The politics of nursing: a framework for analysis

The phrase the 'politics of nursing' has become part of the language of the nursing profession. However, the meanings attributed to this phrase in the literature are not always clear. The difficulties involved in arriving at an accurate definition of the term are discussed and the suggestion is made that this emerging area of study would be advanced if greater accuracy, in using the terminology, was employed when discussing and researching nursing politics. A framework, drawing on approaches that have been taken to address similar problems in the study of power, is proposed as a means of arriving at 'tighter' definitions for the terms involved. The conclusion is that if a degree of conceptual clarity is introduced, the work to expand the field of knowledge can progress in a more systematic way through the investigation of specific areas and levels of interrelated political activity. The debate is at an early stage and more work is needed to increase our understanding of this phenomenon.