Loyola University Chicago Loyola eCommons Dissertations Theses and Dissertations 2018 Exploring the Legacy of Imogene King in the Making of a Nurse Educator, Leader, and Nurse Theorist Margaret Mary Kotowski Follow this and additional works at: https://ecommons.edu/luc_diss Part of the Nursing Commons Recommended Citation Kotowski, Margaret Mary, "Exploring the Legacy of Imogene King in the Making of a Nurse Educator, Leader, and Nurse Theorist" (2018).edu/luc_diss/2969 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses and Dissertations at Loyola eCommons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Loyola eCommons. For more information, please contact ecommons@luc. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.
Copyright © 2018 Margaret Mary Kotowski LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO EXPLORING THE LEGACY OF IMOGENE KING IN THE MAKING OF A NURSE EDUCATOR, LEADER, AND NURSE THEORIST A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL IN CANDIDACY FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY PROGRAM IN NURSING BY MARGARET KOTOWSKI CHICAGO, IL AUGUST 2018 Copyright by Margaret Kotowski, 2018 All rights reserved. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank all of the people who made this dissertation possible, starting with the professors in the Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing at Loyola University. My dissertation chair, Dr. Karen Egenes who has been a fountain of information and her patience and encouragement throughout this “marathon” has certainly pulled me through.
Her knowledge on all things nursing history is incredible and an inspiration to me. My dissertation committee members, Drs. Judith Jennrich and Jorgia Connor, thank you for sticking with me through it all. I would like to thank all the archivists that have made this work possible.
Most importantly, thank you to Kathy Young and Ashley Howdeshell, who patiently worked with me over two summers both archiving and researching the work of Imogene King in the archives at Loyola University. To the archivists at The Ohio State University Archives, who not only made me welcome but brought out the archives of the famous football coach Woody Hayes for my football enthusiast husband to enjoy as he waited for me to finish my research. To the Eleanor Crowder Bjoring Center for Nursing Historical Inquiry who were so very kind in providing me with access to a transcript and the audio recordings of the Patricia Messmer interview with Imogene King. I would like to acknowledge my readers, Mike Kotowski, Annie Kotowski, Mimi Simon, Patsy Matteson, Dr.
Betty O’Shaughnessy, and Charlie Heintz, for their patience as devoted editors of my work. There is a special place in Heaven for them after all that iv work. And my mother-in-law, Jinx Kotowski, who re-typed the Imogene King Curriculum Vitae saving me hours of work. I would like to thank my colleagues at North Park University School of Nursing and Health Sciences for their constant encouragement and prayers.
Most importantly I would like to thank my family. My children Jack, Paddy, Annie (who cross checked all those references and citations for me), and Maggie – all of this work has been for you. And finally, to my husband, Mike, truly the most kind and patient man in all the world who knows more about Imogene King than he ever imagined he would know about anyone. He has been my sounding board, my critic, and my coach, without him none of this would have ever come to fruition.
