A study of the meanings assigned to the term psychosomatic among health professionals.
OBJECTIVE
Noting that many nurses tend to hold a narrow view of the term "psychosomatic," the authors explored the meanings assigned to the term psychosomatic among registered nurses (N = 189) employed in a variety of settings.


METHODS
The Psychosomatic Attitude Scale (PAS) was used to categorize the meaning of psychosomatic as either imaginary, functional, structural, or holistic.


RESULTS
Although nurses theoretically espouse a holistic approach to client care, only 46% of the nurses sampled gave a holistic interpretation of the term psychosomatic. A holistic interpretation was more common among nurses who had an internal health locus of control and who were extroverted and intuitive in their personality profile. Further, nurses with a higher level of education and who practiced in maternity or psychiatric settings were more holistic in their understanding of the term psychosomatic.


CONCLUSIONS
The authors advocate further study of how beliefs, values, and personality traits interact to influence the nurse's interpretation of the term "psychosomatic."
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D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006694:Holistic Health; D006801:Humans; D009740:Nursing Staff / Q000193:education / Q000523:psychology*; D011602:Psychophysiologic Disorders / Q000451:nursing*