What is the difference between conceptual framework and theoretical framework PDF

When writing a paper or performing an experiment, professors and students need to define the ideas that inform their work in general and very specific ways. Theoretical and conceptual frameworks designate two different sets of ideas used in academic writing and research. The differences between a theoretical framework and a conceptual framework are significant.

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1 Theoretical Framework Definition

The "theoretical framework" of an experiment or paper refers to the larger assumptions in which the researcher is working. For example, a psychologist writing a paper may be working in a Freudian, Jungian or behaviorist theoretical framework. A theoretical framework provides a large, overarching structure of ideas that the researcher can then draw from in beginning to analyze a phenomenon or a text.

Academics refer to their theoretical frameworks when publishing papers or experiments to explicitly identify the assumptions that inform their work. This allows readers in the field immediate familiarity with the ideas on which a study is based, and a beginning point for critical analysis.

2 Conceptual Theory and Framework

While a theoretical framework provides the general set of ideas in which a study occurs, the conceptual framework refers to the specific ideas a researcher uses in the study. Examples of conceptual frameworks include the methods of a chemistry experiment, the definitions a sociologist uses to describe a culture and the types of data an economist considers when evaluating a country's industry. The conceptual framework thus consists of the ideas that are used to define research and evaluate data. Conceptual frameworks are often laid out at the beginning of a paper or an experiment description for a reader to understand the methods used.

3 Differences Between Theory and Concept

The difference between theoretical and conceptual frameworks is scale -- referring to the Big Ideas and the smaller ones. The conceptual framework is a set of specific ideas that can be used within the larger theoretical framework. A theoretical framework may contain many ideas that are not explored within the paper or experiment it structures. However, by definition, all aspects of the conceptual framework are used in the process of research.

Note that a theoretical framework often informs the conceptual framework. For instance, a Freudian psychologist is likely to place a great deal of importance on early childhood data from their subjects. On the other hand, the theoretical framework may also determine what ideas are not considered by a conceptual framework: A behaviorist is unlikely to consider a subject's dreams.

4 Interchangeable Use

When used as a separate term, "theoretical framework" always refers to the larger ideas governing research and study. However, the terms "theoretical" and "conceptual" are often confused or used interchangeably to designate all ideas used to define and shape an intellectual study. When in doubt, refer to your professor or to a source within your field of research to determine which term to use.

About the Author

Jon Zamboni began writing professionally in 2010. He has previously written for The Spiritual Herald, an urban health care and religious issues newspaper based in New York City, and online music magazine eBurban. Zamboni has a Bachelor of Arts in religious studies from Wesleyan University.

In this chapter, we consider two research frameworks: conceptual and theoretical. The chapter complements and questions the existing conversations around the theoretical and conceptual perspectives that inform the research process. Thus, the intent in the chapter is both edifying and therapeutic. Although Bak (2004:17) posits that there are a variety of ways of crafting a theoretical framework, for the most part, this chapter will enable researchers to overcome theoretical struggles and appreciate how a research framework might assist them to “interpret and understand the findings of research” within a research framework which makes ‘“sense’ of the data” (May, 1993:20). Some authors acknowledge three types of research frameworks, namely, theoretical, practical (Scriven, 1986) and conceptual (Eisenhart, 1991), although practical frameworks are beyond the scope of this chapter. You will find this chapter useful if you are a postgraduate researcher, a research supervisor, or examiner of theses, as it will assist you to come to terms with the fundamental aspects of theoretical and conceptual frameworks in their diversity, richness and depth. The primary aim is to provide researchers like you, with tools for understanding such analytical research devices in order to appreciate their role and function in social inquiry.

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