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In:Reflexive and Reflective Research Approaches in Applied Linguistics
Edited by Pejman Habibie and Richard D. Sawyer
[Research Methods in Applied Linguistics 8] 2025
► pp. 98–119

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Chapter 6
Affordances and limitations of autoethnography as a research method in Applied Linguistics

ORCiD logo with link | University of Cadiz
Published online: 3 March 2025
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/rmal.8.06boc
Abstract
This chapter explores the affordances and limitations of autoethnography as a research method in Applied Linguistics (AL) and assesses if current literature within the fields of ELT/TESOL and of academic literacies enhances or questions autoethnography as a research method. It first reviews the main approaches to autoethnography and then moves on to consider the ways autoethnographically-oriented studies from major AL publications meet the goals of these approaches. At this stage, the contribution of autoethnography to current AL research is examined through close analysis of 40 studies published in relevant journals and books. In particular, this chapter explores the affordances and limitations of autoethnography as a research method that are revealed in these studies. Lastly, the ethical dilemmas faced by autoethnographers in the studies under review when conducting their research and writing their narratives are also addressed.
Article outline
  • Main approaches to autoethnography as a research method
  • Analysis of autoethnographically-oriented studies
  • Affordances of autoethnography as a research method
    • Autoethnography as a researcher-centered approach
    • Autoethnography as a driver for change
    • Autoethnography as a provider for rich and easily-accessible data
    • Autoethnography as a method for professional development
    • Autoethnography as a therapeutic and emancipatory practice
    • Wider outreach of autoethnographically-oriented research
  • Limitations of autoethnography as a research method
    • The structure of autoethnographically-oriented texts
    • Autoethnography and canonical research
    • Memory as a data-collection instrument
    • A method for experienced researchers
  • Ethics and autoethnographically-oriented research
    • The macroethics of autoethnographically-oriented research
    • The microethics of autoethnographically-oriented research
  • Concluding remarks
  • References
References (67)
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