Nursing, by its very nature, involves all the processes of life from birth to death. In response to new consumer needs and demands, health care services are moving more and more into the home, into the community and into alternative settings. A basic knowledge of psychology, communication skills and culture, as well as coping skills, have become vital to render holistic care to the individual, the family and society. 21st Century psychology for nurses: an introduction provides the necessary skills to understand, educate and support patients and clients through painful and unpleasant health situations.

21st Century psychology for nurses introduces six important perspectives in psychology which influence how people respond to their circumstances: behavioural, psychoanalytic, humanistic, neurobiological, cognitive and sociocultural. Each chapter focuses on a different health aspect and includes key terms, interim summaries and critical thinking questions.

Contents include the following:

• The nature of psychology
• Biological foundations of psychology
• Personality
• Developmental psychology
• Memory and forgetting
• Motivation and emotion
• Learning
• Health, stress and coping
• Positive psychology
• Culture and health
• HIV and AIDS – a challenge to the caregiver
• On death and dying

21st Century psychology for nurses is aimed at student nurses and caregivers, as well as educators, and was compiled after intensive market research at all the nursing colleges in South Africa.

Andrea van Vuren has a BA (Nursing) from the University of Pretoria and postgraduate diplomas in midwifery, nursing education and community nursing science. After becoming a nursing educator, she specialised in the fields of sociology and psychology. She has over 35 years of nursing experience, and has done intensive research on HIV and AIDS and its psychosocial impact on the patient/client, family and community.