Dissertation
Absorption of Law: A Constructivist Grounded Theory of how Australian Registered Nurses Develop Knowledge and Understanding of the Laws Relevant to Nursing
Doctor of Philosophy, University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland
2026
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25907/01109
Abstract
This doctoral study aims to generate an interpretive conceptual understanding of how Australian Registered Nurses (RNs) develop knowledge and understanding of the legislation governing nursing practice across educational, professional, and clinical settings, using Constructivist Grounded Theory (Constructivist GT) methodology as developed by Charmaz (2014). The research adopts Constructivist GT methodology, developed by Charmaz (2014), as no existing theory explained how nurses develop legal knowledge in practice. Constructivist GT, which emphasises the co construction of meaning between researcher and participants, was particularly suited to this study given the researcher’s insider position as an RN with over 15 years of clinical experience. The research addresses four key questions underpinning the study’s aim, (i) how legal knowledge is presented, taught, and assessed in Australian nursing curricula; (ii) how RNs understand and apply legislation such as the Emergency Examination Authority (EEA); (iii) what are the individual, social, and organisational factors that shape legal understanding; and (iv) how do nurses navigate legislative ambiguity, conflicting laws, and clinical–legal tensions. These questions guided a two phase study design exploring both the tertiary education environment and the clinical workplace. Purposeful sampling was used to review 174 accredited Australian nursing courses, identifying 48 courses that contained legal content. These documents, along with interviews with six course coordinators, provided insight into the university context. The second phase investigated how RNs understand and apply legislation in practice through interviews with eight emergency department nurses who regularly work with the EEA under Queensland’s Public Health Act 2005 (Qld). Across both phases of the research, an emergent substantive theory—Absorption of Law—was developed to explain how, through a social process of absorption, RNs develop knowledge and understanding of the laws relevant to nursing practice. This research addresses a critical gap in understanding how Australian nurses develop knowledge and understanding of relevant law, an area previously neither theorised nor empirically mapped. Despite legal compliance being fundamental to professional practice, nursing curricula lack mandated legal education, leaving RNs inconsistently prepared to navigate complex or conflicting statutes. Prior research focused only on whether nurses understood the law, not how such understanding forms and develops. Further, no framework previously described the social, educational, and workplace processes shaping nurses’ legal knowledge. Additionally, no academic resources existed to guide nurses in developing their understanding and knowledge of newer legislation such as the EEA, resulting in reliance on informal peer learning and variable workplace support. By developing the substantive theory Absorption of Law, this thesis provides the first comprehensive explanatory model of how nurses recognise, communicate, practise, and adhere to legislation across university and clinical environments.
Details
- Title
- Absorption of Law: A Constructivist Grounded Theory of how Australian Registered Nurses Develop Knowledge and Understanding of the Laws Relevant to Nursing
- Authors
- Simon Llewellyn - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Law and Society
- Contributors
- Jay Sanderson (Principal Supervisor) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Law and SocietyMay El Haddad (Co-Supervisor) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Health - NursingJo Wu (Consultant Supervisor) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Healthy Ageing Research ClusterDominique Moritz (Consultant Supervisor)
- Awarding institution
- University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland
- Degree awarded
- Doctor of Philosophy
- DOI
- 10.25907/01109
- Organisation Unit
- School of Law and Society
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 991260596002621
- Output Type
- Dissertation
Metrics
43 File views/ downloads
41 Record Views