Martha Rogers Theory of Unitary

Human Being.
Presented by
Prof. Dorothy Deena Theodore
Principal
Narayana Hrudayalaya College of Nursing
Bangalore
Introduction
Martha Elizabeth Rogers has described nursing as both an art and a science. But she goes on to
describe the uniqueness of nursing in the phenomenon central to its focus which is people. And
the world they live in. she focus on the term pandimensional, open system and thus points to a
new paradigm which is nursing as a science. The art of nursing is the creative use of the science
of nursing for human betterment.
Profile of the proposer

Born: May 12, 1914, Dallas, Texas. She was the eldest of 4 children.

She studied science at the university of Tennessee before receiving Diploma in

nursing from Knoxville General Hospital School of Nursing(1936)

Graduation in Public Health Nursing, George Peabody College, TN, 1937

MA :Teachers college, Columbia university, New York, 1945

MPH :Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 1952

Doctorate in nursing :Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, 1954

Fellowship: American academy of nursing

Position: her early nursing practice was in rural public health nursing in
Michigan, visiting nurse supervision, education and practice in Connecticut,

She established the visiting nurse services of Phoenix, Arizona. For 21 years she
was professor and head of the division of nursing at the New York University. She
was Professor Emeritus, Division of Nursing, New York University, Consultant,
Speaker till she died on March 13 , 1994

Publications of Martha Rogers

Dr. Martha Rogers has published 3 books and more than 200 articles she has lectured in 46 states

Theoretical basis of nursing (Rogers 1970)

Nursing science and art :a prospective (Rogers 1988)
Nursing :science of unitary, irreducible, human beings update (Rogers 1990)
Vision of space based nursing (Rogers 1990)

Background and History

With respect to nursing the origins of Rogers theory can be traced back to Nightingales proposal
and statistical data, which places the human beings within the framework of the natural world.
This foundation for nursing began with the nurses investigation of the relationship between the
human and the environment. The Rogerian view of causality emerges from an infinite universe
of open system
Rogers model emerged from multiple knowledge. Her model is also influenced by Einsteins
theory of relativity in relation to space-time. She is also influenced by Burr and Northrops
electro-dynamic theory relating to magnetic fields. She introduced the quantum theory and the
theories of relativity and of probability fundamentally challenged the prevailing absolutism. As
new knowledge escalated the traditional meaning of homeostasis, steady state, adaptation, and
equilibrium were questioned seriously.
Another important source of her theory is the principles of homeodynamics postulates as a way
of perceiving unitary human beings.
The Rogerian model is an abstract system of ideas from which to approach the nursing care of
the unitary human being. This model was first introduced in the year 1970. The central concern
is the model of the nursing of unitary human beings. Here human beings are conceptualized as
dynamic, constantly evolving energy fields rather than homeostatic beings. This theory purports
that nursing is an art and a science.
The model also proposes that the human being and the environment are energy fields that are
irreducible, and equal to more than the sum of their parts. The human being and the environment
are integral part of one another and therefore must be viewed as a whole. Therefore according to
this nursing focus are the care of people and the life process of human beings. Nursing is
concerned with continuous innovative and diverse change inherent to life. It aims to accompany
people as they achieve their maximum health potential.
Assumptions of the theory

Man is a unified whole possessing his own integrity and manifesting characteristics more
than and different from the sum of his parts. (energy field)
Man and environment are continuously exchanging matter and energy with one another.
(openness)
The life process evolves irreversibly and unidirectionally along the space-time continuum
(helicy).
Pattern of organization identify man and reflect his innovative wholeness(pattern of
organization)
Man is characterized by the capacity for abstraction and imagery, language and thought,
sensation and emotion

Definition of concepts used

Energy field

The energy field is the fundamental unit of both the living and nonliving.

The field is a unifying concept and energy signifies the dynamic nature of the
field.

The unitary human being is defined as infinite, indivisible, irreducible and

pandimensional identified by pattern and manifesting characteristics that are
specific to the whole and that cannot be predicted from the knowledge of parts.

Two fields are identified they are the human field and the environmental field.

This energy field "provide a way to perceive people and environment as

irreducible wholes"

The energy fields continuously varies in intensity, density, and extent

Openness

The human field and the environmental field are constantly exchanging their
energy

There are no boundaries or barrier that inhibit energy flow between fields
Pattern

Pattern is defined as the distinguishing characteristic of an energy field perceived

as a single waves

"pattern is an abstraction and it gives identity to the field"

The nature of the pattern changes continuously, innovatively and these changes
give identity to the energy field

Each human field pattern is unique and is integral with the environmental field

Manifestations emerge as a human environmental mutual process.

A sense of self is a field manifestation, the nature of which is unique to the

individual.

Some variations in the pattern manifestations have been described in phrases such
as shorter or longer rhythms, pragmatic verses imaginative and time experienced
as fast or slow

Pattern is continually changing and may manifest disease, illness, feelings, or

pain.

Pattern change is continuous, innovative and relative.

