Skip to main content
Log in

Empirical ethics in action: Lessons from two empirical studies in nursing ethics

Medicine, Health Care and Philosophy Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Despite the burgeoning of publications in nursing ethics, only more recently has empirical evidence on nursing ethics been published. How nursing ethics can be empirically studied as well as enriched by empirical data will be the focus of this paper. Two empirical studies will be briefly presented and their contribution to ethics discussed. The first one is a quantitative research project about nurses' ethical behavior in daily practice. Using an adapted version of Kohlberg's theory of moral development, this study tried to describe and explore nurses' responses to ethical dilemmas in daily nursing practice. The second study attempted to describe the specificity of residential palliative care. A qualitative approach was used to explore and describe the processes that take place on an inpatient palliative care unit, and the experiences of patients, relatives and palliative care team members. The analysis of the value of both research projects for ethics underlines the power of empirical understanding in the relationship between research and ethics. The need for integration of both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies is argued.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Bishop, A.H. and J.R. Scudder: 1990, The Practical, Moral and Personal Sense of Nursing. A Phenomenological Philosophy of Practice. New York: State University of New York Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cannaerts, N., B. Dierckx de Casterlé and M. Grypdonck: 2000, Palliatieve zorg: Zorg voor het leven. Gent: Academia Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cooper, M.C.: 1991, ‘Principled-Oriented Ethics and the Ethics of Care: A Creative Tension’, Advances in Nursing Science 14(2), 22–31.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dierckx de Casterlé, B., P.J. Janssen and M. Grypdonck: 1996, ‘The Relationship between Education and Ethical Behavior of Nursing Students’, Western Journal of Nursing Research 18(3), 330–350.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dierckx de Casterlé, B., M. Grypdonck, M. Vuylsteke-Wauters and P.J. Janssen: 1997a, ‘Nursing Students' Responses to Ethical Dilemmas in Nursing Practice’, Nursing Ethics 4(1), 12–28.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dierckx de Casterlé, B., M. Grypdonck and M. Vuylsteke-Wauters: 1997b, ‘Development, Reliability, and Validity Testing of the Ethical Behavior Test: A Measure for Nurses' Ethical Behavior’, Journal of Nursing Measurement 5(1), 87–112.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dierckx de Casterlé, B.: 1998a, ‘Supporting Nurses in Ethical Decision Making’, Geriatric Nursing 33(3), 543–555.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dierckx de Casterlé, B., A. Roelens and C. Gastmans: 1998b, ‘An Adjusted Version of Kohlberg's Moral Theory: Discussion of Its Validity for Research in Nursing Ethics’, Journal of Advanced Nursing 27, 829–835.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Fabricius, J.: 1999, ‘The Crisis in Nursing’, Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy 13, 203–206.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gastmans, C., B. Dierckx de Casterlé and P. Schotsmans: 1998, ‘Nursing Considered as Moral Practice: A Philosophical-ethical Interpretation of Nursing’, Kennedy Institute of Ethics Journal 8(1), 43–69.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gilligan, C.: 1982, In a Different Voice. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Grypdonck, M., B. Dierckx de Casterlé, J. de Buysscher and N. Cannaerts: 1998, ‘Specificity and Efficacy of Palliative Care in an Inpatient Palliative Care Unit’, Nursing Ethics 5(5), 461–462.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kohlberg, L.: 1976, ‘Moral Stages and Moralization’, in: T. Lickona (ed.), Moral Development and Behavior: Theory, Research and Social Issues. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, pp. 31–53.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kitson, A.: 1996, ‘Does Nursing Have a Future?’, British Medical Journal 313, 1647, 1651.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lindseth, A.: 2001, ‘Editorial’, Nursing Ethics 8(5), 391–392.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Morse, J.: 1997, ‘Recognizing the Power of Qualitative Research’, in: J. Morse (ed.), Completing a Qualitative Project: Setails and Dialogue (1st ed). Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications, pp. 1–7.

    Google Scholar 

  • Polit, D.F. and B.P. Hungler: 1999 (6th ed), Nursing Research: Principles and Methods. New York: Lippincott.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wester, F.: 1987, Strategieën voor kwalitatief onderzoek. Muiderberg: Countinho.

    Google Scholar 

  • World Health Organisation: 2002, National Cancer Control Programmes: Policies and Managerial Guidelines (2nd ed). Geneva: WHO.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

de Casterlé, B.D., Grypdonck, M., Cannaerts, N. et al. Empirical ethics in action: Lessons from two empirical studies in nursing ethics. Med Health Care Philos 7, 31–39 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1023/B:MHEP.0000021847.29505.2c

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/B:MHEP.0000021847.29505.2c

Navigation