Assignment: Philosophy of Nursing What is your philosophy when it comes to nursing? Which aspects of your philosophy do you think reflect the philosophical influences that have shaped the profession and are likely shared by other nurses? Which aspects of your philosophy reflect your personal values, beliefs, experiences, and unique perspective? How is your philosophy demonstrated through your practice? This Assignment provides an opportunity for you to examine your philosophy of nursing within the context of the information presented this week. To prepare: Review the information presented in the Learning Resources with your own philosophy of nursing in mind. Focus on any new insights you gained from the readings and how they influence your philosophy. Reflect on how philosophy influences scientific approaches or knowledge development in nursing. Examine how positivism and post-positivism have influenced approaches to nursing science (including research methods) and nursing practice. Conduct additional research as necessary using credible websites and the Walden library. By Thursday 06/08/17, write a 6- to 7-page APA paper with a minimum of 5 references from the list of required readings below that include the level one headings as numbered below: 1) Introduction (must end with a purpose statement e.g. “the purpose of this paper is…”) 2) Articulates your philosophy of nursing identifying the philosophical influences and summarizing how this week’s readings influenced your views/beliefs. 3) Explains how nursing’s philosophical foundations influence your nursing practice and provides at least two specific examples. 4) Answers the question: What is the relationship between philosophy and knowledge development? How is this evidenced in your nursing philosophy or practice? 5) Outlines how positivism and post-positivism influences approaches to nursing science (including research methods) and nursing practice as well as your own personal philosophy. 6) Conclusion (Summary of the paper) Your written assignments must follow APA guidelines. Be sure to support your work with specific citations from appropriate Learning Resources and additional scholarly sources as appropriate. Refer to the  Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association  to ensure that your in-text citations and reference list are correct. Required Readings McEwin, M., & Wills, E.M. (2014). Theoretical basis for nursing. (4th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer Health. Chapter 1, "Philosophy, Science, and Nursing" Chapter 1 introduces the scientific and philosophical foundations of nursing and how these contribute to knowledge development within the discipline of nursing. Gray, J.R., Grove, S.K., & Sutherland, S. (2017). Burns and Grove’s the practice of nursing research: Appraisal, synthesis, and generation of evidence (8th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Saunders Elsevier. Chapter 1, "Discovering the World of Nursing Research" Chapter 1 introduces nursing research.

1. Assignment: Philosophy of Nursing
What is your philosophy when it comes to nursing? Which
aspects of your philosophy do you think reflect the
philosophical influences that have shaped the profession and are
likely shared by other nurses? Which aspects of your philosophy
reflect your personal values, beliefs, experiences, and unique
perspective? How is your philosophy demonstrated through your
practice?
This Assignment provides an opportunity for you to examine
your philosophy of nursing within the context of the
information presented this week.
To prepare:
Review the information presented in the Learning Resources
with your own philosophy of nursing in mind. Focus on any new
insights you gained from the readings and how they influence
your philosophy.
Reflect on how philosophy influences scientific approaches or
knowledge development in nursing.
Examine how positivism and post-positivism have influenced
approaches to nursing science (including research methods) and
nursing practice. Conduct additional research as necessary using
credible websites and the Walden library.
By Thursday 06/08/17, write a 6- to 7-page APA paper with a
minimum of 5 references from the list of required readings
below that include the level one headings as numbered below:
1)
Introduction (must end with a purpose statement e.g. “the
purpose of this paper is…”)
2)
Articulates your philosophy of nursing identifying the

2. philosophical influences and summarizing how this week’s
readings influenced your views/beliefs.
3)
Explains how nursing’s philosophical foundations influence
your nursing practice and provides at least two specific
examples.
4)
Answers the question: What is the relationship between
philosophy and knowledge development? How is this evidenced
in your nursing philosophy or practice?
5)
Outlines how positivism and post-positivism influences
approaches to nursing science (including research methods) and
nursing practice as well as your own personal philosophy.
6)
Conclusion (Summary of the paper)
Your written assignments must follow APA guidelines. Be sure
to support your work with specific citations from appropriate
Learning Resources and additional scholarly sources as
appropriate. Refer to the
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association
to ensure that your in-text citations and reference list are
correct.
Required Readings
McEwin, M., & Wills, E.M. (2014). Theoretical basis for
nursing. (4th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer Health.
Chapter 1, "Philosophy, Science, and Nursing"
Chapter 1 introduces the scientific and philosophical

