Philosophy of Nursing Science and Practice - Essay Sample

Research in nursing demands an understanding in the philosophical background to the nursing theory and research. Nursing knowledge is the main reason why nurses conduct research, and it aims at answering questions about the philosophical foundation of nursing science, which is the base for nursing practice. It further outlines the history, theories and models of nursing science. The gold standard of research is an important guide in the nursing research, and an understanding of the philosophy of nursing science and practise is essential as explained in this paper.

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The philosophy of science begins with highlighting the purpose of science itself. Science serves a descriptive purpose as is the case in natural history and anatomy which describes how the world is. The predictive purpose of science determines in which states and the things the world will be in the future, allowing scientists to manipulate nature in their favour. Concerning the explanatory purpose, science explains why events are the way they are or occur as they are. The prescriptive purpose helps in determining what should be done regarding public policy, especially when choosing a research project. Lastly, the justificatory purpose justifies all the science claims. These purposes are all important in explaining the philosophy of nursing science and offers guidance in nursing research.

The principle of verifiability in science holds that it should be logically or theoretically possible to verify a specific claim. For strong verifiability, the truth of a certain claim must be fully established from experience, and there are no doubts about the clam are acceptable as meaningful. On the other hand, in weak verifiability, a claim does not have to be fully provable but to a degree of probability creating meaning. Therefore, from the principle, a generalization of claims and laws is the origin and centre of science. It is also an important concept in an inductive argument whose conclusion is only to a certain degree of probability. However, the principle was replaced by the principle of falsifiability that states that there must be a possibility for an empirical scientific system to be falsified by experience.

Two types of science are outlined: normal and extraordinary science. Research in normal science has its firm base on one or more past scientific achievements which a specific scientific community recognizes during a specific time as supplying the foundation for continued practice. Extraordinary science comes in when there are anomalies in a paradigm, making it unsustainable hence another paradigm, the promise of success, is developed, and normal science makes the promise actual. To make the promise actual, the scientist functions as a puzzle solver. In solving the problem, certain rules are followed which determine the type of research questions, the standards that justify the scientific conclusion among others. The nurse, therefore, who is the scientists follow all rules regarding all problems that they aim at solving.

Science is also seen as a huge research program that is made up of primary unquestioned beliefs and rules that describe the work of scientists in any particular field. Regarding this, all scientific beliefs do not have to be questioned or criticized; rather, they should be preserved to offer general and important guidance during research. Besides, it will be possible for new theories to develop.

All scientific research aims at providing a solution to an existing problem that is emphasized in conclusion. A specific methodology is followed from establishing the research question to the conclusion. Inductive generalization is a key concept in scientific methodology in which past experiences is used to predict what will happen in the future. From daily occurrences, scientists can determine what will happen in the future. Causality is a type of inductive generalization in which scientists assert that an event causes another event which is an empirical claim. Following this claim, the first event is temporary. The second element of causality is spatial contiguity in which both events must come into physical contact implying that they must occur at the same place. The third element is a necessary connection which is the power in the first event that brings it to the second event.

The probability theory is the study of the likelihood of some events occurring. In classical probability, any event that will surely happen is assigned one while an event that will not occur is assigned 0 values. Everything is known without the need for prior empirical knowledge. Classical probability is important in providing knowledge in some situations that have limited possible outcomes and variables.

For any scientific investigation, the probability of relative frequency is utilized as it provides a great degree of confirmation. Subjective probability is based on individual beliefs rather than any initial conditions, as is the case in classical probability. As these inductions do not have outlined and philosophical justification, science has developed to explain these probabilities and provide better understanding.

Therefore, from the above explanation, the gold standard for research is important in nursing as it guides scientists in their research on the different concepts in nursing. Therefore, following all the principles in the gold standard for research leads to more effective research that provides answers for the many unanswered questions. Following the purpose of science, the gold standard for research is followed to ensure the research project is based on the purpose as nursing is a science and its practice is based on science. Also, considering the principles of science and the theories that explain science, the gold standard for research is important to nursing as it is a continuing science and discoveries are crucial. Besides, developments in nursing and future outcomes in the practice of nursing are dependent on these research standards already established. Understanding the philosophy of nursing science and practice is also important in conducting any nursing research.

References

Hancock, M. E., Amankwaa, L., Revell, M. A., & Mueller, D. (2016). Focus group data saturation: A new approach to data analysis. The Qualitative Report, 21(11), 2124.http://search.proquest.com/openview/df220566b53a6853f15ac561bb7af91b/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=55152

Reed, P. G. (2018). Philosophical issues and nursing science. Nursing Science Quarterly, 31(1), 31-35.https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0894318417741101

Spurlock, D. (2019). Toward an Inclusive Vision of Both Nursing Practice and Nursing Science. Journal of Nursing Education, 58(6), 319-320.

https://www.healio.com/nursing/journals/jne/2019-6-58-6/%7B3d2b0e5e-539b-4393-abf0-c4aeaf680d39%7D/toward-an-inclusive-vision-of-both-nursing-practice-and-nursing-science