PHI 413 Worldview Analysis and Personal Inventory

Worldviews entail personal set of beliefs and perspectives held by individuals based on diverse factors that impact humanity. These factors include education, religion, and interactions among others. These fundamental bases of reality, shared by culture and comprising of assumptions, values, and practices offer lens through which people, including healthcare providers like nurses so that they can deal with patients from diverse backgrounds (Bogue et al., 2020). The purpose of this paper is to reflect on different aspects that constitutes my worldview. The paper explores these aspects to develop a position that allows healthcare providers to cultivate cultural competence and sensitivity as they deal with diverse patients.

Nature of Spirituality & Ethics in Contrast to Postmodern Relativism within Health Care

People express their spirituality in reference to their values, beliefs, and traditions as well as practices that are linked to their understanding of the meaning and purpose of life and their existence in the world. According to the Christian perspective, spirituality entails one’s focus on the sense and meaning of life and living through their relationship with God and other human beings (Domingo-Osle et al., 2019). Christians believe in a supreme being, God, who controls all aspects of human life and created man for His purpose. Spirituality is derived from God’s teaching and His mission to love human beings by creating them in His image (Imago Dei) (Bogue et al., 2020). Spirituality and ethics are related as Christians believe that God is the nature of all good. The basis of ethics in Christianity is to help one distinguish good from evil and right from wrong. Christians value spirituality as it allows them to accept God’s interventions when they are sick and require treatment and care from healthcare providers. Living a spiritual and ethical life implies that one has dedicated their life to God and follows His teachings.

Conversely, postmodern relativism advances objective reality and inexistence of truth. Postmodern relativism rejects the idea of objective truth and reality and focuses on subjective perceptions. Proponents of this view considers one’s way of making decisions and not based on certain teachings that advance a particular way of reasoning or application of moral values and ethics. Postmodern relativism rejects the existence of a supreme being who influences people’s actions, including healthcare decisions and provision.

In health care, the Christian perspective on spirituality and ethics influences the decisions that providers and patents make concerning different aspects of care, especially when dealing with chronic and terminal conditions that require palliative care. On its part, the principles of postmodern relativism impacts decisions that providers and patients make concerning treatment interventions as the main focus is a patient’s subjective perspectives and reasoning (Cristiano, 2020). As such, providers leverage these perspectives to make decisions on the kind of care to provide to diverse patients.

Scientism and Arguments Against It

Scientism is a worldview based on science and advances that all truth and realties should have a scientific proof using scientific methods. Scientism argues that most claims on knowledge and truth are false and mere opinions because they lack scientific proofs. The implication is that any truth should be supported by scientific evidence based on extensive research studies. The implication is that truth should not be mere opinions and assumptions based on certain individuals and aspects. Scientism implores people to have evidence and only use knowledge and ideas that have been proven through experiments and research by scientists (Burnett, 2018). However, several arguments exist that argue against scientism and what it represents in the world.

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The first argument is that science does not and cannot offer all profound knowledge concerning all phenomena and objects in the world. Thus, not all phenomena can be tested or proved scientifically to demonstrate their existence. Therefore, scientism is limited in its tools to examine issues related to matters like people’s spirituality and emotions. Again, it is not possible to test the good and the bad and use scientific knowledge to understand these issues. As such, these limitations demonstrate that scientism is not a working philosophical perspective.

The second argument is that scientism is self-refuting. The reason is that, based on the primary premise of scientism, all things should be supported or tested using scientific tools and approaches to be considered as existing or true. However, the effectiveness and concepts advances by scientism cannot be examined or supported using scientific tools or instruments. Consequently, science cannot support the effectiveness of scientism as a philosophical model (Burnett, 2018). Scientism fails to explain all things as some of its propositions are unclear or cannot be proven. These include emotions like aspect of love, moral conduct and application of ethics in various situations.

Personal Perspective and Worldview

Individual develop different perspective or views on a host of issues that affect the world and human living. As healthcare providers, nurses should have personal perspective on diverse issues that include ultimate reality, nature of the universe and human beings as well as knowledge, ethical foundation and purpose of their existence. Having perspectives on these aspects enhances their cultural competence and sensitivity to patient care provision.

a). Ultimate Reality

The ultimate reality for me entails an impersonal spiritual entity who dominates the universe and who influences decisions and actions, destinies and eventualities of all people. The supreme being is God who develops a personal relationship with people. God is sovereign and exists everywhere but separated from the physical world yet experiences based on human life realities (Cristiano, 2020). Imperatively, the interactions of the physical and spiritual world arise because of the existence of God and what He ascribes man to do to attain harmony with his life and those close to him. Based on the believe in God, human beings ultimate purpose and reality is to develop a loving relationship with God and fellow man.

