for obvious reasons.

It involves the identification of specific steps that need to be taken to improve a similar future experience or prevent an event from occurring in the future. 

Ultimately, action plans help individuals develop strategies for future improvement and growth .

They can take a proactive (not reactive) approach to their experiences and use them as a tool for personal development.

To get you in the right of mind, consider these questions:

  • What would you do differently when faced with a similar situation? How would your new skills or knowledge be applied?
  • How can you make sure you act differently when faced with a similar situation in the future?
  • How and when will you develop the required skills?

Gibbs’ reflective cycle example – getting a promotion

Imagine that you have recently been promoted to a regional management position for a supermarket chain.

As part of your new role, you are required to oversee multiple store managers ensure sales in your region meet stated targets.

Now, imagine it is your first day on the job and you drive out to visit your first store.

You have difficulty imposing yourself on the manager of the store, despite the fact he is a subordinate.

The matter is exacerbated by the presence of a senior manager, your direct superior, who is spending the day with you to ensure a seamless transition and is watching your every move.

Customers also look on as the discussion, which concerns a promotional display at the front of the store, becomes heated.

The disagreement causes the store manager to walk away while you are expressing your point of view.

This is the description stage of Gibbs’ reflective cycle. Now, let’s take a look at the others.

As with most people who start in a new position, you were likely nervous, anxious, or uncertain about what would happen on your first day.

You may also have been insecure about your authority and fearful that it may be challenged by a subordinate who was used to the previous, more lenient regional manager. 

During the event, you felt a mixture of shame and embarrassment as the altercation was playing out in front of customers.

You were also worried that your direct supervisor would start to second-guess his decision to promote you.

After the event, most of these emotions have dulled somewhat and you start to realize that the actions of the store manager do not necessarily reflect your ability to lead others.

3 – Evaluations

The good part of this experience was that you at least attempted to assert your authority about the promotional display.

While it was received poorly by the store manager, he must understand that this will be the nature of our relationship moving forward.

Furthermore, it must be remembered that many employees resistant to change react with negative emotions.

The bad part of this experience was the fact that the whole experience had to play out in public.

Our customers are our number one priority and it would have been preferable for the discussion to be held in private.

My failed attempt to move to the discussion elsewhere may have contributed to the situation.

On analysis , the situation occurred because a store manager who was accustomed to the status quo reacted badly to a change in management approach.

The presence of the senior manager in the store may have also worsened the fear and distrust that often accompanies change.

Multiple change management frameworks confirm this to be a common occurrence.

Nevertheless, maybe you could have responded differently by disarming the store manager in some way.

You could have smiled more or let him take you on a tour of the store and left the heavy-handed managerial directives for another day.

The situation taught you that building relationships with subordinates is as important as it is with friends, family, superiors, and colleagues.

Some subordinates – particularly those with some degree of seniority themselves – will be reluctant to obey your commands point-blank.

The situation could have been handled better by easing into the transition.

Perhaps you could have visited the store beforehand and held an informal lunch with the store manager so that the both of you could get to know each other.

Given that you have 16 stores under your supervision, you realize the importance of developing an action plan to avoid a potential repeat of the situation.

As part of this plan, you undertake extra company training on management techniques and learn power phrases that can be used to disarm verbal aggression. 

You also learn how to better read someone’s body language and build rapport with your store managers.

This is seen as a more beneficial alternative than talking about business objectives right away and potentially alienating them forever.

If a situation does arise in the future, you know that these techniques and training will help you neutralize demonstrative behavior and avoid tensions escalating.

Drawbacks of Using Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle:

While Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle is a valuable tool for self-reflection and learning, it has some limitations and potential drawbacks:

1. Subjective Nature:

The reflective process is inherently subjective, relying on an individual’s perceptions and interpretations, which may not always align with objective reality.

2. Time-Consuming:

The process of going through all the stages in the cycle can be time-consuming, which may deter individuals from engaging in reflective practice regularly.

3. Complexity:

Some individuals may find the structured nature of the cycle complex, especially if they are new to reflective practice.

4. Limited in Specific Fields:

Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle may be more applicable to certain fields (e.g., education, healthcare) than others, potentially limiting its universal use.

5. May Not Address Complex Ethical Dilemmas:

For complex ethical dilemmas, the cycle may not provide sufficient depth or guidance in decision-making.

When to Use Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle:

Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle is valuable in various scenarios:

1. Educational Settings:

It is commonly used in educational settings to encourage students to reflect on their learning experiences, identify areas for improvement, and enhance critical thinking skills.

2. Professional Development:

Professionals in fields like healthcare, social work, and teaching use the cycle to review their practice, make improvements, and ensure continuous development.

3. Decision-Making:

It can be applied when making important decisions, particularly those involving ethical considerations, to explore the consequences and underlying values.

4. Personal Growth:

Individuals seeking personal growth and self-improvement can use the cycle to reflect on life experiences and set personal development goals.

How to Use Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle:

Implementing Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle effectively involves following a structured process:

1. Description:

Describe the experience or situation you want to reflect on, providing context and details of what happened.

2. Feelings:

Examine your emotional response to the experience. What were your feelings and thoughts at the time?

3. Evaluation:

Evaluate the experience, considering both positive and negative aspects. What went well, and what could have been done differently?

4. Analysis:

Analyze the experience by exploring its significance, what you learned from it, and any underlying issues or challenges.

5. Conclusion:

Draw conclusions from your analysis . What can you generalize from this experience? What insights have you gained?

6. Action Plan:

Identify specific actions you can take to apply what you’ve learned to future situations. How can you improve your practice or make informed decisions?

What to Expect from Implementing Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle:

Implementing Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle can lead to several outcomes and benefits:

1. Improved Self-Awareness:

Through reflection, individuals gain a deeper understanding of their thoughts, emotions, and reactions in various situations.

2. Enhanced Decision-Making:

Reflective practice can lead to better-informed decision-making by considering past experiences and their consequences.

3. Continuous Learning:

It promotes a culture of continuous learning and improvement, both personally and professionally.

4. Problem-Solving Skills:

It enhances problem-solving skills by encouraging individuals to analyze and evaluate their experiences.

5. Professional Growth:

Professionals can use reflective practice to enhance their skills, adapt to new challenges, and meet the evolving needs of their roles.

6. Ethical Considerations:

It provides a structured approach to exploring ethical dilemmas and making decisions in alignment with one’s values and principles.

