| Course | NURS 8114 Theoretical and Scientific Foundations of Nursing |
|---|---|
| Week | Week 6 |
| Paper type | Discussion post with two peer replies |
| Length | About 580 words, 4 pages |
| Format | Discussion post, APA 7 citations |
| School | Walden University |
| Program | Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) |
| Updated | September 2026 |
Free sample paper for NURS 8114 Week 6
Week 6 Discussion: Initial Post
What Lewin's Model Carries and What It Drops: Borrowing a Change Theory for Evening-of-Surgery Walking on a Colorectal Ward
Nursing borrows theory constantly, and borrowing has costs. I want to test that on one import: Lewin's three-stage change model from social psychology, applied to getting patients out of bed and walking on the evening of their colorectal surgery on a composite surgical ward. International enhanced recovery guidance recommends early mobilization after colorectal surgery as part of a bundle of measures that support recovery (Gustafsson et al., 2019), yet on this ward most patients first stand the next morning.
Lewin (1947) described change as moving a group's behavior from one level to another in three steps: loosening the old pattern, shifting to a new one and then fixing the new one in place. His model assumes that a group's behavior is held in place by a field of driving and restraining forces that can be identified and shifted. That assumption travels well to this ward. The forces are easy to name: driving forces include the guideline, surgeons' support and patients' wish to go home sooner; restraining forces include evening staffing, nurses' worry about hypotension and falls, epidural lines and pumps and a long-standing habit of settling patients for the night.
What had to be reshaped before the model fit:
1. The group is not stable. Lewin wrote about groups whose membership was fairly constant. A surgical ward has rotating staff, travel nurses and a new patient cohort every few days, so refreezing cannot rely on a group norm alone; it must be built into the order set and the evening assignment.
2. The patient is part of the field. Lewin's forces act on the group making the change. Here a restraining force sits inside the patient, fear and pain, which the nurse must address one person at a time.
3. Several professions share the change. Physical therapy, anesthesia and surgery each own part of the behavior, so unfreezing must happen in more than one group at once.
My conclusion: Lewin's field of forces transfers intact, but his idea of a stable group refreezing a norm has to be rebuilt as a system change, or the ward will slide back when the champions rotate off. Villarruel et al. (2001) distinguish borrowed theories from shared ones, which have been tested and adapted in nursing until they belong to both disciplines. Lewin's model is close to shared, but this case shows the adaptation is still the nurse's job.
Reply to Hana
Hana, you suggested dropping Lewin for a nursing theory, arguing that borrowed models import assumptions that do not fit nursing. I agree that assumptions travel with a theory, and I named one that did not fit, the stable group. But I think the better response is to adapt the model openly rather than abandon it. Villarruel et al. (2001) argue that borrowed theories contribute to nursing knowledge when nurses test and refine them in nursing situations. Would a nursing theory of change give us more on this ward than an adapted Lewin?
Reply to Caleb
Caleb, you asked whether Lewin is too old for doctoral work. Age alone is not a problem; the question is whether the model still describes the situation. On this ward the force field describes the evening decision well. Where it falls short is in explaining how a change survives constant turnover, and for that part I would add something newer, such as an implementation framework, rather than replacing Lewin entirely (Lewin, 1947).
References
Gustafsson, U. O., Scott, M. J., Hubner, M., Nygren, J., Demartines, N., Francis, N., Rockall, T. A., Young-Fadok, T. M., Hill, A. G., Soop, M., de Boer, H. D., Urman, R. D., Chang, G. J., Fichera, A., Kessler, H., Grass, F., Whang, E. E., Fawcett, W. J., Carli, F., ... Ljungqvist, O. (2019). Guidelines for perioperative care in elective colorectal surgery: Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) Society recommendations: 2018. World Journal of Surgery, 43(3), 659-695. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00268-018-4844-y
Lewin, K. (1947). Frontiers in group dynamics: Concept, method and reality in social science; social equilibria and social change. Human Relations, 1(1), 5-41. https://doi.org/10.1177/001872674700100103
Villarruel, A. M., Bishop, T. L., Simpson, E. M., Jemmott, L. S., & Fawcett, J. (2001). Borrowed theories, shared theories, and the advancement of nursing knowledge. Nursing Science Quarterly, 14(2), 158-163. https://doi.org/10.1177/08943180122108210
The Walden NURS 8114 Week 6 instructions
The sixth week's discussion usually asks you to choose a theory from another discipline, apply it to a nursing situation and analyze what transfers and what must be adapted. Most sections want a first post close to five hundred words and two responses to peers. Name the theory's home discipline and its core assumptions. Apply it to one specific practice change rather than to change in general. Then list what arrived intact and what had to be reshaped, with a reason for each. The distinction between borrowed and shared theory is often part of the prompt, so cite a nursing source on it. End with a conclusion about whether the theory remains usable once adapted, and a question for classmates.
