This qualitative study was designed to explore the personal experiences of a select group of nursing influentials using grounded theory methodology and symbolic interactionism as the conceptual framework. The stories of these nursing influentials provided insights into the ways women transform their political consciousness and political behaviors into political action. The significance of the study was grounded into the complexity of the social and political issues in relation to nursing and the feminist movement.

The concepts of symbolic interactionist theory formulated the methodological principles of empirical science to identify the "knowledge of human group life and human conduct" (Blumer, 1969, p.21). Grounded theory methodology provided the analytical methods to define the reality of the empirical political world of the nursing influentials. The core categories and emergent properties were derived from the perspective of the participants' own experiences, as they understand themselves and the "empirical social world" in which they live and work. The core categories and the relational properties identified were: (1) political consciousness--mentorship, education, family influences, social values; (2) political behaviors--people orientation, interpersonal skills, negotiation, risk-taking, networking, caring, social consciousness, power-sharing; (3) political activism--personal connections, feminist influences. The use of symbolic interactionism in conjunction with grounded theory provided the opportunity to include the social and historical contexts and the subjective experiences of the participants. This design provided an alternative approach to feminist research.

The underlying emergent concept derived from the grounded theory data analysis revealed that the way in which women develop their political consciousness and behaviors is distinct and ultimately brings a new dimension of feminist leadership to political activities.

There is no distinct method for feminist inquiry for nursing research. The findings of this study have provided a unique approach for the use of grounded theory and symbolic interactionism to study women from the perspective of their own experiences and explore the "truths" as they describe them in their "empirical social worlds.".