This study identified categories of nursing research related to womens´ health published in Korea in the last 20 years in two nursing journals and the master´s and doctoral theses listed by the Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing. These studies were analyzed during April, 1992. The purpose was to trace historical and present trends in nursing research in womens´ health and to explore implications of these trends for future research.
Out of a total of 2,277 nursing research articles in the selected literature sources, 243 (10,7%) were related to womens´ health. The Korean Nurse included 17 studies relateds to womens´ health, 8.5% among a total of 199 re-search articles : the Journal of the Nurses Academic Society had 23(8.2%) among 279 : and Sigma Theta Tau listed 203(11.3%) among a total of 1,799 theses.
Womens´ health was the focus in 243(10. 7%), maternal role in 135(5.9%), and other clinical phenomena in 1,899(83.4%).
The womens´ health studies were classified as mental health, 87(35.8%) ; health management, 64(26.3%) :menopause, 20(8.2%) :menstruation, 19(7.8%) : family planning, 16(6. 5%) ; sexuality, 20(8.2%) : and abortion, 6(2.5%).
During the last 20 years, there was a decrese in reearch related to health management, family planning and abortion and an in-crease in research related to mental health, menopause, menstruation and sexuality.
Until recently, the focus of nursing research has been mainly on illness and clinical phenomena(83.4%). Research related to womens´ health has focused on womens´ reproductive functions and related illness. There has been little interest in womens´ health care needs. Contrary to expectations of more nursing re-search on womens´ health and health care experiences due to the feminist and consumer movements, there has been no increase in studies on these phenomena.
To address womens´ health experiences, pro-mote womens´ health and enhance their quality of life, it is essential to understand the meaning of life as experienced by women and to explore ways of interaction with women which will empower both nurses and women clients. Research is needed in experiences such as spouse abuse, rape, eating disorders. Divorce and widowhood, older womens, health, loss of children, health of women in low economic situations, womens´ health assessment, alcohol-tobacco-drug dependency, lesbian life styles and communication patterns between women and health providers in addition to the traditional research related to reproduction and illness. There are signs of trends in these direction in recent nursing research published in the literature of other disciplines, for ex-ample, womens´ studies.
Qualitative research is useful in understanding the meaning of womens´ experience. The publication of nursing and interdisciplinary re-search related to womens´ health in journals of other disciplines will further the understanding of nursing science by other disciplines and -enhance the development and use of theory related to womens´ health `which can be helpful to other professions.
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