Boxer Library
Think of doing research like building a house. Before you diving into building the house, you first need to create blueprints which outline the structure of the house. Those blueprints are going to be based a certain type of architecture, and once the builder chooses that style of architecture the design of that structure falls into place. In that same way, before diving into research, you want to choose a structure which will inform your research design. This structure is called a framework, and there are two specific frameworks to choose from: Theoretical or Conceptual.
| What is it? | Purpose | |
| Theoretical | A theoretical framework is a framework that starts with a specific theory or focus which informs the rest of the structure design. In this design you are looking for a reason why a relationship exists between two variables. |
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| Conceptual |
A conceptual framework is a framework that instead of starting with theories, starts with concepts derived from empirical observation or intuition. This framework is in a logical or sequential design and is used when theories are inapplicable or insufficient. |
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One important thing to remember is that even though these frameworks differ in design, their existence is not contradictory. In fact both frameworks play off of each other in a beneficial or symbiotic way.
For example someone may start with a theoretical framework which tries to find a relationship between two broad concepts. After proving this theory, they connect it to other theories in order to better explain observations. These observations may create new theories which feeds new theoretical frameworks.