Healthcare Administration Theories

Theories play a vitally important role in guiding research and organizing and making sense of research findings. In spite of the great importance of theory-building and theory testing within your field of specialization, there is no generally accepted conception of what a theory is. Because your dissertation must contribute to theory, you must have a clear understanding of the variety of conceptions of theory, types of theories, and ways of contributing to theory and be able to justify how, exactly, your study contributes to theory. All additional peer-reviewed articles must be within the healthcare administration specialization.Part 1 Using Gelso (2006), Harlow (2009), Stam, H. (2007, 2010), Wacker (1999), and five additional peer-reviewed articles within the
healthcare administration industry, discuss scholarly views on the nature and types of theory. Compare and contrast at least three views of what constitutes a theory, including the view you will use in Part 3 of this question. Be sure to distinguish theory from related concepts, such as hypothesis, paradigm, model, and concept. Part 2 Using Ellis & Levy (2008), Harlow, E. (2009), and five additional peer-reviewed articles, review the scholarly literature on the relationship between theory and research and the ways research (quantitative and qualitative) can contribute to theory. Discuss at least three ways research can contribute to theory. Part 3 Pick a theory (in one of the views of what constitutes a theory that you identified in Part 1) of current interest directly related to the topic area of your dissertation. A theory is currently of interest if there are articles published on it in the past five years. Using at least 10 published, peer-reviewed research articles: 1. Explain how the theory adds or may add to our understanding of your field and/or research topic.

2. Discuss and analyze the literature on two areas of controversy or unanswered questions related to the theory.

The structure of your paper should be as follows:

Title page Body (10-15 pages, no more or less; APA Style; use appropriate headings for organization of the paper) References (APA Style)

Learning Outcomes:

1. Compose a theoretically sound and conceptually rich essay that demonstrates knowledge of fundamental subject areas of a student’s academic discipline and specialization.

2. Critique existing research and design a methodologically sound approach to research in the student’s academic specialization(s).

3. Apply relevant theory and research from the student’s specialization coursework to real life situations to solve specific problems and discuss implications.

4. Integrate knowledge of ethical practices with principles of professional practice as they apply to specific scenarios within the student’s academic discipline and specialization