Nursing Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Nursing, including details on health care, hospital staff, professional care.

Humanistic nursing, interpersonal relations theory, and the empathy-altruism hypothesis.

McCamant KL

University of Delaware School of Nursing, Newark, Delaware, USA.

The purpose of this paper is to illuminate the relevance and applicability of theory for nursing research and practice. Following a brief explanation of the four levels of theoretical abstraction recognized by nursing, Paterson and Zderad's humanistic nursing theory and Peplau's theory of interpersonal relations are described. In addition, one social psychology theory, the empathy-altruism hypothesis, is also explained. The value and implications of the three theories for nursing research and practice are discussed, and several research questions are proposed.

Published 19 September 2006 in Nurs Sci Q, 19(4): 334-8.
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