Substantive theory on commitment to nurse teacherhood

Abstract

Nurse teacherhood is usually examined from the perspectives of nurse teachers' tasks, roles, skills and managing. The purpose of this study was to discuss how nurse teachers themselves describe their teacherhood. The purpose was also to generate a substantive theory of nurse teacherhood, its development, changes and manifestation. Nurse teachers from different polytechnics (today called universities of applied sciences) in Finland (N=34) were interviewed using a semi-structured interview. The data were analysed by employing the grounded theory method. Nurse teacherhood was found to be a dynamic process influenced by processes of change in the organisation, the operating culture of the health care working community, nurse teachers' professional self-esteem, the focus of nurse teachers' competence, their relationship with students, the future of their profession and requirements for staying in the profession. Commitment emerged as the core feature of nurse teacherhood. It was possible to distinguish eight types of commitment: (1) searching for new content in one's position, (2) being adapted to one's position, (3) trying to advance in one's position, (4) having found one's position, (5) searching for one's position, (6) withdrawing from one's position, (7) being satisfied with one's position and (8) being uncertain about one's position.