Appraising Travelbee’s Human-to-Human Relationship Model

© 2016 Harborside Press® Finding meaning in suffering could be one of life’s greatest quests. It is a universal question, yet we all attribute its meaning personally. Joyce Travelbee, a nurse theorist of historical significance, set about to provide the basis for such discovery. In her grand theory, the Humanto-Human Relationship, Travelbee (1971) writes: “Every human being suffers because he is a human being, and suffering is an intrinsic aspect of the human condition” (p 61). To explicate the philosophic and theoretic assumptions of Travelbee’s model, and therefore ascertain its usefulness as a foundation for research, it is imperative to critically appraise this theory. An in-depth critique of the Human-to-Human Relationship Model allows an objective and nonjudgmental exploration as well as provides judgments related to the theory’s applicability (Fawcett, 2005). Through phases of her theory, including rapport, empathy, and sympathy, one establishes ways to garner the meaning of suffering (Travelbee, 1963). As a career professional in an oncology setting, a better understanding of Travelbee’s theory should provide the advanced practice nurse (APN) an impetus and the scientific underpinnings to further nursing theory, nursing research, and evidence-based practice. This content could easily apply to all advanced practitioners as well.