The epistemological underpinnings of grounded theory make it valuable in the study of nursing, which is premised on an interpersonal process between nurses and clients. Further, it is a useful style of research when there is little prior information about a topic. In this article (Part 1), Terence McCann and Eileen Clark outline the key features of this methodology. In the follow-up article (Part 2, McCann and Clark 2003a), a critique is provided of grounded theory and the two main approaches to this methodology. In the final article in the series (Part 3, McCann and Clark 2003b), the authors illustrate how grounded theory can be applied to nursing research with examples from McCann's Australian study (McCann and Baker 2001) of how community mental health nurses promote wellness with clients who are experiencing an early episode of psychotic illness key words grounded theory epistemology constant comparative analysis coding core category ▲ ▲ ▲ ▲

s u m m a r yThis paper presents the findings of a survey which explored the career preferences of Australian Bachelor of Nursing students for certain clinical specialities. A convenience sample was recruited, with data collected three times between 2005 and 2007. With first-year students, acute care nursing of the adult and child and midwifery were the most popular career choices, whereas considerably less were interested in mental health or aged care nursing, and nearly two-fifths were undecided. By third-year, there was a shift in career preferences, with acute care of the adult and mental health being the most popular choices. In contrast, midwifery and aged care were the least preferred careers. The study provides some evidence students commence their course with a predominantly lay-informed image of nursing, but this may be tempered by favourable curricular influences towards the mental health field. However, the curriculum discourages students from pursuing a career in aged care and midwifery.

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This article reviews the use of photographs as data within the social sciences as well as defining related terminology used over the past century. It then examines the use of photos as stimuli for talking about health settings before presenting three recent case studies where photo-interviewing has been used successfully in health evaluation and research. Advantages and limitations of the method are considered.

For many individuals, schizophrenia is a severe and enduring illness. While nurses need to understand the symptomatology of the illness in order to provide specific care and treatment, it also is important to find out how people with schizophrenia embody the illness. Capturing this knowledge will help nurses to provide more appropriate care to these individuals. This paper, which is taken from a larger qualitative study, reports the lived experience of young adults with schizophrenia. Three main themes emerged from the data, which highlighted how these individuals found meaning in schizophrenia. The first theme,"embodied temporality: illness as a catastrophic experience,"portrayed how schizophrenia affected participants' temporality or lived time. The second theme,"embodied relationality: illness as a mediator of social relationships,"reflected how the illness affected their relationships with others. The third theme,"embodied treatment: medications side effects as burdensome,"illustrated how the side effects of antipsychotic medications distorted the individual's perception of his or her body and how it compromised the ability to establish and maintain sexual relationships. The findings are important to mental health nurses because they highlight the need to be sensitive to how people with schizophrenia find meaning in their illness experience and to incorporate this knowledge into the care that they provide.