In conclusion, Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle is a valuable framework for self-reflection and learning.

While it has its drawbacks and complexities, understanding when to use it and how to apply it effectively can lead to improved self-awareness, decision-making, and personal and professional growth .

By following the steps outlined in the cycle and recognizing its potential benefits and drawbacks, individuals and educators can leverage Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle to enhance their reflective practice and learning experiences.

Gibbs’ reflective cycle example – startup accelerator

Suppose that an entrepreneur is part of a start-up accelerator and, at the culmination of their three months with the company, has the opportunity to pitch their business idea to a room full of attentive investors.

The entrepreneur wants to start a D2C cake business and is in the process of refining their business model and pitch in time for the presentation.

When the individual first joined the accelerator, they were excited, enthusiastic, and optimistic about the future.

As the entrepreneur started to delve into the details of running a business, however, they realized that much more work was required to understand market trends, identify the main competitors, and provide cost estimates.

Cost estimates were the most significant concern.

The entrepreneur had hoped to cost a brick-and-mortar store in a desirable location for the business plan, but the preliminary cost for a store in several different areas was deemed prohibitive.

Cost estimates

Feeling somewhat dejected, the entrepreneur reverted to a pop-up stall that could be moved at will.

However, when she rang the city council about a mobile food vendor permit, they advised her that the cost was based on the number of square meters the stall occupied.

Having not purchased one yet, she became more frustrated.

Eventually, the entrepreneur joined a social media group for food vendors in her city and obtained cost estimates for several different sizes from others.

She then fed this data into the business plan and researched the average attendance at various city events to estimate her potential target audience.

While the development of a business plan has been stressful and at times bewildering, the entrepreneur starts to feel more confident in her ability to run a successful cake business without the future support of the accelerator.

Ultimately, she pitches to the room full of attentive investors and one decides to invest in her company based on her concise and accurate business plan and demonstrated initiative.

In the evaluation phase, the now business owner felt that her idea of questioning others in the same industry was rather effective.

Most were happy to provide constructive feedback – despite the fact that some would become future competitors.

The fact that she was able to attract the attention of an investor is an obvious plus.

So what was bad about the experience?

For one, despite being surrounded by qualified support, she could have asked for help earlier to avoid stress later on.

She was also frustrated at the city council’s perceived disinterest in providing a quote.

In the analysis phase, the entrepreneur concludes that some things went wrong initially because of her lack of organization and her inability to ask for help.

In the case of the latter, she didn’t know what she didn’t know about small business and this hindered her progress. 

This ignorance, if you will, has been described and studied extensively in the literature.

Developed by management trainer Martin Broadwell, the four stages of competence is a framework that describes the process of an incompetent person transitioning to competence in a certain skill or topic.

5 – Conclusion

To conclude, the entrepreneur ascertains that the situation taught her to be patient, resilient, and to leave her ego at the door when considering whether to ask for help.

The problem with the city council quote, which involved a somewhat rude and terse conversation, could have been improved if she was aware of how the council quoted beforehand.

Having said that, the entrepreneur does acknowledge that her stress level was high before the call was made.

To better deal with a similar situation in the future, the cake entrepreneur will use her awareness of the link between poor preparation and stress.

In other words, if she is better prepared, she will not be as stressed when dealing with others. 

Reasoning that there is much more she doesn’t know about small business, she also decides to enroll in a part-time course and join her city’s local business association.

Lastly, the entrepreneur researches ways to be more comfortable with asking for assistance. As part of her action plan, she writes the following four pointers:

  • Help others before asking for help.
  • Know what you want to ask before asking. 
  • Ensure the question is SMART: specific, meaningful, action-oriented, real, and time-sensitive. 
  • Never assume to know what or who people know.

Gibbs’ reflective cycle – HR staff member

In this example, an HR staff member uses Gibbs’ reflective cycle to reflect on the process of rewarding or recognizing employees from different seniority levels.

The process starts with the employee researching employee rewards and the factors that motivate them to perform. The individual is responsible for developing incentive programs for both junior employees and senior executives.

Based on their research, they determine that each cohort needs to be rewarded in a different way to increase motivation.

For junior employees, rewards should be associated with exemplary performance, while senior executives tend to prefer bonds, shares, and other incentives that encourage them to remain with the company.

In the second phase, the HR employee considers how the feelings toward a particular reward influence how it is viewed. 

For junior employees, the employee contends that a dearness allowance is a strong motivator. The allowance, which is built into an employee’s salary to offset inflationary cost-of-living pressures, is one way for these employees to feel valued and appreciated.

For senior executives, the reward of part ownership of the company makes them feel proud of their contributions to building a business over the long term. 

This was the first time the HR manager took an active, in-depth look at employee incentivization. In the past, the firm had instructed HR to reward employees with extra financial compensation irrespective of their seniority level.

In the evaluation phase, the manager deduces that employee compensation is not something the company can take lightly moving forward.

She also determines that her initiative to research attractive compensation for different cohorts will have a positive impact on the company’s productivity and culture.

Within reason, however, the HR department must listen to the contributions and suggestions of employees and then act on them – particularly if the current remuneration system is not meeting an employee’s needs.

In the literature, countless models and theories have been devised to explain sources of motivation in the workforce.

Some posit that motivation can be increased via certain leadership styles, while others focus on company policies, supervisor support, interpersonal relationships, and the idea of reciprocity.

According to the Society for Human Resource Management, however, around 85% of workers said compensation was important or very important to their job satisfaction .

What’s more, 92% said the presence of benefits could be the difference between choosing one employer over another.

For senior executives who are paid well, the most effective benefits are those that have monetary value but do not necessarily involve a direct payment of cash . These include stock options, titles, and health care coverage.

Junior employees are also likely to value health care coverage and access to schemes such as paid parental leave. But since they are paid less than their senior counterparts, bonuses and raises are still valued the most. 

These extra funds are used to pay for basic needs such as food, shelter, and safety in an inflationary environment, while non-monetary benefits for executives fulfill needs related to self-esteem and self-actualization.

The needs of both junior and senior employees are described in detail by Maslow in his hierarchical pyramid. 

5 – Conclusion and action plan

Moving forward, the HR manager strongly recommends that this targeted approach to employee reward and recognition be written into company procedures.

Under the proviso that employee performance is maintained, it is imperative to routinely appraise compensation schemes and develop a tailored approach for each of the employee cohorts.

