A Faith-Based Concept Analysis for Nursing Education

Background/Purpose: Doctoral students who are also teaching at secular and faith-based institutions conducted a teaching/research project to integrate faith-based concepts related to specific nursing topics into their teaching plans. The purpose of this presentation is to share how faith-based concepts can provide a specific focus or an overarching unity to specific nursing content areas and to assist nursing educators wishing to apply spiritual concepts from a scholarly perspective into their teaching without resorting to the practice of bookending.

Conceptual Framework: This project was based on multiple learning theories including adult learning theories, Walker and Avant’s concept analysis, and transformative learning theory as a core value.

 Methods/Results: Doctoral students used a concept analysis approach where they first chose concepts related to specific teaching topics, and then conducted a concept analysis using dictionaries, scriptural resources such as the Bible, scriptural concordances, Bible commentaries, and scholarly Internet sources. The process involved the eight steps of concept analysis as discussed by Walker and Avant. Ultimately, the doctoral students integrated their findings into specific lesson plans to enhance the depth of their teaching. Students planned how the integration of concepts would be used in secular schools versus faith-based institutions, e.g. incorporating content while teaching about spirituality in relation to the Neuman’s systems model. Concept analysis using faith-based concepts can provide educators with a teaching strategy to holistically integrate faith integration and spirituality into their teaching plans.

 Implications/Significance/Recommendations:

This process can be used in both secular and faith-based institutions, both inside and outside of the nursing discipline. The process presents spiritual concepts from a scholarly perspective. It seamlessly integrates a faith-based and spiritual approach into the nursing classroom. Concepts drive nursing practice; therefore, it is important to discover how specific faith related concepts affect how nurses visualize and provide care in a variety of situations.