Inside the NURS 8114 Week 6 example
The opening paragraph notes that borrowing has costs and names the ward's gap between guidance and practice, citing Gustafsson and colleagues. The second paragraph explains Lewin's three steps and his field of forces and names driving and restraining forces on the ward. A numbered list gives three adaptations: rotating staff, fear and pain inside the patient and a change shared by physical therapy, anesthesia and surgery. A highlighted conclusion says refreezing must be rebuilt as a system change, and Villarruel and colleagues supply the borrowed and shared distinction. The reply to Hana argues for adapting rather than abandoning Lewin. The reply to Caleb separates age from fit and suggests adding an implementation framework.
Where the marks sit in the NURS 8114 Week 6 rubric
Posts on borrowed theory tend to be marked on how faithfully the theory and its origin are described, application to a nursing situation, analysis of fit and peer engagement. Description earns credit when core assumptions are stated, not only the stages. Application is weighted heavily and rewards one concrete change. Analysis of fit is where most posts are separated, and it rewards naming what transferred and what had to change, with reasons. Replies earn credit when they respond to a challenge with an argument and a source. A nursing source on borrowed and shared theory is usually expected. APA citations and timely posting complete the rubric. Faculty tend to reward posts that keep a theory with limits stated.
NURS 8114 Week 6 help from the desk
Posts on borrowed theory lose marks when they restate the three stages and call the result an analysis. Another common loss is applying the theory to change in general, so nothing specific has to be adapted. Some posts claim a theory transfers perfectly, which misses the point of the week. Others reject any theory from outside nursing without testing it. Choose one change, state the theory's assumptions, show which travel and which must be rebuilt and conclude on usability. The desk can draft a post around a change on your own unit. Check the current guideline for the practice you choose, since enhanced recovery recommendations are updated from time to time.
Get a NURS 8114 Week 6 example written to your instructions
Post the discussion question and rubric from the classroom to the desk, name the borrowed theory it assigns, and a thread example built on that theory lands in 24 to 48 hours, with the first free. If the class works with a model other than Lewin's, the adaptation argument is written for that one.
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- NURS 8114 Week 4: Grand vs Middle-Range Theory Post
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- NURS 8114 Week 10: Theoretical Foundation Paper
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NURS 8114 Week 6 questions, answered
Is Lewin's model still acceptable in doctoral work?
Yes, provided it is used with its limits stated. It remains a familiar borrowed change framework in nursing, and that familiarity is exactly why graders expect more than a restatement of its three stages. The example keeps Lewin and argues openly for adapting refreezing, which reads as critical use rather than as reliance on a comfortable choice made because it was easy to cite.
What is the difference between borrowed and shared theory?
Borrowed theory is taken from another discipline and used in nursing, while shared theory describes the same material after it has been adapted and tested in nursing contexts until it belongs to more than one field. The example treats Lewin's model as borrowed and argues for the adaptation that would move it toward shared. Some sections expect this distinction named explicitly in the post.
Can the post argue that a borrowed theory should not be used at all?
It can, if the argument rests on the problem rather than on a preference for nursing theory. A post concluding that Lewin's model cannot describe a ward with constant turnover, and proposing an alternative, answers the prompt legitimately. What tends to lose credit is rejection on grounds of discipline alone, since the question the week poses is about fit, not pedigree.
Where can I find a free NURS 8114 Week 6 sample paper?
The post on evening walking after colorectal surgery with its two replies and three sources is open to read here in full. A post on a change from your own unit can be requested.
What part of Lewin's model has to be rebuilt in the NURS 8114 Week 6 post?
Refreezing. A ward with rotating staff cannot rely on a stable group norm, so the new practice has to be built into the order set and the evening assignment.