ABSTRACT
Interpretive description is a qualitative research approach that draws upon the philosophical structure of applied disciplinary knowledge for its interior logic and design decisions. It was first articulated in 1997 in response to the expressed wish of many qualitative nurse researchers to break free of the constraints imposed by conventional qualitative methodological orthodoxies and restrictions in order to more effectively build the kind of knowledge their discipline required. This chapter describes the origins and development of an applied methodological approach explicitly designed to capitalize on the angle of vision that nursing brings to the rigorous qualitative study of the kinds of complex human health concerns that are inherent to its disciplinary mandate.
