THEORY BETTY NUEMAN

Neuman describes her model as comprehensive and dynamic. The model is a multidimensional view of individuals, groups (families), and communities who are in constant interaction with environmental stressors. Essentially, the model focuses on the client’s reaction to stress and the factors of reconstitution or adaptation. It is considered an appropriate model not only for nursing but also for all health care professions.

  

 There are ten basic assumptions underlying Neuman’s    conceptual framework :

§   Though each individual client or group as a clientsystem is unique, each system is a composite of common know factors or innate characteristics within a normal, given range of response contained within a basic structure.

§  Many know, unknown, and universal environmental stressors exist. Each differs in its potential for disturbing a client’s usual stability level, or normal line of defense. 

 

•Each individual client/client system, over time, has evolved a normal range of response to the environment that is referred to as a normal line of defense, or usual wellness/stability state.

§ When the cushioning, accordionlike effect of the flexible line of defense is no longer capable of protecting the client/client system against an environmental stressor, the stressor breaks through the normal line of defense. 

 

•The client, whether in a state of wellness or illness, is a dynamic composite of the interrelationships of variable - physiological, psychological, sociocultural, developmental, and spiritual. Wellness is on a continuum of available energy to support the system in its optimal state.

Implicit within each client system is a set of internal resistance factors know as lines of resistance, which function to stabilize and return the client to the usual wellness state (normal line of defense) or possibly to a higher level of stability following an environmental stressor reaction.

•Primary prevention relates to general knowledge that is applied in client assessment and intervention in identification an reduction or mitigation of risk factors associated with environmental stressors to prevent possible reaction.

•Secondary prevention relates to symptomatology following a reaction to stressors, appropriate ranking of intervention priorities, and treatment to reduce their noxious effects.

•Tertiary prevention relates to adjustive processes taking place as reconstitution begins and maintenance factors move the client back in a circular manner toward primary prevention.

•The client is in dynamic constant energy exchange with the environment.

 THE SYSTEM MODEL

    Neuman’s framework is basically an open system model whit the major components of stressors, reaction to stressors, and the “This organizing framework enables the nurse to intervene appropriately whit health promotion (primary prevention), corrective (secondary prevention), or rehabilitative ( tertiary prevention) nursing action to maintain or restore equilibrium to the system.

More than one stressor can occur at a time as :

1.Extrapersonal—forces that occur outside the system, e.g., unemployment (outside force) influenced by peer acceptability (socio-cultural force), personal feelings about present and past unemployment (psychological), ability to perform the job (biological—developmental—psychological).

2.Interpersonal—forces occurring between one or more individuals, e.g., parent —child role expectation, forces between individuals that are influenced by local child-rearing-practices (socio-cultural), age and development of both child and parens (biological and developmental), and feelings about the role (psichological)

 3. intrapersonal — forces that occur within the individual, e.g., anger: an internal force within the individual whose expression in influenced by age (developmental), peer group acceptability (socio-cultural), physical abilities (biological), and past experiences coping with anger (psychological).

The neuman model will be viewed in terms of congruency and consistency with the four concepts :

●

1. Individual or human

2. society or environment

3. health or wellness

4. nursing.

NEUMAN WORK AND THE OF A THEORY CHARACTERISTIC

1.Theories can interrelate concepts in such a way as to create a different way of looking at a particular phenomena

2.Theories must be logical in nature

3.Theories should be relatively simple yet generalizable

4.Theories can be the bases for hipotheses that can be tested

5.Theories contribute to and assist in increasing the general body of knowledge within the discipline through the research implemented to validate them.