Running head: NURSING THEORY
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Nursing Theory
Ashley Reid
University of Central Florida
ENC
1102
Laura Martinez
October 01, 2012
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Nursing Theory
After exploring genres related to the field of Nursing through a preliminary genre
analysis, I continued analyzing the language and genres of my field by tracing current theories
related to nurses. I gathered articles related to the improvement of patient care, advancement of
technology, and symptom management. Through research I have found how patient care can be
improved (Chen et. al. 2005; Nystrom 2007; Barret 2002), the advancement of technology and
theory in the nursing field (Bond et.al. 2011; Im and Chang 2012; Jaarsma and Dassen 1993;
Andershed and Olsson 2009) and symptom management (Brant, Beck and Miaskowski 2010;
Bakan and Akyol 2008; Reishtein 2005). These sources helped me to better understand how
nurses work in their field and the importance of certain factors such as nurse and patient
communication. These sources have helped me prepare for what is to come for my Nursing
major and also as a future nurse.
Andershed B, Olsson K. (2009) Review of research related to Kristen Swanson’s middlerange theory of caring. Scandinavian Journal of Caring Sciences. 23:598-610.
Birgitta Andershed and Kristina Olsson, an associate professor at the School of Health
and Medicine in Orebro University and Department of Palliative Care director at Ersta Skondal
University college in Sweden, in their 2009 article, “Review of Research Related to Kristen
Swanson’s middle-range theory of caring,” claim that Kristen Swanson’s middle range theory of
caring has been used throughout nursing practice and research and have been presented in
international journals. They support this claim by explaining Swanson’s theories by illustrating
tables and using different sources that relate to the same theories made by Swanson. Their
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purpose in writing this article was to identify Swanson’s theory, and show how it could be
applied to the nursing field. Their intended audience includes nursing researchers, nursing
scientists, and modern medical theorists.
Andershed and Olsson’s article is relevant to my topic because they focus on a specific
nursing theorist and compare her claims to others, while proposing ways that these theories could
be improved to help the medical field. Stating, “The development of the discipline of nursing has
gone through different stages, such as identifying the territory of the domain of nursing, theory
syntax, concept development, and philosophical debates,” they argue that throughout the medical
field, nurses will have to overcome different stages throughout their career and should advance
with better knowledge of their field, as well as update on better technology to give the best care.
This article relates to the claims made by Chen (et al.) because they focus on the improvement
nursing care and communication with patients, as well as fellow nurses.
BAKAN G. & AKYOL A.D. (2008) Theory-guided interventions for adaptation to heart
failure. Journal of Advanced Nursing 61(5), 596–608.
Gulcan Bakan and Asiye Akyol, cardiology nursing and assistant professors in Internal
Medicine at the University School of Nursing in Izmir, Turkey, in their 2008 work, “Theoryguided interventions for adaption to heart failure,” claims that individuals that suffer from heart
failure should have nurses that will provide the best patient care in order to prevent a
traumatizing experience with inadequate nursing practices. They support this claim with research
findings that show patient’s informal social support from other fellow patients, and a healthcare
team that influence adaption to chronic diseases. The purpose of this article was to examine the
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effects of a model-based experimental education, exercise, and social support on adaptions in
people with heart failure. Their intended audience includes nurses specializing in cardiology,
nursing theorists, and educators.
Bakan and Akyol’s article is relevant to my topic because they focus on the impact or
nursing and patient care. In this article, patients with heart failure were the main focus, and the
way the patient was treated by the nurse influenced on how they adapted to treatment of the
disease. Stating “Nurses have an important role in educating and supporting patients with heart
failure to comply with the medical regimen and practice self-care,” they emphasized the
importance of nurse and patient communication. This article relates claims made by Brant, Beck
and Miaskowski because they focused on the importance of advancement within the nursing
field such as nursing and patient communication.
Barret EA. (2002) What is nursing science? Nursing Science Quarterly. 15:51-60.
