Modes of knowledge in the affirmation of a nursing disciplinary epistemology: Overinterpretations and reductions in the work of Chinn and Kramer

Every academic discipline nurturing its own science draws on the development and dissemination of a knowledge. In pursuit of this project, the nursing discipline has proposed various conceptualizations of knowledge. The one developed by Chinn and Kramer, following Carper’s work, is without doubt the most prominent and most often borrowed concept in discussing the epistemological foundations of the discipline. This thoughtful article proposes an in-depth critical analysis of this theoretical development by focusing on “personal” and “esthetic” knowledge. As part of the analysis, the author scrutinizes the inherent logics that support these patterns of knowing. Finally, the author highlights some overinterpretations and discrepancies with regard to nursing practice.