Centring reflexivity through the polyphonic life histories of autistic university graduates

Reflexivity, as internal conversation, enables autistic university graduates to develop agency, recognise structural influences, and ultimately shape their life projects. This study uses a biographical-narrative methodology to develop polyphonic life histories which uncover the dialogic and the reflexive processes autistic graduates engage in alongside their support networks and researchers. In total, three autistic graduates from Spanish universities participated in individual semi-structured interviews as well as dyadic interviews with 11 supporters. These were then supplemented with written narratives, and a researcher’s diary. The study draws on Margaret Archer to offer a theorised perspective on how reflexivity mediates structural constraints and enablements in their university experiences positioning autistic graduates as active agents in their own narratives. At a methodological level, researchers extend the use of reflexivity to acknowledge their own reflexive standpoints in the interpretive process and use these – alongside reflections from the graduates - to problematise hierarchical epistemic structures in the field of autism research.