3. foundations of nursing and how these contribute to knowledge
development within the discipline of nursing.
Gray, J.R., Grove, S.K., & Sutherland, S. (2017). Burns and
Grove’s the practice of nursing research: Appraisal, synthesis,
and generation of evidence (8th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Saunders
Elsevier.
Chapter 1, "Discovering the World of Nursing Research"
Chapter 1 introduces nursing research and discusses how
science, theory, and philosophy all influence research.
Chapter 2, "Evolution of Research in Building Evidence-Based
Nursing Practice"
Chapter 2 reviews the history of nursing research beginning
with the work of Florence Nightingale and examines the
influence of nursing research today on evidence-based practice.
Moran, K., Burson, R., & Conrad, D. (2017). The doctor of
nursing practice scholarly project: A framework for success
(2nd ed.). Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Chapter 1, "Setting the Stage for the Doctor of Nursing Practice
Scholarly Project"
Chapter 5, "The phenomenon of Interest"
Chapter 6, "Developing the Scholarly Project"
Isaacs, S., Ploeg, J., & Tompkins C. (2009). How can Rorty
help nursing science in the development of a philosophical
‘foundation’? Nursing Philosophy, 10(2), 81-90.
doi:10.1111/j.1466-769X.2008.00364.x
Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library
databases.
This article discusses the application of the Richard Rorty’s
pragmatic philosophy to nursing practices and research.

4. Kinsella, E. A. (2010). Professional knowledge and the
epistemology of reflective practice. Nursing Philosophy, 11(1),
3-14. doi:10.1111/j.1466-769X.2009.00428.x
Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library
databases.
This article examines the philosophical underpinnings and
epistemological assumptions of reflective practice in an effort
to advance understanding for application in professional
healthcare settings.
Mackay, M. (2009). Why nursing has not embraced the
clinician-scientist role. Nursing Philosophy, 10(4), 287-296.
doi:10.1111/j.1466-769X.2009.00416.x
Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library
databases.
In this article, the role of the clinician-scientist and importance
of clinical research for nursing is examined.
Persson, J. (2010). Misconceptions of positivism and five
unnecessary science theoretic mistakes they bring in their train.
International Journal of Nursing Studies, 47(5), 651-661.
doi:10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2009.12.009
Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library
databases.
This article discusses misconceptions of positivism and the
implications of these misconceptions for nursing researchers.
Pesut, B., & Johnson, J. (2008). Reinstating the 'Queen':
Understanding philosophical inquiry in nursing. Journal of

5. Advanced Nursing, 61(1), 115-121. doi: 10.1111/j.1365 -
2648.2007.04493.x
Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library
databases.
This article provides an analysis of the use of philosophical
inquiry within nursing research. The article identifies
characteristics of philosophical inquiry as well as common tools
used in this methodology.
Porter, S. (2001). Nightingale’s realist philosophy of science.
Nursing Philosophy, 2(1), 14-25. doi:10.1046/j.1466-
769X.2001.00029.x
Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library
databases.
In this article, Florence Nightingale's realist philosophy of
science is compared to today’s dominant philosophy of
positivism.
Optional Resources
Connor, M.J. (2004). The practical discourse in philosophy and
nursing: An exploration of linkages and shifts in the evolution
of praxis. Nursing Philosophy, 5(1), 54-66. doi:10.1111/j.1466-
769X.2004.00159.x
Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library
databases.
Chou, M., & Lee, L. (2007). Initial formation of nursing
philosophies following fundamental clinical practice: The
experience of male nursing students. Journal of Nursing
Research, 15(2), 127-137.

6. Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library
databases.
Effken, J. (2007). The informational basis for nursing intuition:
Philosophical underpinnings. Nursing Philosophy, 8(3), 187-
200.
Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library
databases.
Mantzoukas, S., & Jasper, M. (2008). Types of nursing
knowledge used to guide care of hospitalized patients. Journal
of Advanced Nursing, 62(3), 318-326. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-
2648.2007.04587.x
Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library
databases.
Mills, J., Chapman, Y., Bonner, A., & Francis, K. (2007).
Grounded theory: A methodological spiral from positivism to
postmodernism. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 58(1), 72-79.
doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2648.2007.04228.x
Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library
databases.
Persson, J., & Sahlin, N. (2008). A philosophical account of
interventions and causal representation in nursing research.
International Journal of Nursing Studies, 46(4), 547-556. doi:
10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2008.11.008
Note: You will access this article from the Walden Library
databases.
Trochim, W. (2006). Research methods knowledge base:

7. Positivism & post-positivism. Retrieved from
http://www.socialresearchmethods.net/kb/positvsm.php