Nursing Theory Analysis

Theory is a supposition or a system of ideas intended to explain something, especially one based on general principles independent of the thing to be explained. Theories are analytical tools for understanding, explaining, and making predictions about a given subject matter. There are theories in many and varied fields of study, including the arts and sciences. A theory is a group of related concepts that propose action that guide practice. A nursing theory is a set of concepts, definitions, relationships, and assumptions or propositions derived from nursing models or from other disciplines and projects a purposive, systematic view of phenomena by designing specific inter-relationships among concepts for the purposes of describing, explaining, …show more content…
She views nursing as a maturing force that is realized as the personality develops through educational, therapeutic, and interpersonal processes. Nurses enter into a personal relationship with an individual when a felt need is present. Patricia Benner describes five levels of nursing experience that is novice, advanced beginner, competent, proficient, and expert. The levels reflect a movement from reliance on abstract principles to the use of past concrete experience. Nurses could gain knowledge and skills without ever learning the theory. One of the newer nursing theories is transcultural nursing by Madeleine Leininger. According to Leininger, the goal of nursing is to provide care congruent with cultural values, beliefs, and practices. Leininger also states that care is the essence of nursing and the dominant, distinctive and unifying feature. She says there can be no cure without caring, but that there may be caring with curing. Health care personnel should work towards an understanding of care and the values, health beliefs, and life-styles of different cultures, which will form the basis for providing culture-specific