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Nursing academics' languages of legitimation: a discourse analysis
1UCD School of Nursing, Midwifery & Health Systems, Health Sciences Centre, UCD Dublin, Belfield Dublin 4, Ireland. martin.mcnamara@ucd.ie
International Journal of Nursing Studies
|June 23, 2009
Summary
Irish nursing academics struggle to establish their discipline's legitimacy. They perceive academic nursing as fragmented and influenced by external fields, hindering its academic standing.
Area of Science:
- Nursing Education
- Higher Education Studies
- Academic Disciplines
Background:
- Pre-registration nursing education in Ireland transitioned to higher education six years ago.
- Ongoing challenges persist regarding the status and legitimacy of nursing as an academic discipline.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify the foundational elements of Irish nursing academics' self-perceived identities.
- To examine how nursing is legitimized as an academic discipline by its practitioners.
Main Methods:
- Discourse analysis of senior nursing academics' legitimation strategies.
- Analysis focused on knowledge, politics, relationships, and identities within academic nursing discourse.
Main Results:
- Irish nursing academics face difficulties in asserting their discipline's legitimacy.
- They characterize academic nursing as fragmented, susceptible to influence from medical, management, and industrial relations discourses.
Conclusions:
- Urgent need for Irish nursing academics to redefine their relationship with clinical practice.
- Enhance intellectual autonomy, internal coherence, knowledge base strength, and critically assess past practices for future direction.
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