Elizabeth Ann Barret, professor emeritus at the School of Nursing in University of New
York, in her 2002 article, “What is Nursing Science?” claims nursing is a scientific art because it
involves the attainment of knowledge for human betterment. She supports this claim by
incorporating paradigmatic organization of nursing knowledge based a conceptual differentiation
on all the paradigms. Her purpose was to define the aspect of “nursing science” in full detail and
to explain the affects they have towards the medical field. Her intended audience includes
nursing researchers, graduate students in the college of nursing, and nursing theorists.
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Barret’s article was relevant to my topic because she focused more in depth with the
meaning of “nursing science” and how it affects the way new theory comes about in the nursing
field. She states, “Nursing research is the means for developing the knowledge of nursing
science, and the product of the research is all the knowledge that has been developed and
disseminated.” Barret informs that with continual discovery and more knowledge on nursing
science, the medical field will be more advanced and improved as time goes on. This article
relates to the claims made by Jaarsma and Dassen because they explained the importance of
nursing with new technology and gaining knowledge that will help advance the medical field.
Bond, E., Eshah, N., Bani-Khaled, M., Hamad, A., Habashneh, S., Katua, H., al-Jarrah, I.,
& Kamal, A. (2011). Who uses nursing theory? A univariate descriptive analysis of five years'
research articles. Scandinavian Journal of Caring Sciences, 25, 404-409.
Elaine Bond (et.al), a director of the nursing PhD program and Fulbright Scholar at the
University of Jordan, in their 2011 article, “Who uses nursing theory? A univariate descriptive
analysis of five years’ research articles,” explains that nursing theory helps define and recognize
nursing knowledge in the medical field. They support this explanation through a variety of
methods and visual tables that help to show the connections within these different nursing
theories. Their purpose in writing this article was to show that nurses that gain more knowledge
about their field will essentially improve patient care and nursing practice. The audience
intended for this article includes nursing researchers, medical theorists, and nurses.
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Bond et.al.’s article is relevant to my topic because they focus on improving the most
important aspect in the nursing field, which is patient care and nursing practice. They also touch
upon new advances in technology within the medical field that would benefit with nursing
because better equipment will provide better care. Stating “As the profession has evolved, and
nursing scientists have matured in their research techniques, they have increased their ability to
perform numerous types of research; clinical trials, evaluation/policy research, intervention,
replication, outcomes and methodological research,” Bond claims that nurses have been
improving as new technology and research techniques come about as the profession grows and it
helps their interaction with the caring for patients. This article relates to claims made by Brant,
Beck and Miaskowski (2010) because the evidence of their findings with different nursing
theories show that patient care and technology have improved over the years and this relates to
Bond (et.al) because their findings are similar.
Brant J.M., Beck S. & Miaskowski C. (2010) Building dynamic models and theories to
advance the science of symptom management research. Journal of Advanced Nursing 66(1), 228240
Jeannine M. Brant, Susan Beck and Christine Miaskowski, a clinical nurse specialist and
research scientist, a professor at the University of Utah College of Nursing, and associate dean at
UCSF College of Nursing, in their 2010 article, “Building dynamic models and theories to
advance the science of symptom management research,” claims that symptom management is an
important nursing theory that should be improved. They support this claim by illustrating tables
and giving real-life scenarios on the effects of symptom management to improve nursing
practices. Their purpose was to help the medical field and show that nurses could be more
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sufficient in their work field. Their intended audience includes graduate students in the college of
nursing, nursing researchers, and theorists.
Brant, Beck and Miaskowski’s book is relevant to my topic because they focuses on a
specific problem that they believe should be improved to advance the field of nursing. Brant,
Beck and Miaskowski (2010) states that “Advances in scientific discovery trigger a need for
conceptual models and theories that capture current directions, not only in nursing but also in
transdisciplinary symptom management research.” They argue that new scientific development
needs to focus on advancing the nursing field, specifically towards symptom management. This
article relates to the claims made by Im and Chang because they discuss how the current trends
in nursing theories are explored through new advances and findings as Brant discusses the needs
for more scientific development in nursing.
Chen, C.C.H., Chang, C. K., Chyun, D.A., & McCorckle, R. (2005). Dynamics of
nutritional health in a community sample of American elders: A multidimensional approach
using Roy adaption model. Advances in Nursing Science, 28(4), 376-389.