This strategy may be more expensive than alternatives, but the HR manager concludes by remarking that a twelve-month trial period may be prudent to see whether the cost is offset by more motivated and productive employees.

Gibbs’ reflective cycle – Tesco

In 2013, British supermarket chain Tesco was faced with a major scandal after horse meat was detected in its beef burger products.

The scandal caused a significant drop in sales and negatively impacted consumer confidence in the Tesco brand . Let’s explain how the incident played out and how the company responded with a hypothetical Gibbs’ reflective cycle.

Description

Tens of millions of burger and related beef products with withdrawn from shelves across Europe in the wake of the scandal. Some of the products – including Tesco’s own brand burgers – contained up to 29% horse meat .

The outcome of the tainted beef was a decrease in consumer confidence in meat products. One report found that 60% of consumers had altered their shopping habits , with 30% buying less red meat overall and 24% choosing vegetarian options.

Tesco was shocked, disappointed, and concerned for the company’s reputation initially. The company ran prominent ads in several newspapers where it acknowledged the seriousness of the situation and offered a full refund.

In one ad, the company’s remorse was evident: “ We will work harder than ever with all our suppliers to make sure this never happens again. ”

For Tesco, the negative aspects of the event were a detrimental impact on brand image and consumer confidence. Consumers were economic victims because they paid for a product they did not receive. But horse meat also poses a health risk because it is often tainted with horse-specific pharmaceuticals that are banned from human consumption.

While there were few positives to take from the scandal, it did force the company to evaluate its supply chain practices. Then-CEO Philip Clarke later noted at the Institute for Global Food Security that “This has been a wake-up call for us all, and I see it being a pivotal moment for our industry. ”

Analysis 

It was later concluded that Tesco’s somewhat opaque supply chain was a primary contributor to the problem. Horse meat was of course labeled as beef, but identifying the point at which the beef became tainted proved difficult. 

The factory that supplied Tesco with its private-label brand of beef burgers, for example, used ingredients from up to 40 different suppliers and the exact mix could vary every 30 minutes. Eventually, it was discovered that meat testing positive for horse DNA originated from a factory near the border with Ireland. 

The company that operated the factory processed meat for pet food and also sourced product from a Dutch businessman who was known to cut beef with horse meat. It also emerged that workers from Tesco’s Polish suppliers mixed horsemeat with defrosted beef that was sometimes so old it had turned green.

The situation taught Costco that transparency is key in its supply chains and relationships with suppliers. While the company claimed it had been a victim of fraud, it nevertheless admitted that its supply chain needed to be modernized and made more transparent to reflect the increased global demand for meat products.

Action plan

Tesco undertook several corrective measures. It hired a senior executive from the National Farmers’ Union (NFU) to restore consumer confidence in its products and improve the company’s relationship with farmers and suppliers. What’s more, the company committed to sourcing more of its meat from British suppliers wherever possible.

Clarke also announced at an NFU conference that he wanted to introduce a more transparent supply chain. This would entail a more comprehensive system of DNA testing that he believed would set a new standard for all supermarkets.

Separate from Tesco’s action plan was a report published by the governmental Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs. The report made several recommendations, chief among which was that consumer food safety and protection from food-related crime be made a top priority. The governmental body also called for more data-sharing and the development of effective crises and contingency plans.

Gibbs’ reflective cycle vs. Kolb’s Reflective Cycle

kolb-reflective-cycle

Kolb and Gibb’s models are both intended to enable learning through direct experience.

Therefore, enabling individuals to learn based on action.

Whereas Gibbs’ model has five stages of assessing any real-world situation.

Kolb’s model has four stages instead:

  • Concrete experience.
  • Reflective observation.
  • Abstract conceptualization.
  • And active experimentation.

Kolb’s model is way more skewed toward experience-based learning, where active experimentation becomes a critical component of the iterative learning process.

Whereas Gibbs’ model is still based on experience-based learning, yet it provides more of an analytical and structured framework to assess these experiences.

Key takeaways and examples

gibbs reflective cycle format

  • Gibbs’ reflective cycle is a framework giving structure to the process of learning from experience. The framework was developed by Dr. Graham Gibbs in 1988.
  • The cyclical nature of Gibbs’ reflective cycle is best suited to fostering continuous improvement of repeated experiences. However, it can also be used to reflect on standalone experiences.
  • Gibbs’ reflective cycle is based on six stages: description, feelings, evaluation, analysis , conclusion, and action plan. Each stage encourages self-reflection through the posing of multiple questions.

Key Highlights

  • Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle : Developed by Dr. Graham Gibbs in 1988, it is a framework for structured reflection on learning from experience. The cycle consists of six stages: description, feelings, evaluation, analysis , conclusions, and action plan.
  • Purpose of Reflection : Reflecting on experiences is crucial for effective learning. Without reflection, experiences may be forgotten, and their learning potential lost. Reflection helps generate generalizations and concepts that can be applied to new situations.
  • Experiential Learning : Gibbs’ reflective cycle supports experiential learning, where learning occurs through experiences. The cycle can be applied to both structured and unstructured learning scenarios.
  • Tailored Approach : The cycle’s cyclical nature makes it suitable for continuous improvement in recurring experiences, as well as for one-time situations. It encourages individuals to learn from both successes and failures.
  • Provides a structured framework for analyzing experiences.
  • Can be used for continuous improvement and planning based on past experiences.
  • Tailored approach for different situations and levels of expertise.
  • Requires objective analysis and sincere assessment.
  • Superficial assessment can render the framework ineffective.
  • Requires an open-minded approach to truly enable personal and professional growth .
  • Description : Describe the situation or experience objectively.
  • Feelings : Reflect on the emotions and thoughts associated with the experience.
  • Evaluation : Assess the positive and negative aspects of the experience.
  • Analysis : Analyze the situation using relevant theory and context.
  • Conclusions : Draw conclusions based on key findings and insights.
  • Action Plan : Develop an action plan for responding differently in similar situations in the future.
  • Getting a Promotion : Applying the cycle to a scenario of being promoted and facing challenges in asserting authority and making decisions.
  • Startup Accelerator : Reflecting on the process of developing incentive programs for junior employees and senior executives within a startup accelerator.
  • Tesco Scandal : Reflecting on how British supermarket Tesco responded to a scandal involving horse meat found in beef products, and the lessons learned.
  • Comparison with Kolb’s Reflective Cycle : While both models emphasize experiential learning, Kolb’s model focuses on four stages: concrete experience, reflective observation, abstract conceptualization, and active experimentation. Gibbs’ model provides a more structured and analytical approach to reflecting on experiences.
  • Key Takeaways : Gibbs’ reflective cycle is a valuable tool for individuals, organizations, and industries to learn from experiences, improve decision-making, and enhance personal and professional development.

