Theoretical Foundations of Nursing: Works of Maslow, Sullivan, Bertalanffy, and Lewin

Vocabulary flashcards covering core concepts from Maslow's Human Needs Theory, Sullivan's Interpersonal Theory, Bertalanffy's General Systems Theory, and Lewin's Change Theory for nursing practice.

Abraham Maslow

The theorist who proposed the Human Motivation Theory (Human Needs Theory), which categorizes human needs into a five-level pyramid.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

A theoretical framework organizing human needs into five levels where lower-level survival needs must be satisfied before higher-level growth needs can be successfully addressed.

Physiological Needs

The foundational, biological requirements for survival, including airway maintenance, oxygenation, fluid and electrolyte balance, nutrition, temperature regulation, elimination, sleep, and physical comfort.

Safety & Security Needs

The second level of Maslow's hierarchy, involving physical protection and psychological stability, clinically addressed through fall prevention, medication safety, environmental risk reduction, and infection control.

Love & Belonging Needs

The third level of Maslow's hierarchy, focusing on social connections, emotional intimacy, and group acceptance, supported by facilitating family visitation and building therapeutic relationships.

Self-Esteem Needs

The fourth level of Maslow's hierarchy, centered on personal worth, independence, respect, and dignity, supported by maintaining patient privacy and encouraging independence in ADLs.

Self-Actualization Needs

The apex level of Maslow's hierarchy, representing the attainment of full potential, self-fulfillment, and inner purpose, supported through long-term goal setting and addressing spiritual or palliative goals.

Harry Stack Sullivan

The theorist who formulated Transactional Analysis (Interpersonal Theory), emphasizing that personality develops through social interactions and that anxiety is the basis for all emotional problems.

Anxiety (Sullivan's Interpersonal Theory)

The primary basis for all emotional problems in Sullivan's theory, arising directly from inadequate or unsatisfying interpersonal relationships.

Prototaxic Mode

A cognitive experience mode dominating infancy, characterized by brief, unconnected experiences that have no logical relation to one another.

Parataxic Mode

A cognitive mode emerging during childhood in which experiences are connected in sequence to each other.

Syntaxic Mode

A cognitive mode beginning in the juvenile stage where an individual analyzes experiences in a variety of situations, perceiving oneself and the world within the context of the environment.

Infancy (Sullivan's Life Stages)

The stage from birth to the onset of language where primary needs are contact and tenderness, primary zones are oral and anal, and the prototaxic mode dominates.

Childhood (Sullivan's Life Stages)

The stage from language to 5 years where parents are viewed as sources of praise, the primary zone is anal, the parataxic mode dominates, and gratification builds positive self-esteem.

Juvenile (Sullivan's Life Stages)

The stage from 5 to 8 years marked by a shift to the syntaxic mode, negotiating needs, and seeking approval from others; severe anxiety during this stage may cause a need to control or prejudicial attitudes.

Preadolescence (Sullivan's Life Stages)

The stage from 8 to 12 years characterized by genuine intimacy with a same-sex friend, moving away from the family as the sole source of relationship satisfaction, and developing attachment and collaboration capacity.

Adolescence (Sullivan's Life Stages)

The stage from puberty to adulthood marked by a need for special sharing relationships with the opposite sex, emergence of lust, and where maturity is defined by the predominance of the syntaxic mode.

Ludwig von Bertalanffy

The Austrian biologist who conceptualized General Systems Theory, applying system principles to both living and non-living structures across disciplines.

Systems (General Systems Theory)

Organized wholes comprised of component parts (subsystems) that dynamically interact with each other and function as a whole over time.

Equilibrium (General Systems Theory)

The state of stability maintained by a system despite external disturbances.

Open vs. Closed Systems

The distinction describing how systems vary in their capacity to respond to or interact with their surrounding environment.

The Family as a System

A nested system model depicting the child embedded inside concentric contextual layers: Family Context, Network of Intimates, Neighborhood and School, and Society at Large.

Kurt Lewin

The founder of modern social psychology who developed Change Theory, utilizing experimentation and a 3-stage organizational transformation model.

Driving Forces

Factors in Lewin's Change Theory that incentivize, support, or push for transformation.

Restraining Forces

Obstacles, resistance, or institutional habits in Lewin's Change Theory that hinder change and maintain current practice.

Equilibrium (Lewin's Change Theory)

The state of status quo that occurs when the sum of driving forces equals the sum of restraining forces, resulting in a stable, unchanging state.

Unfreezing

The first stage of Lewin's Change Theory involving becoming motivated to change by identifying the gap between 'what is believed' and 'what needs to be believed'.

Change (Lewin's Stage Model)

The second stage of Lewin's Change Theory where proactive communication, role model imitation, and personalized solutions guide the transition to a new state.

Refreezing

The third and final stage of Lewin's Change Theory, centered on solidifying and making the implemented change permanent.

Responses to Learning Anxiety

The three sequential stages of response to learning anxiety observed during the Unfreezing phase: Denial, Scapegoating & 'Passing the buck', and Maneuvering and Bargaining.