Newman's theory of health as expanding consciousness: an evolutionary concept analysis.
BMC nursing September 3, 2024 Hongman Li, Ying Xiong, Zengjie Ye
Health as expanding consciousness (HEC) theory holds that health and disease are interconnected parts of a process that expands consciousness. Using Rodgers' evolutionary concept analysis, 70 studies from 1986 to 2023 were analyzed. Key attributes of HEC include movement, time, space, energy, rhythm, and a paradigm of health. Antecedents are disease, chaos, binding, centering, and choice point. Consequences include self-transcendence, unbinding, decentering, expanded consciousness, real freedom, pattern recognition, absolute consciousness, and death. The analysis identifies substitute terms, related concepts, and empirical references, offering insights for nursing practice, education, research, and management.