Types of Organizational Structures

organizational-structure-types

Siloed Organizational Structures

functional-organizational-structure

Open Organizational Structures

matrix-organizational-structure

How do you write a Gibbs reflective cycle?

The six stages of Gibbs’ reflective cycle comprise:

Who is Gibbs reflective cycle used for?

The framework gives structure to the process of learning from experience through six stages: description, feelings, evaluation, analysis, conclusions, and action plan. It’s beneficial as a review process for individuals within the organizations as it helps them better understand their capabilities as they move to a structured way to assess any situation by objectively analyzing it.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of Gibbs reflective cycle?

A core advantage is that Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle introduces a structured way to assess the individuals within an organization. A disadvantage is that for it to work, it needs to be done objectively, without prejudice. Otherwise, it becomes useless and detrimental to the team using it.

Connected Learning Frameworks

Growth vs. Fixed Mindset

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Constructive Feedback

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High-Performance Coaching

high-performance-coaching

Training of Trainers

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Active Listening

active-listening

Active Recall

active-recal

Baptism by Fire

baptism-by-fire

Dreyfus Model

dreyfus-model-of-skill-acquisition

Kolb Learning Cycle

Method of Loci

method-of-loci

Experience Curve

experience-curve

Feynman Technique

feynman-technique

Learning Organization

learning-organization

Forgetting Curve

forgetting-curve

Instructor-Led Training

instructor-led-training

5 Whys Method

5-whys-method

Single-Loop Learning

single-loop-learning

Spaced Repetition

spaced-repetition

Blended Learning

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VAK Learning

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Lessons Learned

lessons-learned

Post-Mortem Analysis

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5E Instructional Model

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Health and Safety Advice in a Fast Changing World

Nurses and Midwives Reflection Process

Nurses and Midwives in the UK are formally required to record 5 pieces of reflection on either continuing professional development (CPD) or practice related feedback to improve their nursing practice.

Here I start with the theory of reflection (see Framework image) and then give an example from my own nursing history of an awful incident – one I will never forget.

If you don’t want the theory (and let’s face it who does?); scroll down to my real-life example and see how I have applied the Gibbs theory model to a terrible incident which almost made me give up nursing.

Let’s Get Started

To see if Gibbs reflective cycle can help you reflect on aspects of your practice, recall a nursing situation that didn’t turn out as you expected or go to plan.

Look at the Gibbs Model flow chart above –

Stage 1 – Description (Pure Facts)

The first step is to describe what you know. Ask yourself the following questions:

  • What are the brief facts of the situation?
  • What occurred? Who was involved?
  • What did you do? What did others do?

Stage 2 – Description – (Feelings)

  • How were you feeling at the time?
  • Were there influences affecting others actions/behaviour?
  • Were there any known or perceived difficulties with the activity, timing, location, information or resources etc.?

Stage 3 – Evaluation

  • What was good and bad about the experience
  • How might the facts and feelings (from stage 1 and 2 above) have affected your actions/behaviour
  • What other circumstances may have affected your actions or thoughts?
  • How issues might influence the activity or practice related feedback?

Stage 4 – Analysis

  • Why you picked this incident to reflect on?
  • What sense can you make of it? Does it make sense given the preceding 3 stages?
  • What is the main area of concern or focus on the future?

Stage 5 – Conclusions

  • What have you discovered?
  • What have you learned from this incident and circumstances?
  • What questions remain?

Stage 6 – Now What? (Action)

You have analysed the incident and want to make sure you improve your practice for next time, so need to move into the action planning stage:

  • What will I do differently from now on or the next time this arises?
  • What resources/help will you need?

Gibbs, (1988) Learning by Doing: A Guide to Teaching and Learning Methods Further Education Unit, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford.

Example Reflection –  Sadly, a real story!

Night duty drug round.

I am a third-year student nurse ‘in charge’ on night duty, in a London hospital, with a junior nurse to deal with 23 pretty sick people in this medical ward.  A doctor asked me to give a patient (Mrs X,) 0.1 mg of Digoxin (a heart stimulant – steady, slows and strengthens the heartbeat) to relieve symptoms of severe congestive cardiac failure and difficulty breathing.  I had never given such a high dose of Digoxin before and measured 4 tabs from the 0.25 mg bottle.  I checked the script and the tablets with both the doctor, who nodded, and my junior nurse. We were all in agreement. I checked Mrs X’s pulse rate (standard practice for Digoxin), which was in the OK range, before giving the tablets. I kept Mrs X on hourly observations after.

At about 2 am I suddenly realised I had given 10 times the amount of Digoxin as stated on the Doctors script.  In horror, I called the night sister who agreed with me.  We filled in an incident form, informed the doctor and Mrs X’s relatives of what happened. Petrified, I was told to go see the hospital matron in the morning.

Mrs X did not seem to suffer any ill effects from the Digoxin during the night and went on to make a full recovery.

I had been on nights for a long stretch.  It was a very busy ward with only two-night staff and I was “in charge”.  Mrs X was very ill and needed constant monitoring.

I had only ever seen 0.25mgs of Digoxin tablets and did not know there was a paediatric blue table of 0.1 mg made.  I was very reluctant to give such a big dose which is why I checked the four tablets of .25 with the doctor who looked at the tablets and said OK.  I was nervous about the dosage being so high and took Mrs X’s pulse for much longer than the customary 15 seconds.

The doctor too was under tremendous strain, his beeper kept going off and he was rushing about all over the place.  I had never met him before.  He had recently come from a paediatric ward.

Nobody ever blamed me for the incident, neither did they reassure me.  Mrs X went on to make a full recovery and the relatives were very understanding about the situation which was a relief.  Matron was kind to me and impressed I had owned up to the error – nobody would have ever known, she said.

I felt absolutely terrified about the error though and watched Mrs X all night for signs of overdose.  I didn’t sleep all the next day and returned to my next night shift to find Mrs X better.

