HUMAN BECOMING THEORY
ROSEMARIE RIZZO PARSE
ABOUT THE THEORIST
 Born in Pennsylvania in 1938.
 Educated at Duquesne University,
Pittsburgh
 MSN and Ph.D. from University of
Pittsburgh
 Published her theory of nursing, Man-
Living-Health in 1981
 Name changed to Theory of Human
Becoming in 1992
 Editor and Founder, Nursing Science
Quarterly
 Has published eight books and
hundreds of articles about Human
Becoming Theory
 Professor and Niehoff Chair at Loyola
University, Chicago
THEORY DEVELOPMENT
 The human becoming theory was
developed as a human science nursing
theory in the tradition of Dilthey,
Heidegger, Sartre, Merleau-Ponty, and
Gadamer and Science of Unitary
Human Beings by Martha Rogers.
 The assumptions underpinning the
theory were synthesized from works by
the European philosophers, Heidegger,
Sartre, and Merleau-Ponty, along with
works by the pioneer American nurse
theorist, Martha Rogers.
 The theory is structured around three
abiding themes: meaning, rhythmicity,
and transcendence.
ASSUMPTIONS
About man
 The human is coexisting while
constituting rhythmical patterns with the
universe.
 The human is open, freely choosing
meaning in situation, bearing
responsibility for decisions.
 The human is unitary, continuously
constituting patterns of relating.
 The human is transcending
multidimensionally with the possible
About Becoming
 Becoming is unitary human-living-health.
 Becoming is a rhythmically constituting
human-universe process.
 Becoming is the human’s patterns of
relating value priorities.
 Becoming is an intersubjective process
of transcending with the possible.
 Becoming is unitary human’s emerging
Three Major Assumptions of Human Becoming
 Meaning
o Human Becoming is freely
choosing personal meaning in
situations in the intersubjective
process of living value priorities.
o Man’s reality is given meaning
through lived experiences
o Man, and environment cocreate
 Rhythmicity
o Human Becoming is cocreating
rhythmical patterns of relating in
mutual process with the universe.
o Man, and environment cocreate
(imaging, valuing, language) in
rhythmical patterns
 Transcendence
o Human Becoming is co-
transcending multidimensionally
with emerging possible.
o Refers to reaching out and
beyond the limits that a person
set
o One constantly transforms
SUMMARY OF THE THEORY
 Human Becoming Theory includes
Totality Paradigm
o Man is a combination of
biological, psychological,
sociological and spiritual factors
 Simultaneity Paradigm
o Man is a unitary being in
continuous, mutual interaction
with environment
 Originally Man-Living-Health Theory
NURSING PARADIGMS AND  Enhances understanding of human lived
PARSE'S THEORY experience, health, quality of life and
quality of nursing practice
 Person  Expands the theory of human becoming
o Open being who is more than  Builds new nursing knowledge about
and different from the sum of the universal lived experiences which may
parts ultimately contribute to health and
quality of life
 Environment
o Everything in the person and his REFERENCES:
experiences
o Inseparable, complimentary to http://currentnursing.com/nursing_theory/Rose
and evolving with mary_Pars_Human_Becoming_Theory.html
 Health
o Open process of being and
becoming. Involves synthesis of
values
 Nursing
o A human science and art that
uses an abstract body of
knowledge to serve people

SYMBOL OF HUMAN BECOMING

THEORY

 Black and white = opposite paradox

significant to ontology of human
becoming and green is hope
 Center joined =co created mutual
human universe process at the
ontological level & nurse-person process
 Green and black swirls intertwining =
human-universe co creation as an
ongoing process of becoming

APPLICATION OF THE THEORY

Nursing Practice

 A transformative approach to all levels

of nursing
 Differs from the traditional nursing
process, particularly in that it does not
seek to “fix” problems
 Ability to see patient’s perspective
allows nurse to “be with” patient and
guide them toward desired health
outcomes
 Nurse-person relationship cocreates
changing health patterns

Research