Cheryl Chen, Chin-Kuo Chang, Deborah Chyun, and Ruth McCorckle, professional
doctors from National Taiwan University School of Nursing, in their 2005 article, “Dynamics of
Nutritional Health in a Community Sample of American Elders: A Multidimensional Approach
Using Roy Adaption Model,” claim that healthcare costs will be reduced, and the quality of life
will be enhanced if individuals receive adequate nutritional health. They supported this claim by
a conduction of a cross-sectional community based survey that compared information on
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functional statuses, oral health, nutritional health, and social support. Their purpose was to
evaluate the dynamics of nutritional health by testing certain factors such as demographics,
medication use, oral health, etc. to predict nutritional health as a guide for a multidimensional
approach. Their intended audience would be health professionals, nutritionists, and nurses.
Chen (et. al.)’s article is relevant to my topic because nutritional health is something that
should be improved to help the medical field. Chen (et. al.) (2005) states “Nurses have intimate
and ongoing contact with elderly patients and therefore have an opportunity and an obligation to
assess and educate patients and caregivers regarding the care that promotes elders’ nutritional
health.” They explain that nurses are a big factor with helping elders and individuals to have
better nutritional health and it would be vital to make sure the patients and caregivers are
educated on how to correctly take care of themselves. This article relates to claims made by
Bakan and Akyol because they focused on how nurses should improve patient care to individuals
with heart disease to prevent inadequate care. Both articles are similar because they focus on the
interaction of nurses and patients, and believe that this is an important factor to improve the
medical field.
Im, E., & Chang, S. J. (2012). Current trends in nursing theories. Journal of Nursing
Scholarship, 44(2), 156-164.
Eun-Ok Im, and Sun Ju Chang, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania College of
Nursing and a visiting scholar and post-doctoral researcher at the University of Pennsylvania
College of Nursing, in their 2012 article, “Current Trends of Nursing Theories,” asserts that
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current trends in nursing theories refer to current tendencies or inclinations in theory
development. They support this assertion by conducting a literary review using multiple
databases which showed linkage between nursing theories and research. Their purpose was to
explore current trends in nursing theories through an integrated literature review, and to explain
different methods of improving medical care. The intended audience for this article includes
graduate students in the college of nursing, nursing theorists, and medical specialists.
Im and Chang’s article is relevant to my topic because they maintain focus on the
importance of advances in nursing research methods and nursing practices that use technology
and knowledge. Stating, “At the early stage of nursing discipline, nursing theorists tended to
develop theories mainly from their own experience and intuition in education or practice, and
existing theories from other fields,” Im and Chang explains that nursing education is an
important factor with the development of these nursing theories and as time goes on, nursing
should develop with more technological advances and nursing practice should be improved
(159). This article related to claims made by Bond (et. al.) because they both emphasize the
important of patient care and nursing practice and that over time, they should be more advanced
and well used.
Jaarsma T, Dassen T. (1993) The relationship of nursing theory and research: the state of
the art. Journal of Advanced Nursing.18:783-787.
Tiny Jaarsma and Theo Dassen, professional doctors at the University of Limberg
department of nursing science, in their 1993 article, “The relationship of nursing theory and
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research: the state of the art,” claim that the use of theories in nursing research studies has
increased, but the use of nursing theories has not become more frequent. They support this claim
by testing different nursing theories and analyzing the results. Their purpose in writing this
article was to analyze the role of theory in nursing research. The intended audience includes
nursing researchers and theorists.
Jaarsma and Dassen’s article is relevant to my topic because they focus on nursing
theories that have been developed over time, and how it their effects can improve the medical
field. Jaarsma and Dassen (1993) state, “It is being stressed that research should focus on testing
and developing theories.” They explain that nursing theory should be the main focus with
research so that nurses can perform their duties sufficiently in the medical field. This article
relates to the claims made by Brant, Beck, and Miaskowski because they discuss how research in
symptom management is an aspect in nursing theory that should be improved.
Nystrom M. (2007) A patient-oriented perspective in existential issues: a theoretical
argument for applying Peplau’s interpersonal relation model in healthcare science and practice.
Scandinavian Journal of Caring Sciences. 27:282-288.