This incident really frightened me because I had done everything right – I had checked the dosage with both the Doctor and the junior nurse.  I had not known that you could get a 0.1 mg of Digoxin or it was blue.  I have no idea what prompted me to think about the overdose later on that night except that I had been very reluctant to give it.  The Doctor agreed I had shown him 4 white tablets who said “I thought you knew what you were doing” Which isn’t any sort of answer really.  Yet he didn’t get in trouble (like me) at all for overseeing and agreeing my mistake.

I also realised how dependant patients are on the care and insights of the medical profession and the trust they put in us; I’d let Mrs X down.

I believe that this incident was down to a series of incidents linked to overwork, tiredness and misunderstandings. Plus if I’d known the Doctor better I might have had a conversation about the dose.

I was so relieved that Mrs X survived the overdose and the relatives were understanding but, if she had a serious reaction or even died, I’m not sure I could have carried on nursing.

I have learnt to be more careful with drugs and to really understand the dosage.  If necessary now I will look up the drug in the reference books before I give them because it is my responsibility if I do it wrong.

I will always be ultra-careful with new drug scripts in the future and if I am nervous, then to go with my gut feeling and check and check again. Although, as I said to Matron, at the time I’d felt as if I done as much as I could have.

Also, if nurses in my team are involved in incidents where they have made a clinical mistake, I am always on hand to offer support and give them an opportunity to talk to me.

I never want another nurse to go through what I went through alone and I definitely do not want to harm anyone in my care.

Linked to NMC Code of Practice 14 – “Preserving Safety”

Further information.

  • British National Formulary (BNF)  the drugs’ bible in the UK, available online with a subscription

Other of my real stories here:

  • For a second applied reflection example, see my blog about My Infographic Mistake
  • For a third reflection see Dog Walking

I have also published a workbook for nurses where you can see the model and have space to add your own private stories. Available on Amazon With over 400 great reviews.

Thanks for reading and good luck in your career. J

gibbs reflective cycle format

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Gibbs Reflective Cycle - 6 Stages, Pros and Cons

Understanding Gibbs Reflective Cycle | Assignment Desk

Table Of Contents

What is gibbs reflective cycle, how did gibbs reflective modal originate, what are the 6 stages of gibbs reflective cycle, what are the pros and cons of gibbs reflective cycle, learn gibbs cycle with the help of assignmentdesk.co.uk.

After a considerable life, some people realise that they learn better with experience. Therefore, they are not designed to consume words without knowing them.

It is a fact that when one reflects on their experience, they do everything better. They are allowed to discover new boundaries in any situation. They can ask questions such as "what could have been done better" when it's hard for them to learn. It is where Gibbs Reflective Cycle comes into play. This cycle helps them understand what was right done by them and what they could have done better. Anyone can use it to make sense of any situation at work or home.

One of the most popular cyclic models of reflection is used. It leads to six stages of any experience. However, before we get into these stages, let's first understand what the Gibbs reflective cycle is:

It is a cycle that helps people analyse their experiences. It can be concerning for any situation or scenario they have had while performing a particular activity. The primary aim of Gibbs model of reflection is to enhance the systematic thinking of anyone so that they can come to an effective conclusion. The drawback generated will help them gather courage and understanding to do better next time.

Therefore, it improves anyone's attention and ability to analyse any significant task they are engaged in. And also clear them of the mistakes they have made in such situations. After following Gibbs Reflective Cycl e, anyone can gain good learning to analyse part of their experience and improve their actions in the future. And many other things that are related to any particular task.

Interesting! Is it not? You are improving your ability to analyse your activities and tasks with a model. Do you know this cycle's past events? If not, read the following section to learn more.

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Professor Graham Gibbs was the man who supported "experimental learning." In his 1988 book, "Learning by Doing," he published the model. He published the model in his 1988 book, Learning by Doing. The book drew in the top psychologists of the time. They started to research the model using various scenarios and actions that a person would take daily. The Kolb learning cycle served as the model for the theory.

Gibbs cycle of reflection was said to be the best way to reflect on the past and discover how to deal with challenging circumstances without becoming alarmed or anxious. It developed into a crucial instructional technique that assisted learners in making sense of each task they completed. These days, nursing students use this model to comprehend various patient-related health scenarios. Accepting a failure as a lesson learned and delving into what went wrong aids them in overcoming a setback. To better understand, you can look for some examples of Gibbs model of reflection related to nursing backgrounds.

The main focus of nursing is taking care of patients and offering specific services throughout treatment. They are often asked to write assignments on their study of the Gibbs model. Students who need an A+ paper on the Gibbs model written by professionals turn to Nursing assignment help . As a result, the following section is the most important one in this article. Read it thoroughly.

Also Read:  How to Write a Reflective Essay Which Reflects Your Life Experience?

A management and self-reflection tool. To critically engage with the learning experience and draw conclusions, practice-based learning enables people to think logically and methodically about their various adventures.

6 Stages of Gibbs Reflective Cycle

There are six steps in the Gibbs reflective model . The first three steps are concerned with what took place during the experience that is being studied. The final three steps address how you can enhance your knowledge for similar situations you may encounter in the future.

1. Description

You have to describe the experience in the initial phase. Provide background information and a factual account of the incident's specifics. Setting the stage for later analysis and evaluation, this step of the Gibbs Reflective Cycle functions similarly. To provide clear, accurate information to facilitate understanding. You might inquire as follows:

  • What happened?
  • When and where did it happen?
  • Who was there?
  • What did you do?
  • What did other people do?
  • What was the result of this situation?
  • Why were you there?
  • What did you want to happen?

Example : Gibbs cycle of reflection Description: My group, which consisted of three other students from my course, and I divided the various sections between us so that we would only have to research one component each for an assessed written group-work assignment. We didn't schedule a time to sit down and write the work together because we thought we could piece it together in the afternoon, the day before the deadline. But as soon as we sat down, it became apparent that the sections were written differently. To turn the assignment into coherent work, we were forced to rewrite most of it. We had allotted ourselves enough time before the deadline to write our sections independently, but we still needed to budget a lot of time to rewrite in case something went wrong. So that the assignment could be completed in time for the deadline, two members of the group had to cancel their evening plans.

Discuss your feelings, actions, and thoughts about the experience in step two of the Gibbs cycle . Never attempt to evaluate or judge the senses. Indicate them. Recall your emotions before, during, and following the incident. What may the experience have been like for others? What are your current thoughts on it?

  • What emotions did you have before the event?
  • What did you think during the crisis that took place?
  • What do other people experience?
  • What were you thinking during the case?
  • What did you feel after the event?
  • What do you believe other people are currently thinking about the situation?
  • What are your current thoughts about the situation?

