Paradigms lost, paradigms regained: defending nursing against a single reading of postmodernism

Abstract

Within nursing, postmodernism has been seen as both a freeing influence and a philosophy of rejection and relativism. Within this paper we consider readings of postmodernism that have been presented and offer a re‐reading that retains the idea of ‘the good’ and is neither relativist nor rejectionist. Local knowledge is to be judged by the relevant community and theoretical knowledge becomes nursing knowledge through reflexivity and improvization in practice. A story is good if it allows people to go on with their lives.

The Prevailing Winds of Oppression: Understanding the New Graduate Experience in Acute Care

“…The intent of PST theory is to destabilize language and meaning as they are positioned to represent, and used to create social institutions of domination and resistance (Palmer, 1997; Rorty, 1982; Stevenson & Beech, 2001). Philosophically, PST is understood best as a derivative of the postmodernist challenge to the Western philosophical tradition that prevailed in the 18th and 19th centuries (Heslop, 1997).…”

“…Philosophically, PST is understood best as a derivative of the postmodernist challenge to the Western philosophical tradition that prevailed in the 18th and 19th centuries (Heslop, 1997). Through this position, assumptions of positivism are rejected in favor of understanding truth and meaning, vis‐à‐vis reality, as they are cocreated through the exchange of language (Best & Kellner, 1991; Stevenson & Beech, 2001). Further understanding as to how meanings are socially constructed and collectively supported during verbal interchange (when I say “this” it means “that”) is thus exposed (Rorty, 1982).…”

Implementing a postcolonial feminist perspective in nursing research related to non‐Western populations

“…Far from rejecting theorization, these authors suggest that postmodern approaches create new ways of doing research to sort out ideologies influencing nursing practice. Moreover, these approaches question the status quo that impinges on the integration of marginalized knowledge in nursing theories (Anderson 1990; Allen 1992; Cheek and Porter 1997; Im and Meleis 1999; Cheek 1999; Meleis and Im 1999; Tang and Anderson 1999; Anderson 2000a; Anderson 2000b; Herdman 2001; Im and Meleis 2001; Stevenson and Beech 2001).…”

Clinical supervision revisited

“…For example, if I use the word ‘hammer’ it can mean a request as in ‘pass me the hammer’ or an instruction, as in ‘use the hammer’. Stevenson and Beech (2001) give the example of the word ‘section’. In a mental health environment it refers to compulsory detention and in a midwifery environment it refers to a means to bring a new baby into the world.…”