With the objective to verify the use of administrative theories in the literature about administration in nursing, the authors reviewed articles written over a period of 9 years in the Brazilian Nursing Journal (Revista Brasileira de Enfermagerp). Data have been obtained by survey, reading and quantification of articles and later identification of the administrative theories that supported the development of these articles. A total of 15.6% of the articles published during this period of study related to administration in nursing. The results indicate that most of the articles were based on the Behavioral Theory (36.4%) and the Neoclessic Theory (29.5%) of Administration.