How the Human Becoming Theory Developed
Introduction
Development or building of a theory is a time consuming process whose end product, which is the formulated theory, must survive the criticisms of experts in a particular field (Tong, 2003). As process, development of a theory involves revisions to the original theory to incorporate the views and address the objections of experts. As such, the process is time consuming and requires research and consultation with experts to enrich the theory. The need for a theory to survive the critiques of experts is based on its importance in guiding practice or operations in any field. In nursing profession, the developments of theories have led to the establishment of the necessary benchmarks for the nursing practice for the benefit of the nurse, the employer and the patient. According to Chapman (2018), theories in nursing profession constitute its knowledge base and the understanding of the world; as such, it can become irrelevant or vague as the state of knowledge changes. The paper essentially explains the process of building the human becoming theory; it explains how a theorist analyzed and developed the ideas and principles to emerge with a theory. The paper also explains the applications of the theory in various nursing practices.
Development of the Theory
The development of a theory is a process that goes through four distinct stages, which are theorizing, syntax, theory testing and evaluation. The human becoming theory is based on the social science idea that meanings of any situations are contextual; that means that meaning is related to the constituents of the situation (McEwen, 2011). The human becoming theory postulates that the goal of nursing practice should focus on the quality of life as explained and lived by the individual or patient.
Step One: Theorizing
Nursing practice focuses on carrying out interventions that improve the quality of life of patients, which means that nursing focuses on biomedical model where nurses perceive an individual as machine; therefore, a patient is a machine with faulty parts. Based on the biomedical model, the interventions of the nurses in improving patients’ outcomes entail fixing the faulty parts (Parse, 1996). According to Petiprin (2016), nurses’ role is to assist patients improve their health outcomes by performing activities that aid in recovery or contribute to health. It means that if patients had the strength, the knowledge and the will, they would perform those activities unaided. In this regard, the assumptions in the role of the nurses are that patients lack the knowledge, strength and will to carry out some interventions; hence, they should be assisted. However, the perception of patients as lacking the knowledge, the will and the strength limits the types of nurse’s interventions in improving health outcomes. Based on the perception of patients about their life, it is important to incorporate the patient desires in the treatment process because they are unitary beings and participate in living their lives. As such, nursing should shift from nursing-centered care to patient-centered care; that means nurses should provide care to their patients by considering patient’s desires. Due to the necessity of the shift, the human becoming theory is necessary in guiding nurses’ focus on the quality of life as lived and described by the patient. Prior to adopting the name human becoming theory, it was called man-living theory. The change in the name was in response to the change in the meaning of man in the English dictionary from humankind to human. The theory offers an alternative to the conventional biomedical and bio-psycho-social-spiritual approach to nursing care by noting that individuals should have the freedom of choosing what they want to be with their situations,
The Second Stage: Developing Syntax
During the second stage, three themes and three descriptive ideas were developed in relation to the role and relationship of the nurse with the patient. The three themes that guided the formulation of the theory are; meaning, rhythmicity and transcendence. The theme of meaning is incorporated in the principle of human becoming that states “structuring meaning is the imaging and valuing of languaging” (Parse, 2014, p. 37). That means an individual participates in building what is real for him or her and expresses that reality by living life in a chosen way. The theme of meaning emerges from cognizance of the idea that perception of life differs from one individual to another; as a result, the assessment of the quality of life is also subjective. Therefore, the theme of meaning acts as a guidance for nurses to focus on the quality of life as lived and described by the patient.
The theme of rhythmicity is incorporated in the second principle of the theory, which is “configuring rhythmical patterns is the revealing-concealing and enabling-limiting of connecting -separating (Parse, 2014, p. 43). The theme means that living is a paradox, which entails opposite experiences that coexist in rhythmical patterns; concisely, what an individual shows and does not show during the moment of living emerge as one moves with or isolates from others. As such, the relationship of an individual with the surrounding environment is based on rhythmical pattern created to make the process mutual.
The theme transcendence notes that an individual is constantly in a transformation process because the individual reaches out to limits beyond what is established by the existing systems. The theme transcendence is expressed in the theory’s third principle, which is “contranscending with the possible is the powering and originating of transforming” (Parse, 2014, p. 47). The theme means that an individual lives every moment, there is an emergence of a new perception and the old living becomes ambiguous.
The first descriptive idea is freedom that means nurses should allow patients adequate freedom to decide on what they want to be in their situation. The second idea is illimitability, which means that individuals have knowing that is extended to infinity; such knowing emerges from prospecting on the current living. The application of the idea of illimitability in nursing care is the recognition that patient’s priorities are constantly changing and unpredictable. The third idea is mystery, which is that which cannot be explained, it is inconceivable. The ideas of illimitability and freedom give rise to the nature of individuals being in a continuous state of becoming and choosing the ways to live their lives. Practicing nursing care by acknowledging the freedom of patients, understanding that they are constantly changing and that they are part of the environment in which some aspects are mysterious contributes to patient-centered care.
The Third Stage: Theory Testing
The human becoming theory is accepted in nursing practice in different health institutions; as such, it is categorized as a grand theory in nursing practice (Duffield, Gardner & Catling-Paull, 2008). Based on the three themes of the theory, nurses plan their nursing care by considering the priorities of the patient; in this case, nurses’ role is to facilitate the patient under his or her care to make choices about healthcare based on the perception of the situation. The theory is congruent with nursing interventions because it guides practice that leads to positive health outcomes. Importantly, the ideas of the theory explain the realistic way human being in relation to the environment; application of the theory makes patient feel empowered when he or she would otherwise be powerless.
Fourth Stage: Theory Evaluation
Contemporary nursing care emphasizes use used of evidence-based practice. The theory of human becoming has been used in different institutions in various countries and proved effective at improving patient’s health outcomes. Among the examples where the theory has been used include a clinical nursing intervention of a female patient who was suffering from pneumothorax in Taiwan. The nursing intervention entailed conducting therapeutic communication with the patient using Facebook as a communication channel to create positive thinking and also offering individualized music to initiate the transformation process and teach rehabilitation skills (Pan, Hsieh & Ku, 2017). The theory was adopted by Vancouver Hospital and Health Sciences Centre which formulated a vision for a patient centered care (Legault & Ferfuson-Pare, 1999).
Conclusion
The human becoming theory has proved to be important in the nursing profession; it shows that better health outcomes occur when the patient is involved in the clinical nursing interventions. It also shows that the interventions should consider the patient’s expressed living and his or her desires. The theory of human becoming has restructured the nursing profession by emphasizing a new outlook for nursing practice.
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References
Chapman, H (2018). Nursing Theories 3: Nursing Models. Nursing times,
Duffield, C., Gardner, G & Catling-Paull, C. (2008). Nursing Work and the Use of Nursing Time. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 17 pp, 3269-3274.
Legault, F & Ferfuson-Pare, M. (1999). Advancing Nursing Practice: An Evaluation Study of Parse’s Theory of Human Becoming, CJNL, 12(1), pp. 30-35.
Pan, B. S., Hsieh, H. F & Ku, Y-L (2017). Applying Parse’s Theory to a Female Patient Suffering from Pneumothorax. Presentation at the 6th World Nursing and Healthcare Conference, held on August 15-17 in London: UK.
Parse, R. R (2014). The Human Becoming Paradigm: A Transformational Worldview. Pittsburgh, PA: Discovery International Publications.
Parse, R. R (1996). Reality: A Seamless Symphony of Becoming. Nursing Science Quarterly, 9(4), pp. 181- 184.
Petiprin, A. (2016). Nursing Theories and a Philosophy of Nursing.
Tong, W. K (2003). The Scientific Method
