RES 1N Prefinal Module 1

Learning Objectives:
1. Develop the theoretical underpinnings of the chosen research topic.
2. Formulate appropriate hypothesis corresponding to problem statements, questions and objectives.
3. Illustrates and explain conceptual framework.

Lesson Content

Writing the Theoretical Framework

After research topic intellectualization and specific problems’ identification, there is now a need to show
the basis of these decisions through the literature review, what needs to be proven in the research through the
conceptual framework and how the researcher can go about it through the theoretical framework. The
frameworks serve as guide in the conduct of the study. These serves as a roadmap that shows how your
research fits into what is already known, relating it to existing theory and research and how the research makes
a contribution in the field.

Theoretical framework serves as a basis as to how the study will be investigated. It refers to the theory,
principle, or model that the researcher chooses to guide him in the conduct of the study.

The theoretical framework is most often not something that can be readily found within the literature. You must
review course readings and pertinent research studies for theories and analytic models that are relevant to the
research problem you are investigating.

Developing the Theoretical Framework

Writing a theoretical framework can be a difficult task, as it requires you to wrestle with the literature and
define concepts that are important to your research. The problem statement and research questions will serve as
the basis for preparing the theoretical framework.

Steps that will guide you in your choice of theory to be used as framework in your inquiry:
1. Examine the research topic, title, statement of the problem and research questions. In one statement,
what is the concern of the investigation?
Example: Minority students in urban high schools are not doing well in achievement tests in mathematics.

2. List down the keywords that show focus of your research.

Example: math anxiety, achievement tests, minority students, high school students

3. Read and review related literature on the topic using a keyword search to locate research articles
related to the topic.
4. Identify prominent authors who have advanced the same area of inquiry.
5. List down variables relevant in the study and label them as dependent and independent variables.
Example:
Independent variables- math anxiety, self-efficacy, socio-economic status, ethnicity, race, teaching strategies,
learning styles
Dependent variables- math achievement test scores
6. Select a theory in your field or in other fields that can help explain how the identified variables behave
and serve as basis for the conduct of the research.
Example: critical race theory, constructivism, social cognitive theory

7. Discuss the assumptions or propositions of each theory taking into consideration its relevance in the
research investigation.

Essential Elements of a Theoretical Framework

 Description of the theory. State the chosen theory, who is/are the proponents behind it and the year
when it was developed. Describe what the theory is all about, its historical background and the
assumptions or propositions it was able to prove.
 Relevance of the theory to the investigation. The chosen theories will be of no use if it could be
related to the current investigation. This portion of the theoretical framework discusses the relevance of
the theory to the current study. It provides the basis as to how the situation will be investigated.

Formulating the Hypothesis

What is a hypothesis?

According to Leedy and Omrod (2013), a hypothesis is a “logical supposition, a reasonable guess, an
educated conjecture” that is based on an extensive review of an extensive review of literature. Hypothesis can
be the claim of the researcher/s, or assumptions, or what the researcher/s wanted to determine.in formulating the
hypothesis, we have the null and alternative hypotheses. The null hypothesis which is denoted by Ho is the
assumption about the behavior of the population or sample observation; while the alternative hypothesis which
is denoted by Ha is the opposite statement of the null hypothesis. The alternative hypothesis is the claim or
assumption that we are attempting to establish. The result of the study can validate our hypothesis whether we
need to reject or accept our claim.
For example:
Our claim is at least 50% of the elderly from the National Capital Region (NCR) preferred to call their
friends instead of texting them. This can be our null hypothesis. If the result is less than 50%, we need to reject
the null hypothesis and accept the alternative hypothesis that there is a significant difference between our claim
and to the result of our investigation.

Characteristics of Usable Hypothesis

Hypotheses are intelligent, tentative guesses that tells us about how a research problem maybe resolved
(Leedy and Omron, 2013). Therefore, formulation of usable hypotheses is of prime importance in an
investigation. The entire study rests upon the potential significance of the hypotheses. Below are some
indicators of a usable hypothesis;

1. It should be conceptually clear. Use plain and simple words which have a universal meaning.

2. It should be capable of being tested. It means that deductions can be made which can be established or
refuted by a survey, an experiment or an observation and must be done within a reasonable period of time so
that its results will be timely to serve its purpose.
3. It should have empirical referents. It should have a basis or empirical evidence, it should not be formulated
by gut-feel or moral judgements.

