Understanding what type of theory you are presented with will assist in choosing content for your projects and for identifying an appropriate theory for use in your capstones and DNP projects.
Use the definitions to help in understanding the theories and also in discerning if that theory is more likely to appear in a discussion paper or be employed in scholarly research
E.g. Betty Neuman's Systems Theory is a Grand Theory of Nursing. Would it likely be used for empirical research aka scholarly research?
Grand Nursing Theory: Very broad in scope and are the most theoretical and perspective laden. Are not used for empirical research.
Mid Range Nursing Theory: Narrower in scope than grand theories, are less abstract and therefore more tangible and verifiable through testing. Lend well to empirical research.
Nursing Practice Theory: Used to develop nursing interventions and to predict outcomes in the context of clinical practice. They are most likely to inform the development of nursing models and are not suitable for empirical research.
Nursing Conceptual Models: Different than Nursing Theories. Theory describes phenomenon at an abstract level and Models explore the thinking behind the theory and how it can be applied to practice.
