- Will my study and use of this theory support
nursing in my interdisciplinary setting? - Will those from other disciplines be able to un-
derstand, facilitating cooperation? - Will my work meet the expectations of patients
and others? Will other nurses find my work
helpful and challenging?
MY PERSONAL INTERESTS, ABILITIES,
AND EXPERIENCES
- Is the study of nursing theories in keeping with
my talents, interests, and goals? Is this some-
thing I want to do? - Will I be stimulated by thinking about and try-
ing to use this theory? Will my study of nursing
be enhanced by use of this theory? - What will it be like to think about nursing the-
ory in nursing practice? - Will my work with nursing theory be worth the
effort?
RESOURCES AND SUPPORT
- Will this be useful to me outside the classroom?
- What resources will I need to understand more
fully the terms of the theory? - Will I be able to find the support I need to study
and use the theory in my practice?
THE THEORIST, EVIDENCE, AND OPINION
- Who is the author of this theory? What is the
background of nursing education and experi-
ence brought to this work by the theorist? Is the
author an authoritative nursing scholar? - How is the theorist’s background of nursing ed-
ucation and experience brought to this work? - What is the evidence that use of the theory may
lead to improved nursing care? Has the theory
been useful to guide nursing organizations and
administrations? What about influencing nurs-
ing and health-care policy? - What is the evidence that this nursing theory
has led to nursing research, including questions
and methods of inquiry? Did the theory grow
out of nursing research reports? Out of nursing
practice issues and problems? - Does the theory reflect the latest thinking in
nursing? Has the theory kept pace with the
times in nursing? Is this a nursing theory for the
future?
Choosing a Nursing Theory
to StudyIt is important to give adequate attention to selec-
tion of theories for study. Results of this deci-
sion will have lasting influences on one’s nursing
practice. It is not unusual for nurses who begin
to work with nursing theory to realize their prac-
tice is changing and that their future efforts in the
discipline and practice of nursing are markedly
altered.
There is always some measure of hope mixed
with anxiety as nurses seriously explore nursing
theory for the first time. Individual nurses who
practice with a group of colleagues often wonder
how to select and study nursing theories. Nurses
and nursing students in courses considering nurs-
ing theory have similar questions. Nurses in new
practice settings designed and developed by nurses
have the same concerns about getting started as do
nurses in hospital organizations who want more
from their nursing.
The following exercise is grounded in the belief
that the study and use of nursing theory in nursing
practice must have roots in the practice of the
nurses involved. Moreover, the nursing theory used
by particular nurses must reflect elements of prac-
tice that are essential to those nurses, while at the
same time bringing focus and freshness to that
practice. This exercise calls on the nurse to think
about the major components of nursing, and calls
forth the values and beliefs nurses hold most dear.
In these ways, the exercise begins to parallel knowl-
edge development reflected in the nursing meta-
paradigm and nursing philosophies described in
Chapter 1. From this point on, the nurse is guided
to connect nursing theory and nursing practice in
the context of nursing situations.An Exercise of Reflection for
the Study of Nursing TheorySelect a comfortable, private, and quiet place to re-
flect and write. Relax by taking some deep, slow
breaths. Think about the reasons you went into
nursing in the first place. Bring your nursing prac-
tice into focus. Consider your practice today.
Continue to reflect and, without being distracted,
make notes so you won’t forget your thoughts and
feelings. If you are doing this exercise with a groupCHAPTER 2 Studying Nursing Theory: Choosing, Analyzing, Evaluating 17