Abstract
A theory is often viewed as a hypothesis or system of ideas intended to explain and predict a phenomenon or justify a course of action. For the purpose of this publication, theory is also defined generically to mean a range of approaches that specify the scope of inquiry, lay our assumptions, provide a shared vocabulary among members of a research team, and clearly define and relate concepts in the form of principles, hypotheses, and propositions.
Theories of social and healthcare policy mean disparate things to different people. One perspective is that these policies are mostly concerned with content that includes the best method for considering financing services or service delivery. However, a look at policy requires an exploration into how policy is formulated and implemented as well as who or what influences policymaking. The theories selected for discussion in this chapter focus on policy as it relates to the processes of policy formulation and/or implementation and are considered to be classic illustrations of policy processes as referred to in additional publications. The criterion for inclusion of a theory is not the newness of an article or reference but the quality of its insight, that is, its ability to explain some aspect of the policy process and/or policymaking. Finally, the chapter offers commentary on the relevance of social and healthcare theory to nursing.
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Schober, M. (2017). Theories of Social and Healthcare Policy. In: Strategic Planning for Advanced Nursing Practice. Advanced Practice in Nursing. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-48526-3_3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-48526-3_3
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