Notes on [post]human nursing: What It MIGHT Be, What it is Not

Area of Science:

• Nursing Studies
• Philosophy
• Sociology

Background:

• Posthumanism offers new perspectives on the human condition.
• Nursing's historical and contemporary practices are examined through a posthumanist lens.
• Existing literature often overlooks the deep entanglement of nursing with posthumanist thought.

Purpose of the Study:

• To elucidate central ideas of posthumanisms relevant to nursing.
• To explore how nursing is already engaged with posthumanist concepts.
• To identify potential benefits of further integrating posthumanist thought into nursing.

Main Methods:

• Historical overview of posthumanist movements.
• Differentiation of key posthumanist theories (transhumanism, critical posthumanism, feminist new materialism).
• Analysis of nursing practices through the framework of speculative, affirmative ethics.

Main Results:

• Nursing already exhibits posthumanist characteristics, sometimes critically.
• Posthumanist ideas offer valuable frameworks for understanding and advancing nursing praxis.
• The study identifies existing entanglements and potential for deeper integration.

Conclusions:

• Nursing can significantly benefit from embracing critical posthumanist perspectives.
• A critical posthumanist nursing approach considers humans, nonhumans, and their interconnectedness.
• Future nursing practice can be envisioned as speculative worldbuilding, attending to situated, material, and embodied relations.