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Reflexivity is an English term that Spanish speaking people have to assign a technical meaning. Reflexivity expresses the conscience of researchers conscience and refers to their connection with the study's situation. It is a process by which researchers step back to critically exam the effect they have on the study and the impact of their interactions with participants. The reflexive process is embedded in all research levels and is present in all the research phases, from the research question to fieldwork, from data analysis to writing the final report. Nevertheless, the question is not so much to engage in reflective activities but to be a reflexive researcher. Reflexivity is a human ability that is present during social interactions. For this reason it is present in qualitative research. A self inquirer can be addressed as it is constructed by the relationships and interactions that are established with study participants. Reflexivity has an educational character that continues after the study is completed., (Copyright © 2010 Elsevier España, S.L. All rights reserved.)

Objective: To understand caregivers' experience of rest., Method: We performed a qualitative study guided by grounded theory procedures. This study forms part of a wider study about burden relief in vulnerable situations. Seventeen women family caregivers of patients with advanced dementia were purposely sampled. Data were collected with 17 semi-structured interviews and were analyzed following grounded theory procedures., Results: Caregivers did not rest as previously, with rest being incomplete and depending on the well-being of the sick relative. In this study, tranquillity emerged as the central element of this new experience of rest. Rest was perceived as an interpreted experience involving organizational and emotional effort. Caregivers created and negotiated conditions that would provide the tranquillity to be able to rest., Conclusions: The present study provides greater insight into the experience of relief from the burden of care and highlights the moral connotation present in family care. Identifying how caregivers rest and what subjectively enables them to do so will not only help healthcare professionals to support and promote rest, but will also help to avoid blaming caregivers for not being able or wanting to rest. Support services should bear in mind the change that has taken place in the experience of relief in caregivers' lives.

In Spain, care in dependency has traditionally fallen to family members but this situation is changing. The existence of a model based on the family's contribution used to enable dependent elders to remain at home; however, social changes such as the crisis of the informal caregiving system, which has been extensively discussed in the literature is leading to the collapse of this situation. In an attempt to respond to this crisis, society has resorted to contracting immigrant women to carry out family care. Responsibility and caregiving is thus transferred to these women and is financially remunerated. Thus, family caregiving of the elderly provided by immigrants is presented as an important resource for care. The care of dependent elderly individuals is often the only opportunity for immigrant women who arrive in Spain in search of better conditions to become incorporated into the labor market. The dispersion of studies on immigrant care highlights the invisibility of this phenomenon. Based on a literature review, the present study highlights the situation of the family care provided by immigrant women and outlines the characteristics of this type of care. The relationship between caregiving and the conditions in which this care takes place is described. Given their situation, immigrant caregivers have a heavy burden of care and limited respite from caregiving responsibilities.

A qualitative research question reflects the researcher's paradigm and should be consistent with the proposed research method. A research question implies engaging in a process that defines the research area, subject, question, and place of the study. Because this process is interactive and changes during the course of the investigation, the beginnings are necessarily provisional. The qualitative research question is constructed, is central to the research process, and differs from what is commonly expected of a research question. Once formulated, the pertinence of the research question must be argued. Justifying a study does not imply an exhaustive literature review, but rather a selective one, by selecting the data that support the need for the study and the relevance of the research question. In practice, constructing a research question involves two phases: a first phase of intuitive reasoning and a second phase of theoretical and practical reasoning. A qualitative study can be prompted by distinct factors, common ones being personal experience, conversations with colleagues, lines of research, and the library.