Middle Range Theory for Nursing

Designated a Doody's Core Title!

The eight middle-range theories described in this work focus on different aspects of caring in the human health experience, with relevance to nursing. Each theory is presented in the same manner, including the purpose of the theory, foundational literature, key concepts, and use of the theory in nursing research and practice. A ladder concept is used throughout to illustrate movement from the more abstract to the more specific. A final chapter discusses evaluation of middle-range theory in general.

Mary Jane Smith, PhD, RN, FAAN, earned her bachelor's and master's degrees from University of Pittsburgh and her doctorate from New York University. She has held faculty positions at the following nursing schools: University of Pittsburg, Duquesne University, Cornell University-New York Hospital, and The Ohio State University. Currently, Dr. Smith is a professor of nursing at West Virginia University School of Nursing; she has been teaching theory to master's and doctoral nursing students for over 4 decades.

Patricia R. Liehr, PhD, RN, graduated from Ohio Valley Hospital, School of Nursing in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She completed her bachelor's degree in nursing at Villa Maria College, her master's in family health nursing at Duquesne University and her doctorate at the School of Nursing, University of Maryland, Baltimore. She did postdoctoral education at the University of Pennsylvania as a Robert Wood Johnson scholar. Currently, Dr. Liehr is a professor emerita of nursing at the Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing at Florida Atlantic University; she has taught nursing theory to master's and doctoral students for over 3 decades.