Critical Analysis Portfolio

Critical Analysis Portfolio

Milestone Four: Analyzing an Issue or Event in Wellness Through the Lenses of the Natural and Applied Sciences and Social Sciences

Bullying in nursing is a well-documented phenomenon in clinical literature. It starts early during nursing education and proceeds to the bedside and boardroom. A study revealed 78% of nurses experienced bullying over six months of the study (Edmson & Zelonka, 2019). 60% of nurses quit their first job due to bullying by their workmates (Edmson & Zelonka, 2019). Bullying happens in all units and healthcare settings. Besides, nurse leaders are also not spared. 60% of nurse executives and managers experienced bullying at their places of work (Hampton et al., 2018). Consequently, bullying results in a poor working environment, enhanced patient risk, lower patient satisfaction scores, and high nurse turnover rates (Edmson & Zelonka, 2019). Analyzing bullying in nursing through natural and applied sciences and social science lenses allows nursing policymakers to implement strategies to reduce workplace bullying.

Lens Analysis: Natural and Applied Sciences

The natural and applied sciences help individuals understand themselves better in the physical world and know the role of nature in shaping them. Natural sciences include physics, chemistry, and biology, while applied sciences include technology. These two fields help scientists utilize scientific methods to observe and predict the natural world. Bullying has been in the nursing profession for many years. Therefore, scientists can use scientific methods, such as qualitative strategies, to determine the causes of bullying in nursing. Qualitative methods involve obtaining data through informal communication and open-ended questions (Trent & Cho, 2020). Natural and applied sciences thus have a role in explaining to various stakeholders the causes of bullying and its effect on nursing care. This can help healthcare policymakers to implement strategies to reduce bullying in workplaces.

Science can determine the mental, behavioral, and neurobiological health effects of bullying. Through research, scientists can discover the psychological and physiological consequences of bullying on the victims. Bullying has a biological impact on nurses. It can result in sleep disturbances, emotional dysregulation, cognitive problems, depression, and anxiety (Edmson & Zelonka, 2019). Natural and applied sciences can solve the pandemic of bullying in nursing. The strategies may include implementing evidence-based policies to reduce bullying and improve job satisfaction for nurses. Further, victims of bullying can also be educated to recognize perpetrators of bullying and positive coping strategies that can apply when bullying affects their mental health and results in emotional dysregulation.

Lens Analysis: Social Sciences

Humans are social beings, and social sciences analyze the relationships between people. Social sciences include anthropology, psychology, political science, and geography. The study of human interactions helps one understand how people live. Through the lens of the social sciences, scientists can conduct interviews to understand the psychology of bullying in nursing. Bullies intimidate or control others to achieve their goals. They can collaborate with their victims until they meet their objectives but lack honesty. Workplace bullies manipulate individuals of low status. In addition, they can also intimidate their superiors and even threaten them with resignation. Social sciences can help psychologists understand the basis of bullying behavior. Further, bullying occurs as a result of internalized shame. They bully others to take away their shame and suppress their feelings. People respond to shame differently in their childhood. The coping strategies may become physical traits when they become adults; for instance, these people may grow up to become bullies.

Moreover, bullying has psychological effects on the victims. Their self-confidence can be lowered, resulting in stress. Job-related anxieties due to bullying make employees feel anxiety when in their places of work (Nauman et al., 2019). They also doubt their capabilities to meet their employer’s standards. Job-related worries have negative repercussions for employees, healthcare organizations, and society. Social sciences will help psychologists understand how bullying affects employees’ quality of life. Research by psychologists has shown that anxiety and stress result in sleeping problems that negatively affect physiological processes during sleep (Nauman et al., 2019). Insomnia can adversely affect the organization; it has been linked with negative consequences such as poor work performance and absenteeism (Nauman et al., 2019). This means that organizations can incur significant financial losses due to bullying. Insomnia can also cause burnout, increased hostility, inattentiveness, fatigue, and job dissatisfaction.

Social sciences are thus crucial in bullying. They can help stakeholders understand the psychological effects of bullying and how it negatively affects the performance of their employees.

Conclusion

Nurse bullying is a pervasive issue that starts before nursing school and continues during a nurse’s career. Many nurses quit their jobs due to workplace bullying. Bullying will thus worsen the pandemic of nurse shortages. Bullying in nursing results in a poor work environment, an enhanced risk to patients, poor patient satisfaction scores, and higher nurse turnover rates. Nonetheless, understanding bullying through the natural and applied sciences and social lenses will help policymakers acknowledge the problem, raise awareness, mitigate the contributory factors, and enforce policies to reduce the prevalence of bullying.

References

Edmson, C., & Zelonka, C. (2019). Our own worst enemies: The nurse bullying epidemic—Erratum. Nursing Administration Quarterly, 43(4), 380-380. https://doi.org/10.1097/naq.0000000000000380

Hampton, D., Tharp‐Barrie, K., & Kay Rayens, M. (2018). Experience of nursing leaders with workplace bullying and how to best cope. Journal of Nursing Management, 27(3), 517-526. https://doi.org/10.1111/jonm.12706

Nauman, S., Malik, S. Z., & Jalil, F. (2019). How workplace bullying jeopardizes employees’ life satisfaction: The roles of job anxiety and insomnia. Frontiers in Psychology, 10. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02292

Trent, A., & Cho, J. (2020). Interpretation in qualitative research: What, why, how. The Oxford Handbook of Qualitative Research, 955-982. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190847388.013.35

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For this fourth milestone, you will analyze your issue or event in wellness through the lenses of the natural and applied sciences and the social sciences.

Critical Analysis Portfolio

Like Milestone Two, this task provides you with an opportunity to dive deeper into your analysis of the issue or event through these two lenses.