Example of Gibbs model of reflection of Feeling: I was content and thought we had divided the work up wisely before we got together and realised we still had a lot of work to do. I became quite irritated when we realised we couldn't turn in the assignment as is. I needed more motivation to do the rewriting because I was confident it would be successful. It is because a few group members had to postpone their plans, I felt pretty guilty, which motivated me to work harder and finish the work earlier in the evening. I'm glad we chose the effort-related course of action in retrospect.

3. Evaluation

The evaluation of the circumstances is the focus of this step. Whether they were good or bad, your experiences must be described. Be clear on the main goals as you assess the situation, highlighting the successes and failures. To write a stellar evaluation section just like how we provide assignment help , you must elaborate on the points listed below:

  • What went well?
  • What didn't go so well?
  • Was the situation resolved afterwards? Why or why not?
  • Things that went well in the situation
  • Something that didn't go well in the situation
  • What positives or negatives did you contribute?
  • What positives or negatives did others provide?

Gibbs model of reflection example of evaluation: The fact that each group member delivered high-calibre work by the set deadline was one of the things that worked well. In addition, the fact that two group members had to postpone plans inspired us to work harder that night. That enhanced the group's commitment to hard work. On the other hand, we assumed that everyone would write in a different style, which made the group's overall time plan ineffective.

4. Analysis

This Gibbs Reflective Cycle is the best opportunity to make sense of what happened and determine what lesson you have learned. You had been concentrating on the specifics of the situation until this point, but you now have the opportunity to conclude it. By doing this, you'll be prepared to handle the same situation effectively. First, list the good and bad things that occur to analyse both properly. Then, you can consider the following queries:

  • Why did things go well in this situation?
  • What are the reasons for the mistakes that occurred during the crisis?
  • What sense can one make of the problem?
  • What knowledge is required to understand the problem?
  • What knowledge of other people helps to understand the problem?

Gibbs model of reflection example of analysis: After some reflection, I concluded that I should have researched cooking times and used a timer to aid in my planning. Overall, though, the evening was enjoyable, and while some attention was paid to my food, that was not our only goal. After the event, I spoke with a few of my friends, and their encouraging comments helped me realise that my outgoing nature made them feel comfortable and helped them enjoy the evening.

5. Conclusion

You can now conclude what transpired. You can do that by reflecting on how you felt at the time and imagining what else you could have done. You will significantly benefit from the knowledge gathered as you strive to improve yourself. To improve the outcome in the future, you summarise your expertise and highlight the changes in this step of the Gibbs reflective model . Keep in mind that it ought to be a natural reaction. You may find these questions helpful in this regard:

  • What skills can you learn to enhance them?
  • Can you use those skills now?
  • If you faced the same situation, what would you do differently?
  • How are you planning to turn the adverse outcomes into positive ones?

Gibbs model of reflection example of Conclusion: When a group wants to divide work into sections, we must first decide how each area looks and feels. If we had done this, it would have been possible to put the teams together and submit them without doing much rewriting. In addition, I'll keep asking people to identify their strengths, and for longer projects, I might suggest using the "Belbin team roles" framework. Finally, I discovered that sometimes we question our group's choices to ensure that we are not just making these choices out of groupthink.

6. Action Plan

It is the final action. Be proactive and outline your plans for putting them into action. Based on your findings, make the necessary adjustments to position yourself for the next instance of the same circumstance. For citation guidance, refer to the Gibbs model of reflection or seek professional assistance.

  • What did you learn from the situation?
  • What skills do you need to develop to become a better person?
  • What could have been a more favourable situation for everyone out there?
  • What else could have been done?

Gibbs cycle of reflection example of Action Plan: The following time I host an evening, I should practise beforehand so I can use a tried-and-true method. Thanks to this, I'll feel more organised and confident as the event approaches. And tried methods could also ask someone more accustomed to doing this for advice.

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The Gibbs model of reflection has several benefits and drawbacks. Some pros and cons are given below.

Advantages of Gibbs Reflective Cycle

  • The theoretical model is simple to use and comprehend.
  • The procedure enables you to apply the technique repeatedly and with various outcomes.
  • You get better at it as you practise more.
  • You gain more excellent equilibrium and more reliable judgement through practice.

Disadvantages of Gibbs Reflective Cycle

  • It takes a reactive approach rather than a proactive one.
  • Since there is no mention of critical thinking, many people consider it superficial.
  • There are no empirically supported questions in the model.
  • It can be difficult for many people to express their emotions. This model cannot be used there.
  • A novice may need help to carry out the study successfully without a guide or experienced practitioner.

Knowing where to begin the reflective process can be challenging if you are not used to it. Fortunately, there are many models you can use as a framework for your reflection, such as the Driscoll reflective model , the Era cycle, Kolb's experiential learning cycle, etc., to help you approach your reflection better.

Also Read:  Reflective Journal: A Guide on Writing Reflection-On-Action with Few Examples

Now that you understand how the Gibbs cycle works, it is time to put it into practice and produce a better result this time. If you still require assistance, you can use our professional writers, and they'll elevate your academic performance.

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The 6 Stages Of Gibbs Reflective Cycle- A Complete Guide

John is a retail manager at a well-renowned fashion outlet in Toronto, Canada. For an upcoming fashion exhibition, he was asked to order 2 boxes of white linen shirts. John places the order online and goes for a short lunch break. A couple of hours later, he receives an email in his mailbox from the vendor with a receipt for the order. He gulps down in fear on opening the mail. Instead of 2 boxes, the receipt reads 20.

A dismayed John writes an email instantly apologizing for his huge mistake and cancelling the extra 18 boxes he had ordered mistakenly. Later in the day, he gets a scolding from his general manager, who informs John that the organization will greatly suffer a hefty fine due to his carelessness, and a major part will be deducted from his next month’s salary.

Almost every organization has suffered losses due to human error, despite their employees putting the best foot forward. However, the key to dealing with such mistakes is not resentment or regret- its reflection, which has been aptly laid out in Gibb’s reflective cycle.

Today’s blog is for everyone out there who strongly believes people learn things by only practicing and not reflecting on experience. Reading this blog will not only put you miles ahead but help you greatly make sense, comprehend, and reflect on how to do better next time in the long run.

