Moving On: From Metaparadigm to Midparadigm for Knowledge Development

Abstract

This column on Philosophical Issues introduces a conceptual innovation, the midparadigm, designed to facilitate continued development of nursing knowledge while moving beyond the metaparadigm. The midparadigm is a conceptual structure lower in abstraction than a metaparadigm consisting of an organization of concepts that reflect shared scientific and practical values for theory development in reference to a practice-relevant context. In this introductory article, I explain its philosophical rationale and provide other groundwork about the midparadigm. The feature article is authored by a team of doctoral students who present an exemplar of a midparadigm, which they have called their prismatic midparadigm of nursing.

Keywords

knowledge development metaparadigm midparadigm philosophy of science theory

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