Development of Caring as a Human Science: 50 Years of History of the Korean Society of Nursing Science

Purpose This year 2020 marks the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Korean Society of Nursing Science (KSNS). This study was aimed to explore development of caring and describe the 50 years of history of KSNS within the sociocultural context of Korea regarding academic footsteps, meanings, and implications for the future. Methods This study used a historical research methodology using a literature review and bibliometric analysis. Relevant literature was reviewed and the published abstracts in the Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing (JKAN) were analyzed using VOSviewer. Results Birth control and family planning in the 1970s was the main research topic. In the 1980s, the development of nursing concepts, theories, and philosophies was the mission of KSNS to extend the disciplinary boundary. In the 1990s, the progress of KSNS to become one of the woman-dominant healthcare professionals was the mission in the given period. Expanding the frontiers of KSNS to the extent of global standards was the undertaking of the nursing scholars in the 2000s. Lastly, in the 2010s, the quality and quantity improvement of KSNS and JKAN is expected to make our future even prosperous. The map visualization of the 50 years of research accumulation showed the comparable opposition of quantitative vs. qualitative research methodologies, equation modeling, and instrument development. Conclusion These clusters of research demonstrates the efforts to make nursing evidence by Korean nursing scholars for the last five decades. The growth in the slope of KSNS and outcomes of JKAN are to carry on to an unimaginable extent in the future.