Table of Contents

Gibbs Reflective Cycle: A Brief Overview

Formulated by Graham Gibbs in 1988, the Gibbs Reflective Cycle was designed to provide structure to learn from experiences. It is one of the most popular theoretical models that encourage people to think about what they had encountered during a specific situation or event. This method enables people to be more attentive. It analyzes the positive and negative impacts of an event by making them aware of their actions and realizes from their own experiences the aspects they require to improve.

The cycle is incredibly helpful to ponder about the specific situation excessively deeply, and by reflecting on those experiences, people become aware of their actions and can change or adjust their behavior. Gibb’s reflective cycle was originally devised for nursing-like Rolfe’s model of reflection. However, this has become popular across numerous disciplines and widely applied as a prominent model of reflective practice.

History of Gibbs Reflective Cycle

In the opinion of eminent essay writers around the world, Graham Gibb was an American psychologist and sociologist. He first published his Reflective Cycle Model in 1988 in his book called ‘Learning By Doing’. The framework was engineering for examining experiences. Given its cyclic nature, it is known to lend itself especially remarkably to repeated experiences, helping you learn, plan, and evaluate from things that either went well or didn’t go well.

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The crucial element of this process is especially the acknowledgement of the significance of feelings in reflection. Most people consider experience to be the best teacher. However, until you reflect on the experience and consciously think about how to improve next time, the learning process will remain incomplete. This is where Gibbs reflective cycle comes into play. Applying this method, you can evaluate your or other actions and comprehend what can be done better in the future.

The Six Steps Of Gibbs Reflective Cycle

The framework of the Gibbs Reflective Cycle includes six remarkable steps. Each of these six stages helps people engage and reflect on a specific learning experience. Have a look at the six steps enlisted below in detail-

  • Step 1- Description

The first step discusses the situation, experience, activity, or even minute details without focusing on the conclusions immediately. The aim of an individual at this stage must be to know what happened. One can ask the following questions to get a better understanding of the situation-

  • What actually happened?
  • Where did this happen?
  • When did this happen?
  • Who was there?
  • What did you do?
  • What did others do?
  • What was the consequence of the situation?
  • Step 2- Feelings

In this specific stage, it is crucial to speak about the thought and felt during the situation. During this period, you need to refrain from commenting on any of your emotions. Remember to not discuss feelings in detail or comment on it. To assess this, you can use these questions-

  • What did you feel before the incident happened?
  • How did you feel during the situation that took place?
  • What did you think about others people feeling during the incident?
  • What did you feel after the activity?
  • What do you think about the incident now that it happened?
  • Step 3- Evaluation

This third step of the Gibbs Reflective Cycle by Graham Gibbs is marked as evaluation, where people assess their experience positively or negatively both about the situation. This is the step where you are required to be objective and comprehend what worked in your favor and what did not.

Take help of the following questions to form a clear idea about the situations-

  • What was positive about this specific situation?
  • What was negative about this situation?
  • What went well in this situation?
  • What did not go so well in the specific situation?
  • What did you do to contribute to this situation, either positively or negatively?
  • Step 4- Analysis

This step is to find out what lesson you have acquired from the event, situation, or activity. On the basis of the past experience, you can think to perform well if a similar kind of situation arises in the future. The analysis is mostly conducted along with the evaluation. These are the examples of certain helpful questions you can ask yourself-

  • What was the thing that was good about the situation?
  • What was the negative side of the activity?
  • What you did to contribute during the situation?
  • What didn’t go well during the situation?
  • What good happened during the incident?
  • Step 5- Conclusion

This is the specific stage when you are required to look back at yourself during that event from a distance of time. You also need to imagine what else could be done in that specific state. The information gathered while concluding can be of immense significance to become a better person. It can help prevent unwanted things from occurring in the future.

  • Step 6- Action Plan

The sixth and last step of the Gibbs reflective cycle is the action plan. Here people describe how they will deal with similar situations in the future and how to do better next time. This is the remarkable stage to make changes and come up with a plan to do things differently in the future.

Final Thoughts

Gibbs ‘Learning By Doing’ is a unique way to self-assess and evaluate the learning process. The learner must wholly commit to the learning process, while reflecting upon the successes and pitfalls during and after the process. The reflective cycle helps the learner to do this by breaking down the process in 6 crucial steps. Following this process effectively helps you become a reflective practitioner and begin to use your personal and professional experience as a means for continuing development.

Clara Smith (Author)

Clara Smith is an assistant history professor at a reputed university in the United States. She also provides coursework help to students at Allessaywriter.com . Clara loves to spend time with her friends and family whenever she is free.

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How do I reference Gibbs' reflective cycle in APA (7th ed.)?

Wherever possible you should use the original work.

Gibbs, G. (1988).  Learning by doing: A guide to teaching and learning methods.   Further Education Unit.

Secondary referencing If you  have not  read the original you must make this clear by referring to the work in which you found the reference. In the reference list only include details of the work that you read.

In-text citation Gibbs’ reflective cycle (1988) as cited in Jasper (2013) shows that… or Gibbs’ reflective cycle is a seminal theory in reflective practice (Gibbs, 1988, as cited in Jasper, 2013).

In the reference list Jasper, M. (2013).  Beginning reflective practice  (2nd ed.). Cengage Learning.

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  • Last Updated May 18, 2021
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  • Answered By Elen Davies

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COMMENTS

  1. Gibbs' Reflective Cycle

    One of the most famous cyclical models of reflection leading you through six stages exploring an experience: description, feelings, evaluation, analysis, conclusion and action plan. Overview Gibbs' Reflective Cycle was developed by Graham Gibbs in 1988 to give structure to learning from experiences.

  2. Gibbs' Reflective Cycle

    What Is Gibbs' Reflective Cycle? Professor Graham Gibbs published his Reflective Cycle in his 1988 book " Learning by Doing ." It's particularly useful for helping people learn from situations that they experience regularly, especially when these don't go well. Gibbs' cycle is shown below. Figure 1 - Gibbs' Reflective Cycle

  3. The ultimate guide for understanding Gibb's Reflective Cycle

    Gibbs' The reflective cycle was developed by Graham Gibbs in 1988 with the main aim of structuring individual learnings from past experiences (Markkanen et al., 2020). Effective utilization of this cycle offers a wide opportunity to examine past experiences and improve future actions. Table of Contents Overview Six stages of Gibbs' reflective cycle

  4. Gibbs' Reflective Cycle

    ‍ The Six Stages of Gibbs' Reflective Cycle The Gibbs reflective cycle consists of six distinct stages: Description, Feelings, Evaluation, Analysis, Conclusion, and Action Plan. Each stage prompts the individual to examine their experiences through questions designed to incite deep and critical reflection.

