Jean Watson's Theory Of Caring

Iconic nursing leader and theorist Jean Watson established an innovative and much-needed component to the field of nursing which she refers to as a caring theory. This paper uses Watson's theories and examples of what she called "a caring moment" in the context of fully discussing nursing from Watson's point-of-view.

Major components and background of Watson's theory

"Watson (1988) defines caring as the moral ideal of nursing whereby the end is protection, enhancement, and preservation of human dignity… [caring] involves values, a will, and a commitment to care, knowledge, caring actions and consequences" (Cohen, 1991, p. 899).

In her 1999 book, Nursing: Human Science and Human Care: A Theory of Nursing, Watson makes clear that "Nursing science" needs to move away from "homogeneity of thinking" and find breakthrough ideas that are workable and based on the science of nursing. That said, Watson believes there have...
[ View Full Essay]