The social place of nursing knowledge: Scientific editorials as linguistic artifacts read from a Certeau´s perspective

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to analyze the process by which nursing knowledge is produced. It takes a philosophical perspective based on the concept of social place developed by Michel de Certeau. Social place comprises an institutional dimension, the procedures used to create knowledge and the values underlying it. In applying this epistemic framework to nursing, the authors focused on the Journal of Nursing Scholarship (JNS). The study took the form of a textual analysis, using Certeau’s epistemic categories, of all JNS editorials by Susan Gennaro from 2007 to 2018. The results of this analysis support the Certeaunian view that the JNS can be regarded as a knowledge institution, which maintains a tight relationship with power, makes contracts with authors and reviewers, and generates its own discourse about reality. The key procedures and conventions for contributing papers to the JNS were also identified. Finally, practice, social significance, efficiency, universality, good science and leadership emerged as the core values of the JNS. The findings of this study can help researchers to appreciate that knowledge (and linguistic artifacts associated with it) is never absolutely free from social constraints.