Positionality Statement

A short written statement, most commonly found in qualitative research papers and accessibility HCI publications, in which authors articulate the personal, cultural, professional, and disability-related standpoints that shape their interpretation of the work. Positionality statements are used to surface bias, acknowledge power dynamics between researchers and participants (especially when researchers are not members of the communities they study), and support reflexive analysis. They are both a research-ethics practice and a form of self-disclosure. Critics caution that positionality statements can become formulaic or shift burden disproportionately onto marginalised researchers; accessibility practitioners writing them should connect positionality concretely to methodological choices, not treat them as a box-ticking exercise.