ABSTRACT
This chapter is meta-autoethnographic to the extent that it speaks to autoethnography and autoethnographic work in an autoethnographic way. Addressing readers in the second person, to pull them into the chapter with the aim of helping them consider the relevance of issues for their own work and life, the narrative draws largely but not exclusively on the author’s single- and co-authored writing. After defining autoethnography, and setting out its key characteristics, forms and demands on the researcher, the focus turns to the relationship between the autoethnographic self and culture, and the political implications of this relationship. This paves the way for an exploration of key philosophical principles governing the approach, its benefits, and evaluation and dissemination issues. The chapter ends with a response to some of the main criticisms levelled at the methodology by its detractors.
