The aim of this paper is to examine the role of qualitative research in the development of the Roy adaptation model. An exploration of the findings from qualitative research using Roy's adaptation model from 1995 to 2005 is compared with the findings and recommendations from a previous review over a 25-year period (1970-1995). The usefulness of qualitative methods in furthering nursing theory is highlighted. Findings from both reviews support the assumptions of the model while generating new information and demonstrating the valuable place of qualitative research in promoting nursing science.

In 1999, the Boston-Based Adaptation in Nursing Research Society associates published their analysis of Roy adaptation model—based research. This earlier analysis supported the model's conceptual framework, its adaptive processes, and the influences that effect human responses. The purpose of this article is to describe more recent research within the context of the Roy adaptation model's structural framework, and ongoing developments that include expanded research programs, middle-range theory construction, and research that is related to the philosophic assumptions. An additional aim is to present an expanded worldview or an integrated paradigm that includes both sets of the Roy adaptation model's assumptions (scientific and philosophic), as well as a holistic-adaptation inquiry that could be used to derive Roy adaptation model-based nursing knowledge in future research investigations.

The utility of a nursing model as a framework to understand and explain a health phenomenon is fundamental to guide nursing practice. In this article, the authors aim to provide an examination of the Roy adaptation model as a basis for the development of an instrument used for assessing the health needs of pregnant women. With the congruence between the concepts in the Roy adaptation model and antenatal practice, an antenatal assessment instrument is developed. The assessment areas focus
on pregnant women’s behaviors in the four adaptation modes. The current experience is valuable for nurses who are involved in instrument development and midwifery practice.