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CHAP TER

Pamela G. Reed
1952 to present

Self-Transcendence Theory

Doris D. Coward

“The quest for nursing is to understand the nature of and to facilitate
nursing processes in diverse contexts of health experiences”
(Reed, 1997a, p. 77).

focusing on the relationship between well-being and
Credentials and Background spiritual perspectives on life and death in terminally
of the Theorist ill and well individuals.
Pamela G. Reed was born in Detroit, Michigan, where Reed is on the faculty at the University of Arizona
she grew up during the 1960s. She married her hus- College of Nursing in Tucson, where she teaches,
band, Gary, in 1973, and they have two daughters. conducts research, and serves in administrative roles,
Reed received her baccalaureate from Wayne State including Associate Dean for Academic Affairs since
University in Detroit, Michigan, in 1974 and earned January 1983. Reed has received numerous awards for
her M.S.N. in psychiatric–mental health of children doctoral teaching in philosophy of nursing science
and adolescents and in nursing education in 1976. and practice, and for her theory development courses.
She began doctoral study at that institution in 1979 Her major fields of research are spirituality, nursing
and received her Ph.D. in 1982 with a concentration philosophy, and ethical dimensions of end-of-life
in nursing theory and research. She pioneered nurs- and palliative caregiving. She developed two widely
ing research into spirituality beginning with her dis- used research instruments, the Spiritual Perspectives
sertation research, directed by Joyce J. Fitzpatrick, Scaleand the Self-Transcendence Scale. Her research

Photo credit: David VanGelder, Tucson, AZ.
The author expresses her appreciation to Pamela G. Reed for her mentoring over the years and particularly for her support during
the development of this chapter.

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