b). Nature of the Universe

The universe as it exists entails the physical world and the spiritual part. The physical matter consists of what man can see and appreciate as God’s creation to make his life easy and comfortable. The spiritual world entails men strive to find purpose and transcend what one can see to attain the inner needs that define their emotions, feelings. God as a non-material entity and controls all aspects of human life (Bogue et al., 2020). God’s love sustains human life as evidenced through the creation account where man is given control of the physical world but He retains the spiritual world and its connection to realities.

c). Human Being

The human being a creature designed in God’s image with an eternal spirit like His and similar abilities and reason. God created man in His image implying that a human being is God spiritually. This means that God gives man the ability to transcend the physical world and attain a higher understanding of the universe. God created man to seek moral purity and communicate on a higher level. God created man for his purpose and human beings cannot dissociate themselves from Him. The implication is that human beings are created to show God’s beauty and love to even those who cannot love back or in return. Because of these attributes, human beings have a special relationship with God and are considered co-creators with Him (White, 2020). Human beings demonstrate better attributes than other animals created in God’s image. I believe that human beings transcend the physical realm when they meditate and reflect on their purpose in the world. Death is not the end of one’s existence as a human being as teachings from the Bible and oral traditions assert that one lives spiritual upon leaving their physical form. The soul demonstrates the spiritual realm that one lives even after their death as the soul returns to God and await judgment.

d). What is Knowledge?

Knowledge can be considered as the complexity of ideas, views, facts and truths that denote realities or practicalities in the world. People acquire knowledge by going to school and informally through practices and activities that they engage in in their lives. The attainment of knowledge is a gradual process that allows one to acquire and deploy different ways of doing things and processing information to help attain their set goals. People explore diverse phenomena and situations to attain knowledge that allows them to make better decisions and form perspectives, including their worldviews (Cristiano, 2020). For instance, knowledge gained through learning and experience allows nurses to interact with patients in a professional manner and enhance overall care delivery. Knowledge can also arise from the divine perspective as advanced by God with the aim of preparing people to have a deeper understanding of natural issues and occurrences.

e). Basis of Ethics

Ethics is concerned about the right and wrong, good and bad in one’s situation and living. My basis of ethics is wide, from learning to experience. For instance, individuals from an early age learn moral values and norms from their families and society as well as religious teachings. Morality is learned and never designed into people’s conscience. God sets absolute moral standards based on His teachings in the bible, especially the Ten Commandments. Morality may be relative for people who do not believe in God. Cultures across the world teach and advance morality and values that guide their members in making decisions (White, 2020). Society accepts and celebrates ethical conduct and values like honesty, chastity, integrity and love. Society abhors slander, incitement, dishonesty and laziness. The implication is that society forms the basis for ethics and what is acceptable.

f). Purpose of Existence

I believe that everyone has a purpose of their existence. This implies that God purposefully created each person for a purpose in this world. My purpose of existence is to show proof that God loves man and desires the best of all people. My goal is to contribute to the transformation of the world based on values that God expects man to follow and model for others. Serving others through my profession as a nurse means service to God and showing true love. As nurses, we make sacrifices to ensure that patient’s life is better. Therefore, my purpose is to ensure that all experience God’s love for human beings in different ways beyond the physical and material world.

Conclusion

Worldviews offer nurses and other healthcare providers as well as patients a trajectory to consider their living and its effects on humanity. Through worldviews, individuals develop philosophies and their approach to diverse issues in different environments as they interact and develop relationships. Personal perspectives on issues like ultimate reality are critical in developing better approaches when dealing with patients from diverse backgrounds in healthcare settings.

References

Bogue, D. W., & Hogan, M. (2020). Foundation issues in Christian spirituality and ethics. GCU

Digital Resources.

Burnett, T. (2018). What is scientism? The American Association for the Advancement of

Science.

White, N. (2020). Practicing dignity: An introduction to Christian values and decision making in

health care. GCU Digital Resources.

Cristiano, A. (2020). 4.5 AI (Artificial Intelligence) and Ultimate Reality. Ultimate Reality and

Meaning, 36(3-4), 127-143. DOI: 10.3138/uram.36.3-4.127

Domingo-Osle, M., & Domingo, R. (2020). Nursing and spirituality: A discussion paper on ‐

intertwining metaparadigms. Journal of Nursing Management, 28(2). DOI:10.1111/jonm.13076

PHI 413 Worldview Analysis and Personal Inventory