Profession and Society International Content of High-Ranking Nursing Journals in the Year 2000 Molly C. Dougherty, Shu-Yuan Lin, Hugh P. McKenna, Kate Seers Purpose: To evaluate the extent of an international perspective in publication in nursing journals. Design: Characteristics of 2,581 articles, authors of articles, and journals (editorial pur- pose and editorial team) of 42 high-ranking nursing journals for the year 2000 were analyzed. Methods: The characteristics were assessed using seven operational definitions of “international.” Findings: Major findings were: (a) 747 (28.9%) articles were identified as international, of which (b) 705 (94.3%) were placed in the scholarly or empirical categories; (c) more articles were categorized as empirical in the international articles; more articles were categorized as scholarly among the noninternational articles; (d) 763 (79.3%) articles met an international definition based on author characteristics; and (e) 20 (47.6%) journals had international editorial teams. Conclusions: Nearly 30% of articles had international content. Articles with international content were more frequently databased than were noninternational articles. The study provides a baseline indication of the extent of international perspectives in published arti- cles in nursing journals. The extent to which these international articles make substantial contributions to knowledge has yet to be discovered. JOURNAL OF NURSING SCHOLARSHIP , 2004; 36:2, 173-179. C 2004 SIGMA THETA TAU INTERNATIONAL. [Key words: international content, nursing publication] * * * C oncern for global health issues goes with a global perspective in nursing knowledge. As nations be- come increasingly interdependent, health for all is a worldwide goal, and the framework of health care constrained by national boundaries does not fit nurs- ing (Messias, 2001). A widely recognized advantage of globalization is improved access to information. In nurs- ing, global communication increases through print jour- nals, electronic journals, online educational materials, and international conference proceedings. Worldwide dissemi- nation of nursing information represents a novel opportu- nity to expand the reach and effect of professional nurs- ing. Accordingly, interest in international collaboration has increased in the published literature in the past decade (Hegyvary, 2001; Holt, Barrett, Clarke, & Monks, 2000; Lutzen, 2000; McConnell, 2000; Schmitt, 1995). International collaborations are important because they (a) improve knowledge and understanding of human needs across geographic boundaries, (b) support a global perspec- tive for nursing by fostering worldwide inclusiveness, and (c) expand the cultural and ethical values underpinning goals in nursing. Globalization in knowledge development is linked to international publication in nursing. Knowledge about the international content of nursing journals is a neces- sary part of understanding the trend toward globalization of nursing knowledge. The systematic study of the interna- tional content of highly ranked nursing journals in 2000 was a way to benchmark the status of international publication in nursing. Molly C. Dougherty, RN, PhD, FAAN, Alpha Alpha, Frances Hill Fox Professor of Nursing, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Shu- Yuan Lin, RN, MS, Alpha Lambda, Lecturer, Kaohsiung Medical Uni- versity, Taiwan, and Doctoral Student, School of Nursing, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA; Hugh P. McKenna, RGN, RMN, RNT, FFN, RCSI, DPhil, Delta Xi , Professor of Nursing and Head of School of Health Sciences, University of Ulster, Northern Ireland; Kate Seers, RGN, PhD, Head of Research, RCN Institute, Cardiff, UK. Correspon- dence to Dr. Dougherty, School of Nursing, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, CB#7460 Carrington Hall, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7460. E-mail: mdougher@email.unc.edu Accepted for publication November 20, 2003. Journal of Nursing Scholarship Second Quarter 2004 173