Nursing knowledge and human science: ontological and epistemological considerations

Area of Science:

• Nursing Science
• Philosophy of Science
• Humanistic Inquiry

Background:

• The positivist perspective has historically dominated knowledge generation.
• Wilhelm Dilthey challenged positivism, advocating for a human science approach to understand the human lifeworld.
• Nursing knowledge requires a framework that captures the subjective human experience.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the meaning and application of human science within nursing knowledge.
• To propose ontological and epistemological criteria for human science in nursing.
• To evaluate the alignment of prominent nursing frameworks with the human science tradition.

Main Methods:

• Historical tracing of the human science tradition to Wilhelm Dilthey.
• Analysis of ontological and epistemological criteria for human science.
• Comparative evaluation of four nursing frameworks (Paterson & Zderad, Newman, Watson, Parse) against human science principles.

Main Results:

• Identified consistencies and inconsistencies between selected nursing frameworks and the human science tradition.
• Demonstrated the philosophical underpinnings of human science, originating from Dilthey's critique of positivism.
• Proposed specific criteria for defining human science in the context of nursing.

Conclusions:

• The human science perspective is integral to the evolution of nursing science.
• Nursing frameworks exhibit varying degrees of alignment with human science principles.
• Continued integration of human science will enrich nursing knowledge and practice.