  5. Gibbs' Reflective Cycle explained with lots of Examples.

    Description. Feelings. Evaluation. Analysis. Conclusion. Action Plan. This cycle must be repeated until Obtaining the Desired Results. The Six Steps of Gibbs' Reflective Cycle 1. Description: Describe in detail the Situation in which you want to improve. A Negotiation, A Decision you made, a Discussion with your employees, etc. 2.

  6. How To Lead a Gibbs Reflective Cycle Exercise (+Template)

    Description The Gibbs Reflective Cycle starts by objectively describing the situation or experience that is to be evaluated and reflected upon. In this stage, you will provide details regarding the context and individuals involved, as well as any relevant background information. 2. Feelings

  7. PDF Gibbs' reflective cycle

    Gibbs' reflective cycle Gibbs (1988, p.49) created his "structured debriefing" to support experiential learning. It was designed as a continuous cycle of improvement for a repeated experience but can also be used to reflect on a standalone experience.

  8. The Gibbs Reflective Cycle

    That's where the Gibbs reflective cycle comes in handy. Let us walk you through this model of reflection. What is the Gibbs Reflective Cycle? Psychologist Graham Gibbs created the Gibbs reflective cycle in the 1980s. It gives structure to the reflective process by walking you through six key steps:

  9. Reflecting on experience

    Gibbs' Reflective Cycle. One of the most famous cyclical models of reflection leading you through six stages exploring an experience: description, feelings, evaluation, analysis, conclusion and action plan. ... The Integrated Reflective Cycle draws on other models and takes you through four steps to consider: the experience, your actions ...

  10. WHAT? Gibbs' Reflective Cycle

    Gibbs' Reflective Cycle How to use this card These training cards are designed to support educator development through individual reading and reflection or through group discussion. The What? So What? Now What? format encourages the reader to take the knowledge presented on the card and consider why the topic matters

  11. Gibbs' Reflective Cycle

    Description Step 2. Feeling Step 3. Evaluation Step 4. Analysis Step 5. Conclusion Step 6. Plan of Action Gibbs' Reflective Cycle Example Gibbs Reflective Cycle Template Advantages and Disadvantages of Reflective Cycle How Gibbs' Reflective Cycle Helps Final Reflection Check out our Gibbs' Cycle PDF Template!

  12. PDF Using Gibbs: Example of reflective writing in a healthcare assignment

    Action Plan. In future, I will aim to develop my assertive skills when working with colleagues, in order to ensure that the well-being of clients is maintained. In my next placement, I will make this a goal for my learning, and will discuss this with my mentor to work out strategies for how I can achieve this. *******************.

  13. Elevation through reflection: closing the circle to improve

    Reflecting alone and recording the reflection is a popular format for reflective practice. Reflective writing (handwritten journal entry or typing an electronic document) is a common way to reflect, though audio or video recordings can also be used. ... Other models, such as Gibbs' Reflective Cycle Model (Table 3) ...

  14. What is Gibbs' Reflective Cycle? The Gibbs ...

    Gibbs' reflective cycle was developed by Dr. Graham Gibbs in 1988 - a research leader in the Department of Behavioral and Social Sciences at the University of Huddersfield. Gibbs' reflective cycle is a framework giving structure to the process of learning from experience through six stages: description, feelings, evaluation, analysis, conclusions, and action plan.

  15. Gibbs Model and Applied Example

    To see if Gibbs reflective cycle can help you reflect on aspects of your practice, recall a nursing situation that didn't turn out as you expected or go to plan. ... Gibbs, (1988) Learning by Doing: A Guide to Teaching and Learning Methods Further Education Unit, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford. Example Reflection - Sadly, a real story!

  16. Reflective Practice and Its Role in Simulation

    Use of questions from Gibbs's reflective cycle (Gibbs, 1988) can guide the debriefing and provide structure. The case study illustrates how Gibbs's reflective cycle can be applied in the debriefing (Box 1). We use the example of a manikin-based simulation for nursing students learning to implement an algorithm for defibrillation and ...

  17. Gibbs' cycle review. Emotions as a part of the cycle

    The Gibbs' cycle, used in reflective practice, is a tool for self-reflection, mental wellbeing monitoring, academic learning and teaching activities, personal and professional development.

  18. Development and Implementation of a Reflective Writing Assignment for

    An example of a study that examined the impact of Gibbs' Reflective Cycle on medical students was documented in Dhaliwal et al. (2018) where they piloted a reflective assignment in which medical students were introduced to Gibbs' Reflective Cycle during a half-day workshop and subsequently submitted reflective narratives based on a doctor ...

  19. Gibbs Reflective Cycle [6 Stages + Examples]

    There are six steps in the Gibbs reflective model. The first three steps are concerned with what took place during the experience that is being studied. The final three steps address how you can enhance your knowledge for similar situations you may encounter in the future. 1. Description.

  20. The 6 Stages Of Gibbs Reflective Cycle- A Complete Guide

    Formulated by Graham Gibbs in 1988, the Gibbs Reflective Cycle was designed to provide structure to learn from experiences. It is one of the most popular theoretical models that encourage people to think about what they had encountered during a specific situation or event. This method enables people to be more attentive.

  21. (PDF) Using GIBBS' reflective cycle in making reflections of literary

    Gibbs' reflective cycle is a good framework to be used by the students in writing reflections upon literary works they are working on (Adeani, Febriani, & Syafryudin, 2020). Gibbs' reflection ...

  22. What Is Gibbs Reflective Model Pros and Cons

    The six stages of the Gibbs Reflective Theory (DFEAAC) are Description, Feelings, Evaluation, Analysis, Conclusion, and Action Plan. This format guarantees a methodical and thorough evaluation of an experience, making it simpler to pinpoint key elements. 2. Simple and Easy. Reflection model Gibbs is easy to use, and everyone can benefit from it ...

  23. How do I reference Gibbs' reflective cycle in APA (7th ed.)?

    Answer Wherever possible you should use the original work. Gibbs, G. (1988). Learning by doing: A guide to teaching and learning methods. Further Education Unit. Secondary referencing If you have not read the original you must make this clear by referring to the work in which you found the reference.