v For my family, Mike, Jack, Paddy, Annie, and Maggie. TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS LIST OF FIGURES x ABSTRACT xi CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1 Conceptual Framework 3 Theory of Goal Attainment 4 Background 7 Purpose 15 Research Question 16 Significance 16 Overview of Organization of Dissertation 18 Organizing Framework 18 CHAPTER TWO: REVIEW OF LITERATURE 22 The Early Influence of Florence Nightingale 24 Modern Nursing Training/Education 29 Hospitals and Medicine 29 Apprenticeship Model of Nursing Education 31 Flexner Report 33 Goldmark Report 34 Evolution of Institutions of Higher Education for Nursing 38 Twentieth Century Nursing Pioneers 38 Committee on the Grading of Nursing Schools 43 National League for Nursing Education’s Curriculum Guides 45 Standard Curriculum for Schools of Nursing (1917) 45 A Curriculum for Schools of Nursing (1927) 46 A Curriculum for Schools of Nursing (1937) 46 The Impact of the World Wars on Nursing Education 48 World War I 48 The Intervening Years Between the Great Wars 50 The Impact of World War II 51 Brown Report 53 Mildred Montag 55 Knowledge in Nursing 57 Knowledge/Theory Movement 57 Dickoff and James 60 Hildegarde Peplau 62 Myra E. Rogers 65 Rosemarie Parse 66 vii CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY 70 Historical Research Approaches 71 Methodology 71 Organizing Frameworks 73 The Biographical Framework 74 The Social Framework 75 Research Procedures 76 Data Collection 76 Sources of data 76 Primary 77 Oral History/Interviews 80 Secondary 82 Validation/Criticism 84 External validation/criticism 85 Internal validation/criticism 86 Positive criticism 86 Negative criticism 87 Analysis 87 Synthesis of data 87 Interconnectedness of variables 88 Manipulation of variables 88 Contextualization/causation 88 Judgments 89 Ambiguity 89 Analysis in process 90 CHAPTER FOUR: EARLY LIFE AND NURSING EDUCATION 94 Imogene King, from the Beginning 97 Family 98 Education 102 Grammar School 102 High School 104 Nursing Education 105 St. John’s School of Nursing, Diploma, St.
Louis, MS 106 Maryville College of the Sacred Heart 111 Bachelor of Science in Nursing at St. Louis University 112 Jesuit Influence 113 Teaching at St. John’s Hospital School of Nursing 114 Master of Science in Nursing at St. Louis University while Making Strides in Curriculum at St.
John’s School of Nursing 117 Doctor of Education, Teacher’s College, Columbia University 123 Dissertation Work 125 viii Conclusion 130 CHAPTER FIVE: PROFESSIONAL CAREER 134 Loyola University School of Nursing, Chicago, 1961-1966 137 Washington D. 1966-1968 142 The Ohio State University 1968-1972 145 Curriculum 146 Loyola University Chicago School of Nursing, 1972-1980 153 Theory Conference 160 University of Southern Florida, 1980-1990 164 Political Work/Leader 166 Civic Duty 166 American Nurses Association (ANA), Illinois Nurses Association (INA), and the Florida Nurses Association (FNA) 167 Article Controversy 171 KING International 174 Conclusion 180 CHAPTER SIX: IMOGENE KING’S CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE PROFESSION OF NURSING 183 As a Theorist 183 Giving Back to the Nursing Professions 184 Imogene King’s Conceptual Framework 185 Conceptualization of King’s Ideas 186 Critique of King’s Conceptual Framework 188 Nursing’s Response to King’s Conceptual Framework 190 Imogene King’s Theory of Goal Attainment 191 Research for Theory 191 Ludwig von Bertalanffy General Systems Theory 194 Conceptual Development of King’s Theory 196 Critiques 200 What Would She Change? 201 Use of Imogene King’s Theory in Nursing Practice 202 Sunnybrook Health Sciences Center, Toronto, Ontario, Canada 202 Theory used in Nursing School Curriculum 205 The Language of Theory 206 Imogene King and Jacqueline Fawcett’s Monograph 207 International Interest in Imogene King’s Theory 209 World Health Organization (WHO) – Seminar in Nursing Studies, 1969 210 University of Maryland Measurement Workshop 211 As a Teacher 214 Curriculum Guide Book 219 As a Leader 223 ix American Nurses Association (ANA) 224 Sigma Theta Tau International 226 American Academy of Nursing 229 Other Noted Contributions and Accomplishments 230 CHAPTER SEVEN: DISCUSSION AND INTERPRETATION OF THE FINDINGS 230 Who was Imogene King? 234 Daughter, Sister, Niece, Aunt, and Friend 236 Student 238 Nurse 235 Theorist 239 Leader 240 Teacher 241 Influences on Imogene King in Her Development as a Nurse Theorist 243 Small Town Iowa Childhood During the Great Depression 245 Daniel A. King, Imogene King’s Father 245 Jesuit Education at St. Louis University 246 Mildred Montag 247 Hildegarde Peplau 248 Teacher’s College, Columbia University 249 Margaret Kaufman 250 Ludwig von Bertalanffy’s General Systems Theory 252 Contractual Obligation 253 Rosemary Ellis’ Critique 254 The Significance/Importance of Imogene King’s Contribution to the Nursing Profession 255 Conclusion 258 Why is this Research Important and What Does it Contribute 258 Limitations 259 Recommendation for Future Research 261 Recommendation for Practitioners 262 APPENDIX A 264 REFERENCE LIST 307 VITA 324 x LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1.
