The grounded theory approach is a valuable research method in pediatric nursing for understanding and explaining human experience. In the first part of this article the steps involved in the grounded theory method are described, with illustrations from published grounded theory in pediatric nursing. The application of grounded theory in pediatric nursing is the focus of the second section of this article. The results of a CD-ROM data base search of the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL) from 1983 to 1995 are summarized to identify grounded theory research in pediatric nursing conducted during those years.