Scholarly Writing Development: A Descriptive-Interpretive Study of Nurse Faculty

Abstract

AIM: The aim of this study was to examine how nurse educators develop as scholarly writers. BACKGROUND: To broaden the body of knowledge used to inform practice, nurses need to develop scholarly writing skills. However, writing skill acquisition is inconsistent, resulting from wide variation in or absence of deliberate writing development across all levels of nursing education. METHOD: A descriptive-interpretive design underpinned by naturalistic inquiry using semistructured interviews of nursing faculty (N = 16) was used. RESULTS: Five stages of writing skill acquisition emerged from the data: foundational, beginner, proficient, advanced proficient, and mastery. CONCLUSION: Nursing students and nurses need intentional practice at all stages of their academic preparation to develop scholarly writing skills. Ongoing professional development is essential to support nurse educators' progressive skill acquisition and, ultimately, continued advancement of nursing science and practice.