The evolution of the role of nursing in primary healthcare using Bourdieu’s concept of habitus - A grounded theory study

Sep 21, 2026

The study analyzes how Spanish nurses acquired a differentiated role in primary health care and builds a theory explaining the evolution of that role. Grounded Theory guided the research using Bourdieu’s habitus framework. Thirteen in-depth interviews (2012–2015) with theoretical sampling informed progressive coding, categorization, and constant comparative analysis. Findings show a core category, “Autonomy,” and the emergent substantive theory “Seeking autonomy.”

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages17

Reading Time43 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Aims

Design

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Introduction

PLOS ONE OPEN ACCESS Citation: Blanco-Fraile C, Madrazo-P´erez M, Fradejas-Sastre V, Ray´on-Valpuesta E (2022) The evolution of the role of nursing in primary healthcare using Bourdieu’s concept of habitus. Agrounded theory study. PLoS ONE 17(5): e0265378 . [https://doi.org/10.1371/journal](https://doi.org/10.1371/journal). pone.0265378 Editor: C´esar Leal-Costa, Murcia University, Spain, SPAIN Received: January 17, 2021 Accepted: March 1, 2022 Published: May 17, 2022 Peer Review History: PLOS recognizes the benefits of transparency in the peer review process; therefore, we enable the publication of all of the content of peer review and author responses alongside final, published articles. The editorial history of this article is available here: [https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0265378](https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0265378) [Copyright:](Copyright:) © [2022](2022) Blanco-Fraile et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Data Availability Statement: All relevant data are within the paper. Supporting Information Files are available on request from the University of RESEARCH ARTICLE The evolution of the role of nursing in primary health care using Bourdieu’s concept of habitus. A grounded theory study Cristina Blanco-Fraile1, Mar´ıa Madrazo-P´erez1, Victor Fradejas-Sastre1,2 *, Esperanza Ray´on-Valpuesta3 1 Faculty of Nursing, University of Cantabria, Santander, Cantabria, Spain, 2 Hospital Universitario Marqu´es de Valdecilla, Santander, Cantabria, Spain, 3 Faculty of Nursing, University of Complutense of Madrid, Madrid, Spain * [victor.fradejas@unican.es](victor.fradejas@unican.es) Abstract Aims To analyse the global process by which Spanish nurses have acquired a differentiated role in primary health care and to develop a theory that explains the evolution of this role. Design Grounded Theory was selected, as proposed by Glaser and Strauss, following the theoretical framework of Bourdieu’s habitus. Methods Thirteen in-depth interviews were conducted between 2012 and 2015, using theoretical sampling and seeking maximum variability. The analysis of the data included progressive coding and categorization, constant comparative analysis and memo writing. Results A core category emerged,“Autonomy”, composed of three categories: "Between illusion and ignorance. Genesis of a habitus", "The recognisable and recognised habitus" and "Habitus called into question", showing the genesis of the nursing role in primary health care and the elements that influence the autonomy of the role: the ability to decide their training, assume their own leadership, configure teams and acquire independent skills.“Seeking autonomy” was the substantive theory that emerged from the data. Conclusion The results reveal the elements that strengthen the autonomous professional role and that this role is legitimated when two elements are identified: the acquisition of a habitus, based on practices carried out regularly and the recognition of this habitus by the population and others professionals. Cantabria Archive ([http://repositorio.unican.es/](http://repositorio.unican.es/)) for researchers who meet the criteria for access to confidential data. This restriction is due to ethical compliance in order to not compromise study participants’ privacy, since the dataset derives from clinical studies involving human participants. Relevant data Requests may be sent to Carmen Chasco Vila, Responsable de Divisi´on de Medicinay Enfermer´ıa. Biblioteca Universitaria. Facultad de Medicina. (Telephone number: + 34 942 201 217; E-mail address: [carmen.chasco@unican.es](carmen.chasco@unican.es)) . Funding: The authors received no specific funding for this work. Competing interests: The authors have declared th

FAQs

What is the main objective of the study?

To analyze the process by which Spanish nurses acquired a differentiated role in primary health care and to develop a theory explaining how that role evolved.

Which research design and theoretical framework are used?

Grounded Theory is used, following Glaser and Strauss, and it is guided by Bourdieu’s concept of habitus.

How were the data collected and analyzed?

Thirteen in-depth interviews were conducted between 2012 and 2015 with theoretical sampling and maximum variability. Analysis used progressive coding, categorization, constant comparative analysis, and memo writing.

Sep 21, 2026

Upload by Riley West