4. It must be specific. All the operations and predictions indicated in the hypothesis must be clearly stated if it
deals with differences, relationships or effects.
Types of Hypothesis according to relationship among the variables (Correlations, Effect, Differences)

Correlation deals with the relationships in the behavioral patterns between two variables without any implied
causality.
Effects deals with behavioral patterns as well but causality is implied. This indicates that the independent
variable has an influence on the dependent variable. Behavioral patterns show the direction of the variable, as
well as that of the hypothesis. These are opposing adjectives that indicate the positive and negative direction of
a variable.
Examples of these are the following:

BEHAVIORAL INDICATORS
(+) (-)
Increase Decrease
Higher Lower
Presence Absence
More Less
Better Worse
Greater Lesser

To illustrate,
Correlation: The more a student is good in English, the less is his performance in math.
Here we are not implying that the performance in English is affecting the performance in math but the
relationship is assumed to exist.

To illustrate,
Effect: The more time spent on studying, the better the academic performance.
Here there is the implication that academic performance had been better due to the longer time spent on
studying.
Hypothesizing on differences follows a different format from the first two types of hypothesis. It should
explicitly state the test variable and the grouping variable. The test variable indicates the variable to which
differences are taken. This may be measured using any of the four scales: nominal, ordinal, interval or ratio.
The grouping variable indicates the number of groupings or samples that are being compared. This is only
measured in the nominal scale.
Examples of hypothesis on difference;
 There is no significant difference in the math performance of the students when grouped performance of
the students when grouped according to gender.
 There is a significant difference in the growth of the plants using three different types of fertilizer.
Types of hypothesis according to Form (null and alternative hypothesis)

Hypothesis may also be classified according to how it is formulated.

Null hypothesis- indicates no relationship between and among the variables under investigation (not correlated,
no difference, no effect)
Alternative hypothesis- indicates a significant relationship.
There should only one claim per hypothesis, either there is a relationship or no relationship. These two
situations are mutually exclusive, which means that only one is probably true. The researcher cannot claim both
at the same time.

Developing the Conceptual Framework

The conceptual framework is a tentative theory regarding the topic under investigation usually shown in
a diagram (Punch, 2009). It explains the hypothesized relationships among the variables thus making it easy to
understand the arguments advanced by the study.
To illustrate in a diagram, there is a need to associate certain shapes with the elements of the conceptual
framework, namely: (1) the type of variable under investigation grouped according to how readily it can be
measured and (2) the hypothesized relationship between any two variables.

Variable typologies in a conceptual framework

 Manifest variables. These are variables which can be readily measured. They are observable variables
like the demographic profile of the respondents and thus will need only one question to measure the
said variables. A rectangular shape is used to illustrate these variables.
 Latent variables. These variables cannot be readily measured by a single question. There are several
indicators of a latent variable and there is a need to ask several questions before one can measure it. It is
represented by an oval in the conceptual framework.

Relationship typologies in a hypothesis

Three possible relationships exist between any two variables, namely: correlations, differences and
effects. Correlations are expressed using the double-bladed arrow (↔), differences makes use of a straight
line (−) and effect is shown using the single-bladed arrow (→) from independent to dependent variables.
Relationships involving correlations and effects may either be direct or inverse. On the one hand, direct
or positive relationship means that the behavior of the variables are either bot positive or both negative, while
on the other hand an inverse or negative relationship denotes opposite behavior between the two variables

Examples: Direct relationship:

The more time a student devotes to his studies, the better his grades will be.
The lesser the use of cellphones while driving, the lesser the occurrence of accidents.
Inverse relationship:
The less psychological stress a person experiences, the better he can perform at work.
The more involved parents are of their children, the lesser chances they will be involved in bullying.

References:
Uy, C., Cabauatan R., De Castro, B., Grajo, J., (2016). Practical Research 2. C &E Publishing, Inc.