Psychospirituality in Nursing: A Walker and Avant Concept Analysis Abstract Background: Nursing has long acknowledged the interrelated psychological and spiritual dimensions of health, particularly in the context of illness, stress, and adaptation. Despite frequent reference to psychospiritual processes in practice and research, the concept of psychospirituality remains inconsistently defined and theoretically underdeveloped within nursing science, limiting its integration into research, measurement, and clinical intervention. Purpose: The purpose of this concept analysis was to clarify the concept of psychospirituality within nursing by identifying its defining attributes, antecedents, and consequences. Methods: Using the Walker and Avant method of concept analysis, relevant nursing and health-related literature was examined to analyze the uses of psychospirituality and related constructs. Model, borderline, and contrary cases were developed to further explicate the concept. Results: Psychospirituality was identified as a stress-activated, integrative process characterized by the concurrent integration of psychological processes and spiritual or existential orientation, meaning-making under conditions of threat or uncertainty, and a subjective sense of coherence across emotional and existential domains. Antecedents included exposure to illness-related stress and existential disruption, while consequences encompassed improved anxiety regulation, adaptive coping, and enhanced health-related outcomes. Implications for Nursing: Clarifying psychospirituality provides a theoretically grounded construct to support nursing research, education, and practice. This analysis offers a foundation for empirically testable models and nursing interventions that address integrated psychological and existential responses to stress and chronic illness.
Josef Hodgkins (Mon,) studied this question.