The nature of relationship between theory and research is an aspect that cannot be defined in a straight forward manner. On one hand, theory development depends on research but, on the other hand, research relies on theory. This relationship can, therefore, be characterized as dialectic, an exchange where the existing theories determine the data to be collected for a research and the research findings become the foundation for adjustment of the accepted theories.
Research has a great purpose in nursing through enrichment of knowledge of existing theories or extending comprehension to other unexplored areas (Benoliel, 2012). Essentially, it is a vehicle for theory development, whether the purpose is for testing of theory (deductive) or for theory generation (inductive). Regarding the latter, the circumstances of interest present the things to research on, and inductive logic is what operates in collection of data, analysis and formulation of the theory (Benoliel, 2012). For example, if a theory is to be generated concerning customer`s perception of factors affecting their adherence to medicine prescriptions, the data gathered will question about their willingness and ability to follow nurse`s medicine requirements.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
In testing of the theory, however, it supports research by dictating on what data should be gathered (Sunday, 2012). The researcher presumes hypothesis from the theoretical stipulations in order to test it. For instance, if a theory specifies that family emotional support is the prime predictor of the client`s willingness to follow medicine prescriptions, then the data gathered should measure the magnitude of emotional support and the degree to which the customer adheres to the prescriptions to support or reject the theory.
Overall, research and theory are much interconnected and their relationship is mutual. A theory can only be developed through research and, conversely, the existing theories provide insights for research, either for the purpose of testing or generation of more profound theories. Further, in light of the deductive and inductive methods above, it is apparent that research is the driver which sets out to test the existing theories or generate new ones.
References
Benoliel.Q.J. (2012). The interaction between theory and Research. Nursing outlook. The official journal of the American academy of Nursing. Retrieved from https://www.nursingoutlook.org/article/S0029-6554 (12)00148-0/abstract
Sunday. E.C. (2012) The Role of theory in research . University of Western Cape. Retrieved from file:///C:/Users/user/Downloads/The%20role%20of%20theory%20in%20research.pdf
