Nursing theory: everything the artist spits is art?

This paper explores the concept and utility of nursing theory in and for the practice of nursing. Working from the premise that many nurse practitioners appear uncertain as to the value of theory in relation to their everyday working experience, the paper investigates the contribution nursing theory makes in terms of sustaining and developing nursing as a practice discipline. The fact that nursing theory remains at once poorly evaluated, articulated or understood appears to be compounded by a general perception of nurse theorists as being removed from the realities of the practice setting and by the confusion precipitated, not least, by the semantic ambiguity engendered by their writings. The paper reviews the complex relationships extant between the development of nursing theory in regard to its utility for nursing practice, and concludes by suggesting a practice-led perspective by which nursing theory may be better articulated and assimilated within the discipline. In order to facilitate the study, it has been necessary to investigate the historical, theoretical and philosophical imperatives pertaining not only to the development of nursing theory but to nursing research and nursing practice per se.