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Social Exchange as a Framework for Client‐Nurse Interaction During Public Health Nursing Maternal‐Child Home Visits
Author(s) -
Byrd Mary E.
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
public health nursing
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.471
H-Index - 55
eISSN - 1525-1446
pISSN - 0737-1209
DOI - 10.1111/j.1525-1446.2006.230310.x
Subject(s) - nursing , social exchange theory , context (archaeology) , resource (disambiguation) , perspective (graphical) , information exchange , social relation , psychology , medicine , social psychology , computer science , geography , computer network , telecommunications , archaeology , artificial intelligence
The purpose of this paper was to develop a nursing‐focused use of social exchange theory within the context of maternal‐child home visiting. The nature of social exchange theory, its application to client‐nurse interaction, and its fit with an existing data set from a field research investigation were examined. Resources exchanged between the nurse and clients were categorized and compared across the patterns of home visiting, nursing strategies based on exchange notions were identified, and variations in exchange were linked with client outcomes. The nurse provided resources within the categories of information, status, service, and goods. Clients provided time, access to the home, space within the home to conduct the visit, opportunities to observe maternal‐child interaction, access to the infant, and information. The ease and breadth of resource exchange varied across the patterns of home visiting. The social exchange perspective was useful in categorizing resources, specifying and uncovering new resource categories, understanding nursing strategies to initiate and maintain the client‐nurse relationship, and linking client‐nurse interactive phenomena with client outcomes. Social exchange theory is potentially useful for understanding client‐nurse interaction in the context of maternal‐child home visits.