Both Insider and Outsider

The mental health clinic poses unique challenges for social work scholar-practitioners. familiar setting, the nature of data collection, and researcher’s clinical training experience all complicate efforts to maintain a reflexive stance in research. Additionally, conducting research environment risks replicating hierarchical medical model relationship. Using theoretical framework critical realism, two doctoral-level scholar practitioners analyzed advantages setting. Audit trails experiences peer debriefing from their dissertation served as basis this conceptual analysis. analysis considers impact setting on power dynamics process, well researchers’ subjective throughout process collection. authors discuss Othering straddling insider outsider identities scholar-practitioners settings. To navigate these dual researcher clinician, recommend maintaining awareness discourses, regularly with peers mentors, introducing practices into both interviews writing, moving beyond binary order occupy “space between.”