Maria Nystrom, a professor at the School of Health Sciences at the University College in
Sweden, in her 2007 article, “A patient-oriented perspective in existential issues: a theoretical
argument for applying Peplau’s interpersonal relation model in healthcare science and practice,”
claims that theories of interpersonal relations were relevant to healthcare work, and found that
interaction between nurses and patients had an impact on outcomes for patients. She supports
this claim by comparing different theories and concepts that relate to nursing and patient
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communication. Her purpose was to discuss borrowed theories and find a unique relation to
theoretical foundation for healthcare science and practice. Her intended audience for this article
includes nursing theorists, researchers, and nurses.
Nystrom’s article is relevant to my topic because she focuses on the importance of nurse
and patient communication. Stating, “Healthcare providers ought to add a scientific component
in their work by applying useful theories in order to develop health care,” she argues that it is
necessary for health care professionals to obtain more knowledge about their field, so that they
can improve the medical field. This article relates to the claims made by Bond (et. al) because
they focus on improving nurse and patient communication as well, but they also explain that new
technological advances would be a helping factor for the improvement of nursing.
Reishtein J.L. (2005) Relationship between symptoms and functional performance in
COPD. Research in Nursing & Health. 28:39-47.
Judith L. Reishtein, post-doctoral and professor at the University of Pennsylvania, in her
2005 article, “Relationship between symptoms and functional performance in COPD,” argues
that people with similar disease states often experience a wide range of symptoms and symptom
severity. She supports this claim by conducting studies based on three different hypotheses and
tested them with certain case scenarios. Her purpose was to determine the interrelationships and
relative contributions within symptoms and functional performance. Her intended audience
includes nursing theorists and nurses working in the medicals field.
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Reishtein’s article is relevant to my topic because she explains the connection between
symptom functions and performance to patient outcome after a nurse has treated them. She
states, “Although no studies of the relationship between sleep difficulties and function in people
with COPD have been conducted, studies of other populations indicate the potentially important
role of sleep disturbance as an influence on functional performance.” Essentially, Reishtein gives
an example of a symptom, such as sleep difficulties, and explains that symptom management is
an important factor for nurses to focus on with their patients. This article relates to the claims
made by Brant, Beck, and Miaskowski because they feel that nurses would be more sufficient in
their field if symptom management is improved.
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Works Cited
1. Andershed B, Olsson K. (2009) Review of research related to Kristen Swanson’s
middle-range theory of caring. Scandinavian Journal of Caring Sciences. 23:598-610.
2. BAKAN G. & AKYOL A.D. (2008) Theory-guided interventions for adaptation to
heart failure. Journal of Advanced Nursing 61(5), 596–608.
3. Barret EA. (2002) What is nursing science? Nursing Science Quarterly. 15:51-60.
4. Bond, E., Eshah, N., Bani-Khaled, M., Hamad, A., Habashneh, S., Katua, H., alJarrah, I., & Kamal, A. (2011). Who uses nursing theory? A univariate descriptive
analysis of five years' research articles. Scandinavian Journal of Caring Sciences, 25,
404-409.
5. Brant J.M., Beck S. & Miaskowski C. (2010) Building dynamic models and theories
to advance the science of symptom management research. Journal of Advanced
Nursing 66(1), 228-240
6.
Chen, C.C.H., Chang, C. K., Chyun, D.A., & McCorckle, R. (2005). Dynamics of
nutritional health in a community sample of American elders: A multidimensional
approach using Roy adaption model. Advances in Nursing Science, 28(4), 376-389.
7. Im, E., & Chang, S. J. (2012). Current trends in nursing theories. Journal of Nursing
Scholarship, 44(2), 156-164.
8. Jaarsma T, Dassen T. (1993) The relationship of nursing theory and research: the
state of the art. Journal of Advanced Nursing.18:783-787.
9. Nystrom M. (2007) A patient-oriented perspective in existential issues: a theoretical
argument for applying Peplau’s interpersonal relation model in healthcare science and
practice. Scandinavian Journal of Caring Sciences. 27:282-288.
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10. Reishtein J.L. (2005) Relationship between symptoms and functional performance in
COPD. Research in Nursing & Health. 28:39-47.