Theory Analysis Criteria and Use in Nursing Clinical Practice Essay

This week you will explore theory analysis criteria. What should be included when considering use of a theory in nursing practice? When theory analysis criteria are selected and applied to various theories what criteria might a nurse use when selecting a final theory for use in the educational or clinical setting? In other words, what makes theory useful for contemporary nursing practice and research? Learning Objectives After completing this module, you will be able to: Discuss the art and science of theory evaluation. Articulate the steps used in formally evaluation theory. Reading & Resources Read Chapter 3 in Smith, M. C. & Parker, M.E. (2015) Nursing theories & nursing practice (4th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: F.A. Theory Analysis Criteria and Use in Nursing Clinical Practice Essay. Davis Learning Activities Participate in Discussion 2.Introduction This week you will explore theory analysis criteria. What should be included when considering use of a theory in nursing practice? When theory analysis criteria are selected and applied to various theories what criteria might a nurse use when selecting a final theory for use in the educational or clinical setting? In other words, what makes theory useful for contemporary nursing practice and research? Learning Objectives After completing this module, you will be able to: Discuss the art and science of theory evaluation. Articulate the steps used in formally evaluation theory. Reading & Resources Read Chapter 3 in Smith, M. C. & Parker, M.E. (2015) Nursing theories & nursing practice (4th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: F.A. Davis Learning Activities Participate in Discussion 2.

Nursing theories fall into three broad categories. These are (i) grand theories (ii) middle range theories, and (iii) practice-level theories. The three classes of nursing theories differ by the level of abstraction of the concepts within the theory (Wayne, 2020). Grand theories happen to have the most abstraction while practice-level theories are the most clear and specific with the narrowest scope. Arguably the most known theory analysis proponent in nursing circles, Fawcett (2005) proposes a systematic approach to theory analysis by putting forward specific criteria. For clarity as to what a theory may mean exactly, Fawcett proposes several criteria that the theory must fulfil. These criteria include (i) the scope of the theory (ii) the context, (iii) the content (iv) significance (v) internal consistency (vi) parsimony or clarity (vii) testability (viii) empirical adequacy, and (ix) pragmatic adequacy (Risjord, 2018; Fawcett, 2005). Therefore, when considering the use of a theory in nursing practice; what should be included are testability (ability to be practically tested in the clinical setting), empirical adequacy (propositions and concepts in the theory being reflective of practical clinical realities on the ground), and pragmatic adequacy (the need for nurses to have a non-equivocal understanding of the application of the theory in clinical practice). Theory Analysis Criteria and Use in Nursing Clinical Practice Essay.

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            The criteria that a nurse might use when selecting a final theory to use in an educational or clinical setting are significance (for the educational setting) and empirical adequacy (for the clinical setting). For the educational setting, the importance of the theory to the practice of nursing must be demonstrated. This is what will enable its use in an educational setting in a nursing context. For the clinical setting, there must be empirical adequacy. This means that the propositions in the theory in question must be congruent with clinical nursing practice as it is in the field.

References

Fawcett, J. (2005). Contemporary nursing knowledge: Analysis and evaluation of nursing models and theories, 2^nd ed. F.A. Davis Company.

Risjord, M. (2018). Middle-range theories as models: New criteria for analysis and evaluation. Nursing Philosophy, 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1111/nup.12225

Wayne, G. (December 8, 2020). Nursing theories and theorists. Nurses Labs. https://nurseslabs.com/nursing-theories/#:~:text=There%20are%20three%20major%20categories,%2C%20and%20practice%2Dlevel%20theory. Theory Analysis Criteria and Use in Nursing Clinical Practice Essay.