USING THEORTICAL AND

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK AS A
GUIDE TO PREPARE A RESEARCH
PROPOSAL
THEORTICAL FRAMEWORK
 Theory
• Theory attempts to explain why things work
the way that they do, and that it usually does
so by way of identifying and examining
relationships among things (Maxwell, 2005;
Strauss, 1995)
Developing a Theoritical
Framework
 First Step
• Examine your title, research problem or
research question
• In one sentence, what is the concern you are
investigating?
 Example
• Minority students in urban high schools are
not doing well on standardize tests in
mathematics
 Second Step
• Brainstorm on what you consider to be the
key variables in your research
 Example
• Mathphobia, high states testing, socio
economic conditions, teaching techniques
 Step 3
• Read and review related current literature on
this topic. Conduct a key word search to
locate articles related to your topic
 Step 4
• Identify key authors who have advanced this
area of inquiry
 Example
• Coleman
• Oakes
• Thomas
• Tobias
 Step 5
• List the constructs and variables that might be
relevant to your study
• In a quantitative study, list the possible DVs
and IVs
 Example
• Dependent variables: Mathematics Anxiety,
Self-Efficacy
• Independent variables: Socio-economic class,
ethnicity, race
 Step 6
• Revise your search and add the word “theory”
to your key words to find theories and theorist
most in line with your thinking
 Example
• Critical Race Theory
• Constructivism
• Social Cognitive Theory
 Step 7
• Discuss the assumptions or propositions of
each theory and points out its’ relevance to
your research
 Example
• Propositions- Constructivism holds that learning
always builds upon knowledge that a student
already knows and can build prior knowledge and
experience know as scheme
• Relevance- Because all learning is filtered through
pre-existing schemata, constructivists suggest that
learning is more effective when a student is
actively engaged in learning mathematics rather
than attempting to receive knowledge
CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
 The conceptual framework
• The schematic diagram which shows the
variables included in the study
• Arrows or line should be properly placed and
connected between boxes to show the
relationship between the independent and
dependent variables
 The conceptual framework
• All the independent and dependent variables
should be clearly discussed and explained how
these would influence the results of the study.
Conceptual Framework
Other Examples of Conceptual
Framework
 Example 1:
2006 – Chad McAllister,
Requirements Determination of
Information Systems: User and
Developer Perceptions of Factors
Contributing to
Misunderstanding, PhD
Dissertation
 Example 2:
2004 – Joel Light, The
Relationships and Effects of
Employee Involvement,
Employee Empowerment, and
Employee Satisfaction by Job-
Type in a Large Manufacturing
Environment