Pan dimensionality

Pan dimensionality is defined as "non linear domain without spatial or temporal

attributes"

It is the unitary whole

The parameters that humans uses in language to describe events are arbitrary.

The present is relative; there is no temporal ordering of lives.

Unitary Human Being (person)

A unitary human being is an "irreducible, indivisible, pan dimensional (fourdimensional) energy field identified by pattern and manifesting characteristics that
are specific to the whole and which cannot be predicted from knowledge of the
parts" and "a unified whole having its own distinctive characteristics which
cannot be perceived by looking at , describing, or summarizing the parts"

The people has the capacity to participate knowingly and probabilistically in the
process of change
Environment

The environment is an "irreducible ,pan dimensional energy field identified by

pattern and integral with the human field"

This is identified by a pattern and manifesting characteristics different from those

of the parts. The environment and human fields are in continuous and mutual
process. And are identified by wave patterns

Each environmental field is specific to its given human field and it changes
continuously, creatively, and integrally.

The environment is infinite and characterized by increasing diversity.

The fields coexist and are integral. Manifestations emerge from this field and are
perceived.
Health

Rogers defined health as an expression of the life process; they are the
"characteristics and behavior emerging out of the mutual, simultaneous interaction
of the human and environmental fields"

She used health as a value term defined by the culture or individual.

Passive health was the term used to symbolize wellness and the absence of
disease and major illness

Health and illness are the part of the same continuum. They are a manifestation of
pattern and considered to denote behaviors that are of high or low value.

She mentioned that wellness is a better term to use than health as the term health
is ambiguous

The multiple events taking place along life's axis denote the extent to which man
is achieving his maximum health potential and very in their expressions from
greatest health to those conditions which are incompatible with the maintaining
life process
Nursing

The concept Nursing encompasses two dimensions

Independent science of nursing

An organized body of knowledge which is specific to nursing is
arrived at by scientific research and logical analysis

Art of nursing practice

The creative use of science for the betterment of the human

The creative use of its knowledge is the art of its practice
Assumptions about people and nursing

Nursing exists to serve people..it is the direct and overriding responsibility

to the society

The safe practice of nursing depends on the nature and amount of scientific
nursing knowledge the individual brings to practice.the imaginative,
intellectual judgment with which such knowledge is made in service to the man
kind

People needs knowledgeable nursing

Homeodynamic principles

The principles of homeodynamics postulates the way of perceiving unitary human

beings

The fundamental unit of the living system is an energy field

Three principle of homeodynamics

Resonancy

Helicy

integrality

Resonance

Resonance is an ordered arrangement of rhythm

It is continuously propagating series of waves between man and environment.

It continuously changes from lower to higher frequency wave patterns in the

human and environmental fields

characterizing both human field and environmental

field that undergoes continuous dynamic

metamorphosis in the human environmental process

Helicy describes the unpredictable, but continuous, nonlinear evolution of energy

fields as evidenced by non repeating rhythmic ties

It describes a spiral development in continuous, non repeating and innovative

patterns

The principle of Helicy postulates an ordering of the humans evolutionary

emergence

Helicy

Integrality

Integrality stresses on the continuous mutual process or interaction of the person

(human field) and the environment (environmental field).

Integrality covers the mutual, continuous relationship of the human energy field
and the environmental field.

Changes occur by the continuous re-patterning of the human and environmental

fields by resonance waves.

The fields are one and integrated but unique to each other

Overview of the theory

Her grounding in liberal arts and science is apparent in the origin and development of her
conceptual models which was published in 1970. The source of Rogerian unitary man comes
from the knowledge bases of anthropology, psychology, sociology, astronomy, religion,
philosophy, history, biology, physics, mathematics, and literature. She developed the theory of
human beings and the environment as energy fields vital to the life process.

Rogers nursing theory

Nursing is both a science and art. It is a learned profession

The uniqueness of nursing, like that of any other science it is empirical in
nature; this lies in the phenomenon central to its focus.
Nurses long established concern with the people and the world they live is
in a natural fit for nursing care. It is an organized abstract system
encompassing people and the environments.
The irreducible nature of individuals is different from the sum of the parts.
The integralality of people and the environment that coordinate with a
multidimensional/ pandimensional universe of open systems points to a
new paradigm: the identity of nursing as a science.
The purpose of nurses is to promote health and well-being for all persons
wherever they are.
o The art of nursing is the creative use of the science of nursing for
human betterment.
o Professional practice in nursing seeks to promote symphonic/
harmonious interaction between humans and the environmental
field for realization of maximum health potential.
o Nursing exists for the care of people and the life process of
humans.

