Louisa May Alcott andHospital Sketches: An innovative approach to gender and nursing professionalization

Abstract

Through Alcott's words, we understand the transition of nursing care as a gradual extension of the middle-class woman's domestic role and a progressive definition of nurses' identity. In particular, we highlight how certain professional nursing nuances which appear in the text are compatible with the gradual extension of the boundaries of women's domesticity. Furthermore, Alcott's use of literary devices reveals the delicate balance between women's domestic role and some new nursing professional features, which anticipates nursing professionalization.

Nursing professionalization and welfare state policies: A critical review of structural factors influencing the development of nursing and the nursing workforce

“…The expansion and/or retrenchment of welfare services affects the occupational groups involved in the provision of those services that are either in high demand or become obsolete. Related, it has been noted that state initiatives to expand/improve the provision of healthcare services (Oguisso et al., ) and the provision of health care during civil (Hermann, ) and military conflicts (Choperena & Fairman, ) are generally associated with strengthening of the nursing profession because they increase the demand both for more nurses and more highly skilled nurses. The following examples attest to it.…”

“…Despite an emphasis on gender in the context of occupations with a predominant female membership, the pathways through which gender impacts the process of professionalization are not yet completely understood (Squires, ). Various studies emphasized the role of sociocultural norms/attitudes and organizational context in the continuous undervaluing of women's work in society (Black, ), including the underappreciation of occupations with a female majority, such as nursing (Choperena & Fairman, ). The lack of appreciation for women's work has been linked to financial and social devaluing of work that involves caring, often associated with emotion and self‐sacrifice (Treiber & Jones, ) and branded as a woman's quality rather than as a requirement for health organizations (Apesoa‐Varano, ; Goodman, ), expected of both the women and men working there (Boschma, ).…”

Gender equality policies, nursing professionalization, and the nursing workforce: A cross-sectional, time-series analysis of 22 countries, 2000–2015

“…The topics of gender and feminism, in relation to nursing and its evolution, have been incorporated in numerous studies. For instance, researchers have investigated the effects of sociocultural norms/attitudes on the devaluing of women's work, including the underappreciation of nursing and that of other female-majority occupations (Choperena & Fairman, 2018;Davies, 1995;Meerabeau, 2005;Witz, 1992b;Yam, 2004). In turn, the failure to adequately appreciate the work performed by women has been linked to the insufficient social and financial recognition afforded to such occupations (Limoges, 2007;Mandel & Semyonov, 2005).…”

The influence of welfare state factors on nursing professionalization and nursing human resources: A time‐series cross‐sectional analysis, 2000–2015

“…Besides, since the organization of welfare services and social transfers is likely to emulate the beliefs and interests of the governing classes, the resulting hierarchies, resource distribution priorities, and subsequent conflicts are bound to reflect class and gender inequalities (Korpi, ). Consequently, considering nursing's intrinsic entwinement with gender issues (Choperena & Fairman, ), derived from its majority‐female practitioner base, and given its identification with the middle‐class (Coloma‐Moya, ; Fairman, ; Huppatz, ), adopting a WS approach when investigating the occupation's development is well‐suited. Additionally, since both health and health care are political, the understanding that socioeconomic and political factors hold significant power over resource distribution must be recognized and addressed (Bambra, Fox, & Scott‐Samuel, ; Navarro & Shi, ) if we are to strengthen nursing through increased professionalization levels.…”