ABSTRACT
This article describes two models of assessment that nurses can use with women throughout their life span: (1) knowledge attainment (Belenky, Clinchy, Goldberger, & Tarule, 1986) and (2) skill attainment (Dreyfus & Dreyfus, 1996). These models consider each woman's unique reality, acknowledging that how she experiences pregnancy and postpartum is based on how she has lived her life. Her integration of experiences, coping strategies, and life events may be the foundation upon which she will incorporate the new experiences of pregnancy and motherhood. Using these models can help provide the maternal-child nurse with a blueprint for the development of appropriate care plans and teaching plans.