Borrowed theory (nursing)
Borrowed theory in nursing refers to the application of concepts and principles from disciplines outside of nursing to enhance nursing practice. These theories are utilized alongside traditional nursing theories to address various aspects of patient care. Common examples of borrowed theories include child development theories, which detail cognitive and emotional growth in children, educational theories that explore different learning styles, psychoanalytic theory developed by Sigmund Freud, role theory that examines how social roles impact behavior, and systems theory that analyzes complex interrelated systems.
By integrating these borrowed theories, nurses can improve communication and understanding with patients. For instance, using child development theories can help nurses connect with adolescent patients more effectively, while educational theories can guide nurses in tailoring information to match a patient's learning style. The incorporation of these diverse theoretical frameworks enables nurses to perform their duties with greater proficiency and adapt their approaches to meet the unique needs of their patients. Overall, borrowed theories serve as valuable tools that enrich nursing practice and enhance patient care.
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Borrowed theory (nursing)
A borrowed theory is a theory used by nurses that was developed in a discipline other than nursing. A theory is a set of ideas or principles that is used in an art or a science. Borrowed theories include child development theories, educational theories, psychoanalytic theory, role theory, and systems theory. In practice, nurses often use nursing theories as well as borrowed theories to perform their duties at the highest level.

Overview
Nursing theories are often used in the field of nursing. Typically developed by nurses, these theories describe and guide nursing practice. Many nurses use multiple theories in their everyday practice. This enables them to select the theory that is most appropriate for the situation at hand.
Besides nursing theories, a nurse may use borrowed theories, which are theories from other disciplines. Although borrowed theories were not developed in the field of nursing, they sometimes are used by nurses. Common theories that became borrowed theories in nursing include child development theories, educational theories, psychoanalytic theory, role theory, and systems theory.
Child development theories explain the way in which children grow cognitively, emotionally, and socially during childhood. Such theories typically also identify various growth milestones that children usually reach. Educational theories explain the different ways in which children learn. Developed by Sigmund Freud, psychoanalytic theory postulates that behavior is influenced by childhood experiences and the unconscious. Furthermore, Freud argued that development occurs in several psychosexual stages, namely oral, anal, phallic, latency, and genital stages. Role theory contends that behavior is influenced by the various roles individuals have in life and the expectations that come with these roles. Systems theory involves the complicated systems that are found in society, nature, and science. The theory can be used to examine and describe these systems. At some point, theories such as these had an impact on the field of nursing and became borrowed theories in the field.
The use of borrowed theories in addition to nursing theories gives nurses the opportunity to better perform their duties. For example, a nurse who employs child development theories while caring for an adolescent patient likely would be able to communicate with the patient at his or her age level. This increases the chances that the patient would understand the nurse. Similarly, if a nurse uses educational theories in practice, he or she probably would be able to determine what type of learner the patient is, which would allow the nurse to provide information to the patient in a way that the patient would understand.
Borrowed theories are similar to shared theories. A shared theory is a theory that has been borrowed and analysed, after which it is determined that the theory is appropriate in multiple disciplines. The theory of stress and coping, developed by Richard Lazarus and Susan Folkman, and the gate control theory of pain, developed by Ronald Melzack and Patrick Wall, are examples of shared theories.
Bibliography
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