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To reference Rolfe’s reflective model, first identify the source you used. For the 2001 book, the authors are Gary Rolfe, Dawn Freshwater and Melanie Jasper, in that order. The APA 7 reference is:

Rolfe, G., Freshwater, D., & Jasper, M. (2001). Critical reflection for nursing and the helping professions: A user’s guide. Palgrave.

Use (Rolfe et al., 2001) in parentheses or Rolfe et al. (2001) in a sentence. The author order, title, year and publisher are recorded in the US National Library of Medicine catalogue. If you read a different edition or only a webpage, cite that source accurately instead.

Understanding the Rolfe Reflective Model

The Rolfe Reflective Model is commonly organised around three questions:

1. What? Identify the event and relevant observations.
2. So What? Examine its significance and the reasoning behind your interpretation.
3. Now What? Decide what to change and how to review the result.

The questions were not invented by Rolfe alone in 2001. The University of Edinburgh’s Reflection Toolkit traces their use through Borton (1970), Driscoll (1994) and Rolfe and colleagues (2001). Cite the version you actually use rather than treating these sources as interchangeable.

How to Reference the Rolfe Reflective Model in APA Style

Reference list:

Rolfe, G., Freshwater, D., & Jasper, M. (2001). Critical reflection for nursing and the helping professions: A user’s guide. Palgrave.

In-text forms: (Rolfe et al., 2001) or Rolfe et al. (2001). APA 7 normally shortens citations with three or more authors from the first mention, unless that creates ambiguity. All three authors still appear in this book’s reference-list entry. See Purdue OWL’s APA author guidance.

For a direct quotation, include the actual page containing the quoted passage. A page-number template is (Rolfe et al., 2001, p. [actual page]); replace the bracketed instruction before submission. Do not copy a page number from an example without checking the book.

How to Reference the Rolfe Reflective Model in Harvard Style

Harvard has institutional variations, so follow your university’s guide. One author-date format for the original book is:

Rolfe, G., Freshwater, D. and Jasper, M. (2001) Critical reflection for nursing and the helping professions: A user’s guide. Basingstoke: Palgrave.

A full-author in-text form is (Rolfe, Freshwater and Jasper, 2001). Some Harvard guides instead require et al. for three authors. Follow the same institutional rule throughout the assignment; do not mix it with APA rules simply because both use author and year.

How to Reference the Rolfe Reflective Model in MLA Style

Works Cited:

Rolfe, Gary, et al. Critical Reflection for Nursing and the Helping Professions: A User’s Guide. Palgrave, 2001.

MLA normally connects an in-text citation to the author and relevant page, rather than the publication year. Use (Rolfe et al. [actual page]) as a template, replacing the bracketed instruction with the page supporting your statement. If the authors are already named in your sentence, avoid repeating them in parentheses. See the official MLA in-text citation overview.

Original example: citing the framework without inventing evidence

Illustrative APA sentence: I organised my discussion of the group presentation using the reflective framework of Rolfe et al. (2001).

The citation acknowledges the framework. Your account of who prepared the slides, what feedback the tutor gave and what you plan to change must come from your own evidence. It would be misleading to imply that the book documents your particular experience.

What if you have only read a website?

Cite the webpage you actually consulted, or use the secondary-citation format required by your style guide. Do not put the book in your references as though you read it merely because its citation appears online. Also check that every in-text citation has a matching reference-list entry.

Conclusion

Keep the original author order, match the year and publisher to your edition, and use only page numbers you have checked. For related sources, see our Driscoll referencing guide, Gibbs referencing guide and academic resources hub.