PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

Kathryn Weaver

Publications and source records attributed to Kathryn Weaver.

5 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Understanding paradigms used for nursing research.

AIMS: The aims of this paper are to add clarity to the discussion about paradigms for nursing research and to consider integrative strategies for the development of nursing knowledge. BACKGROUND: Paradigms are sets of beliefs and practices, shared by communities of researchers, which regulate inquiry within disciplines. The various paradigms are characterized by ontological, epistemological and methodological differences in their approaches to conceptualizing and conducting research, and in their contribution towards disciplinary knowledge construction. Researchers may consider these differences so vast that one paradigm is incommensurable with another. Alternatively, researchers may ignore these differences and either unknowingly combine paradigms inappropriately or neglect to conduct needed research. To accomplish the task of developing nursing knowledge for use in practice, there is a need for a critical, integrated understanding of the paradigms used for nursing inquiry. METHODS: We describe the evolution and influence of positivist, postpositivist, interpretive and critical theory research paradigms. Using integrative review, we compare and contrast the paradigms in terms of their philosophical underpinnings and scientific contribution. FINDINGS: A pragmatic approach to theory development through synthesis of cumulative knowledge relevant to nursing practice is suggested. This requires that inquiry start with assessment of existing knowledge from disparate studies to identify key substantive content and gaps. Knowledge development in under-researched areas could be accomplished through integrative strategies that preserve theoretical integrity and strengthen research approaches associated with various philosophical perspectives. These strategies may include parallel studies within the same substantive domain using different paradigms; theoretical triangulation to combine findings from paradigmatically diverse studies; integrative reviews; and mixed method studies. CONCLUSION: Nurse scholars are urged to consider the benefits and limitations of inquiry within each paradigm, and the theoretical needs of the discipline.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗
PubMed2006

Pragmatic utility: using analytical questions to explore the concept of ethical sensitivity.

Ethical sensitivity is the means and capacity through which professionals strive to understand and compassionately respond to those in their care. As a transdisciplinary concept, ethical sensitivity can facilitate knowledge development across disciplines. To clarify and reduce ambiguities, the concept of ethical sensitivity was analyzed using the pragmatic utility method. With this method, the investigator uses analytical questions arising from in-depth understanding of the literature to synthesize data, to push beyond the limits of isolated findings and individual disciplines, to identify shared knowledge, and to provide new insights, lines of questioning, and direction. In this article, the role, technique, results, advantages, and limitations of the pragmatic utility method are elucidated. Characteristics of ethical sensitivity are its (a) preconditions of suffering and vulnerability cues, uncertainty, relationships characterized by receptivity and responsiveness, and courage; (b) attributes of moral perception, affectivity, and dividing loyalties; and (c) outcomes of client comfort and well-being, professional learning and self-transcendence, and integrity-preserving compromise. Use of the pragmatic utility method enhanced comprehension, meaning, relevance, and dimensions of the concept of ethical sensitivity as conveyed in the academic literature of selected professional disciplines.

Affect↗
PubMed2005

Understanding women's journey of recovering from anorexia nervosa.

Previous studies of recovery from anorexia nervosa (AN) have concentrated on discrete behavioral responses of individual women. Little is understood about the subjective process of women's recovery in the context of family, community, or society. In this feminist grounded theory study, the authors explored the perceptions of 12 women who considered themselves recovered or recovering from AN. They discovered a substantive theory of self-development that explains, within the current social context, women's journey from the perilous self-soothing of devastating weight loss to the informed self-care of healthy eating and problem-solving practices. The findings provide an urgently needed explanatory framework to inform women, clinicians, and health policy makers in their prevention and recovery efforts.

Adolescent↗