Premium
A case for the use of autoethnography in nursing research
Author(s) -
Peterson Ashley L.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
journal of advanced nursing
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.948
H-Index - 155
eISSN - 1365-2648
pISSN - 0309-2402
DOI - 10.1111/jan.12501
Subject(s) - autoethnography , cinahl , context (archaeology) , psycinfo , narrative , narrative inquiry , qualitative research , nursing , psychology , sociology , medline , medicine , social science , psychological intervention , art , literature , paleontology , political science , law , biology
Aims This paper discusses the basis for and potential usefulness of autoethnography as a research method in nursing. Background While qualitative research in nursing has traditionally involved the researcher taking an objective stance, autoethnography, with roots in the social sciences, is an emerging method that examines the researcher's own experience in a cultural context. Design Discussion paper. Data sources Data sources from 1979–2013 in the CINAHL , Medline and PsycInfo databases were drawn on including articles from nursing and social science journals on autoethnography and related narrative‐based approaches. Discussion Autoethnography is based on the assumption that reality is multifaceted and the role of culture and context is crucial in understanding human experience. The reader is engaged through the evocation of emotion and the stimulation of reflection. Implications for nursing While autoethnography has thus far been little used in the discipline of nursing, it is a methodology that offers novel insights and an opportunity to examine the impact of nurses' personal and professional cultural identity on their practice. Conclusion Through the use of a subjective lens, autoethnography gives nurses the opportunity to tell stories that would otherwise not be heard. It involves a courageous laying bare of the self to gain new cultural understandings and it offers the potential for nurses to learn from the experiences and reflections of other nurses.