Overview of Rogerian model

Rogers model provides the way of viewing the unitary human being

A person is defined as an open system in continuous process with the open system
that is the environment
Humans are viewed as integral with the universe. They are not ghostly

Rogerian theories-Grand theories

The theory of accelerating evolution

The theory of paranormal phenomena

The theory of rhythmicities

Theory of paranormal phenomena

This theory focus on the explanations for precognition, djvu, clairvoyance,

telepathy, and therapeutic touch

Clairvoyance is rational in a four dimensional human field in continuous mutual,

simultaneous interaction with a four dimensional world; there is no linear time nor
any separation of human and the environmental fields

The theory of accelerating evolution

Theory postulates that evolutionary change is speeding up and that the range of
diversity of life process is widening. Rogers explained that higher wave
frequencies are associated with accelerating human development

Theory of Rhythmicity

Focus on the human field rhythms

(these rhythms are different from the biological ,psychological rhythm)

Theory deals with the manifestations of the whole unitary man as changes in
human sleep wake patterns, indices of human field motion, perception of time
passing, and other rhythmic development

Rogerss concepts of nursing

Nursing is a learned profession-it is a science and art

Nursing is the study of unitary. Irreducible, indivisible human and environmental

energy fields

The art of nursing involves the imaginative and creative use of nursing knowledge

The purpose of nurses is to promote health and well-being for all person and
groups wherever they are using the art and science of nursing

The health services should be community based

Rogers challenges nurses to consider nursing needs of all people, including future
generation of space kind; as life continuous to evolve from earth to space and
beyond.

Her view provides a different world view that encompasses a practice of nursing
for the present time and for the imagined and for the yet to be imagined future

Rogers envisions a nursing practice of noninvasive modalities, such as therapeutic

touch, humor, guided imagery, use of color, light, music, and meditation focusing
on health potential of the person.

Professional practice in nursing seeks to promote symphonic interaction between

man and environment, to strengthen the coherence and integrity of the human

field, and to direct and redirect patterning of the human and environmental fields
for realization of maximum health potential

Nursing intervention seeks to coordinate environmental field and human field

rhythmicities, participates in the process of change , to help people move toward
better health

Nursing aims to assist people in achieving their maximum potential.

Nursing practice should be emphasized on pain management, supportive

psychotherapy motivation for rehabilitation.

Maintenance and promotion of health, prevention of disease, nursing diagnosis,

intervention, and rehabilitation encompasses the scope of nursing

Application
Nursing practice
Temporal experience scale Rogers contribution to nursing knowledge

Rogers was one of the first nurse scholars to explicitly identify the person (unitary
man) as the central phenomena of nursing concern

Nursing abstract system is a matrix of concepts relevant to the life process in man

Rogers conceptual system provides a body of knowledge in nursing that will have
relevance for all workers concerned with people, but with special relevance for
nurses; because it matters to human beings; consequently to nurses

In the evolution it is properly subjected to reformulation and change as the

knowledge grows, the conceptual data will be more clearer and it will take new
dimensions

The utilization of Rogerian model is used as a guide for theory development,

research, nursing education, and in the direct patient care practice

Education
Theories derived from the science of unitary human beings

The perspective rhythm model (Patrick 1983)

Theory of health as expanding consciousness (Neumann, 1986)

Theory of creativity, actualization and empathy (Alligood 1991)

Theory of self transcendence (Reed1997)

Power as knowing participation in change (Barrett 1998)

Research
Rules for nursing research guided by the Rogerian theory
Rules for research

The Rogerian research require both basic and applied research

The phenomena to be studied are unitary human beings and their environmental
interaction

Study participants may be any person or group, with the provision that both
person and environment are taken into account

Family assessment tool

Bodied entities, nor are they mechanical aggregates. Man is a unified whole
possessing his own integrity and manifesting characteristics that are more than the
different from the sum of his parts.

The unitary human being and the environment are one ,not dichotomous

Unitary man is defined as an irreducible, indivisible, pandimensional energy field

identified by pattern and manifesting characteristics that are specific to the whole.

Nursing focus on people and the manifestations that emerge from the mutual
human /environmental field process

Change of pattern and organization of the human field and the environmental field
is propagated by waves

The manifestations of the field patterning that emerge are observable events

The identification of the pattern provide knowledge

Research methodology

Qualitative and quantitative methods can be applied

Experimental researches are questionable because she rejects the notion of

causality

Case study and longitudinal research are better than cross sectional study

Research instruments that are directly derived from science of unitary human
beings should be used

Data analysis multivariate analysis (canonical correlation studies)

Research tools derived from science of unitary human beings

Perceived field motion scale

Human field rhythm scale

Assessment of dream experience scale

Person environment participation scale

Leddy healthiness scale

Mutual exploration of the healing human-environment field scale

Garon assessment of pain scale

Knowledge and understanding of human experience

Basic characteristics which describes the life process of human :energy field,
openness, pattern, and pan dimensionality

Basic concepts include unitary human being ,environment, and homeodynamics

principles

Critique

When the model is studied in total perspective the theory is simple with only 3 principles,
a few major concepts, and five assumptions. This explains the nature of man and life
processes.
The theory is abstract and therefore generalizable. It has a broad scope, providing a frame
work for the development of nursing knowledge.
Difficult to understand principles, lack of operational definitions, and inadequate tools for
measurement.
Has a lack of empirical support.