Patient perceptions of nurse listening behaviors
By
Nancy E Loos
Posted: 2019-05-18T16:07:00Z
One of the earliest blogs on this site was posted in April 2014 by Dr. Christina Sieloff. She asked whether the reader realized that concepts from Dr. King's work could be used to guide research because one doesn’t need to use the theory’s entire framework. She then gave an example of focusing on Dr. King's view of perception as “applicable when a researcher wants to use self-report as a means of collecting data.” She continued: “Generally, self-reports are not considered valid as they need to be substantiated through other means. However, if one is using Dr. King's view of perception to guide the research methodology, it is very appropriate. Dr. King believed that one's perception is reliable and valid and the person will act on their perceptions. As a result, no further validation is needed to support a research participant's self-report.”
This was the way I used Dr. King’s theory in my own research study titled: Adult Patient Perceptions of Nurse Listening Behaviors in an Acute Care Setting (retrievable on ProQuest). I believed, as Dr. King’s theory suggested, that perception was where the relationship between patient and nurse began. This was indeed borne out by my qualitative study of 23 adults who had, within the last six months, experienced from 2-20 days as an inpatient on a medical-surgical unit. Their perceptions of the nurses’ behaviors led them to make a judgment as to whether they were being listened to or not. If yes, then relationships were formed that were therapeutic. If no, there were definite negative sequalae. Have you experienced this in your own practice?
Stay tuned for a future blog post related to the barriers to goal attainment.