Nursing Psychology

Author: Dai Xiaoyang, Editor-in-Chief
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2006-05-01
Features: With the shift from a purely biomedical model to a biopsychosocial medical model, nursing professionals are increasingly emphasizing the application of psychological theories and practical techniques in both nursing research and clinical practice. Psychological care for patients and their families has become an indispensable part of modern systematic and holistic nursing. Nursing psychology is a very young discipline, but to date, whether it can be considered an independent discipline is still a subject of debate in academia. In developed countries such as the United States and Europe, textbooks in this field are often titled "Psychology for Nursing" or "The Psychology of Nursing Care." In 1991, the People's Medical Publishing House published the textbook "Medical Psychology" for higher medical colleges, classifying nursing psychology as a branch of medical psychology. At the 1996 meeting of the Higher Education Nursing Professional Textbook Editorial Committee in Chengdu, Sichuan, and the subsequent meeting of nine lead and deputy lead editors of higher nursing textbooks, most participants agreed that the name "Nursing Psychology" was more conventional and could align with the series of higher nursing textbooks. This textbook is divided into seven chapters: Chapter 1: Introduction; Chapter 2 briefly introduces basic psychological concepts and knowledge to lay the foundation for subsequent learning; Chapter 3 focuses on the relationship between psychosocial factors and health and disease; Chapter 4 introduces techniques for identifying and diagnosing psychological problems and disorders, particularly commonly used assessment scales; Chapter 5 discusses common psychological disorders and the characteristics of psychological issues in special patients or under special circumstances; Chapter 6 introduces commonly used psychological theories and techniques, which are often employed as intervention methods in psychological nursing; the final chapter introduces the characteristics and methods of psychological care for patients from the perspective of the nursing process. During the writing process of this textbook, all contributors have strived to ensure its content fully reflects the development trends of modern nursing—systematic and holistic nursing requirements—and meets the teaching needs of higher nursing programs in China. However, due to the limitations of the authors, whether this goal has been achieved remains to be tested by practice. We hope that teachers and students from nursing programs across the country will provide valuable feedback when using this textbook, promptly correcting any shortcomings or errors so that improvements can be made for future editions.