An understanding of spirituality and spiritual care among people from Chinese backgrounds: A grounded theory study

Abstract

Aim: To investigate the meaning of spirituality and spiritual care among people from Chinese backgrounds living in England.

Design: Strauss and Corbin's grounded theory design was used.

Method: Twenty-five participants were recruited from Chinese community centres after which data saturation was reached in September 2016. In-depth interviews in Chinese were carried out. Transcribed digital recordings were translated into English. Data analysis followed the techniques of open coding, axial coding, and selective coding, using NVivo11. Data collection and analysis were conducted simultaneously.

Results: Three themes emerged from the data which provide an understanding of spirituality and spiritual care in the study context: 'essence and nature of life', 'driving forces', 'self-support'.

Conclusion: This study provides an understanding of spirituality and spiritual care from a Chinese cultural perspective. From a Daoist tradition, spirituality is seen as essence and driving force in the human body. From a Confucian viewpoint, it appears that patients saw themselves or the 'self' as a supporting resource.

Impact: The knowledge gained from this study has potential to support nurses and healthcare practitioners to identify the spiritual needs of people from Chinese backgrounds and to remove some of the Chinese misconceptions Chinese people hold about spiritual care by explaining what these concepts could mean. It could also improve cultural awareness for student nurses around what constitutes spiritual care. Further research is recommended among the wider community of health and social care workers to explore spirituality and spiritual care among people from Chinese backgrounds living in England.

Keywords: Chinese; Daoist; confucian; cultural awareness; essence; grounded theory; health; nursing; spiritual care; spirituality.