King’s Dynamic Interacting Systems Framework 5 xi ABSTRACT Imogene King was a pioneer in the profession of nursing. Known primarily for her work as a nurse theorist, King’s career encompassed a great deal more. King was a nurse educator who impacted the lives and careers of hundreds of students through her direct teaching, her mentorship, and generous spirit when it came to share knowledge. King was also a leader in the profession of nursing taking an active role in the various state American Nurse Associations (ANA) where she lived.
The ANA awarded her with the prestigious Jessie M. Scott Award for her outstanding work in education. Also, an active member and prolific speaker for Sigma Theta Tau who honored King in the inaugural class of the Virginia Henderson Fellows. This is a historical research dissertation that explores the life of Imogene King that primarily utilizes a biographical framework to describe who King was from her early and informative years growing up in a small town in Iowa along the Mississippi River to her work as a nurse educator, leader, and nurse theorist.
Through this historical lens, I will argue the life experiences, such as the influence of her father, the Jesuits, Mildred Montag, and Teacher’s College, Columbia University amongst others, of King that distinguish those particular points in her life that were influential on what made King, with particular attention to those things that influenced her to become a pioneer in nursing theory. Finally, the significance of the life achievement will be described in order to demonstrate the impact that King had on the profession of nursing. xii CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION The world has been blessed with many leaders and scholars in nursing. Imogene Martina King, a nurse leader, theorist, and educator, is a prime example of one of these nurse leaders.
Her conceptual framework and subsequent middle-range theory of goal attainment have touched the lives of many nurses and patients and have influenced the nursing profession as a whole. King’s advancement of nursing knowledge to further the profession and the practice of nursing has inspired generations of nurses who in turn have used King’s conceptual framework and theory to advance knowledge in the profession. The focus of this dissertation is the scholarship of Imogene King, and in particular, the people and experiences that influenced her to develop her significant body of work. Imogene King in her roles of nurse educator and leader was also, unquestionably, a pioneer in the early years of the theory movement.
However, King’s greatest contribution to the nursing profession was her work to advance knowledge in nursing as a theorist. As a theorist, she created knowledge. As a teacher, she imparted her knowledge and encouraged students to push themselves to a professional level that they might have never envisioned on their own. King’s demonstrated to others in the profession ways the intersection of theory and education can make a difference in the nursing profession King’s work as a theorist was demonstrated in her authorship of her two theory-based books, Toward a Theory for Nursing: General Concepts of Human Behavior (1971), which described a conceptual framework for nursing and A Theory 1 2 for Nursing: Systems, Concepts, Process (1981), that produced her middle-range Goal Attainment Theory.
These propelled her to the acclaim in the profession that she would not have otherwise received. Inspired by her academic work at Teachers College Columbia University, King believed that she should contribute to the of emerging knowledge base in nursing through the development and advancement of nursing theory. Through this work, King hoped both to inform practice and to legitimize nursing as a profession. She sought to contribute to the body of nursing knowledge that was just emerging in the literature at the time.
King believed that members of the general public did not appreciate the hard work and knowledge required of nurses in their work. King believed that members of the public oversimplified the work of nursing because they failed to understand the knowledge, skills, and the values that are required of nurses.
