In "The Rational and the Social" James Brown argues against the method of reflective equilibrium. According to Brown, this would involve a circularity for that method presupposes an account of good scientific practice. In this paper it is argued that the method can be sustained without such a presupposition using either coherentism, reliabilism or defeasible foundationalism. That being so there is no circularity in applying it within normative epistemology.