Adolescent Relatedness Through the Lens of Unitary Caring Theory.

Caring as a central focus within nursing has evolved into a relational ontology to guide practice and enhance well-being. Caring praxis has the potential to address the complexities of adolescent development and to allow for authentic engagement, breaking down the barriers of resistance to care. It is clear from the alarming statistics related to the prevalence of anxiety and depression in adolescents that teens are in distress. The authors in this article examine the construct of relatedness in adolescence through the lens of the theory of unitary caring and propose a trans-theoretical transdisciplinary model of relatedness that informs adolescent practice.