The role of a theoretical or conceptual framework in qualitative research.
Respond to two of your colleagues’ posts by clarifying or expanding your understanding of the role of a theoretical or conceptual framework in qualitative research. Search and locate a relevant article that uses a similar lens or an article that takes a different approach to support your response. Use proper APA format and citations.
AARON
Qualitative research is a dynamic and flexible approach to understanding complex social phenomena that relies on the subjective experiences and the interpretation of meaning (Erikson, 2011). The role of a theoretical or conceptual framework is a crucial element of research and serves as the foundation and provides structure, guidance, and a lens through which researchers use to interpret data (Ravitch & Carl, 2019). Theoretical or conceptual frameworks aid researchers in establishing a clear focus and direction for their study by providing a theoretical perspective or conceptual lens through which they view the subject matter, which can be guidance to form research questions (Rougas et al., 2022).
Theoretical and conceptual frameworks play a crucial role in the data collection and analysis process as well. They provide a blueprint for selecting appropriate data sources, research methods, and sampling strategies (Ravitch & Carl, 2019). Through a well-defined framework, researchers can make informed decisions about what data to collect, how to collect it, and where to look for supporting information. Theoretical or conceptual frameworks guide the data analysis process by helping researchers make sense of the information they have gathered. These frameworks offer the lens through which the researcher can interpret findings.
Furthermore, theoretical, or conceptual frameworks enhance the credibility of the research which is essential in quantitative inquiry. Theoretical and conceptual frameworks significantly promote the validity and trustworthiness of the findings (Nyirenda et al., 2020). They offer a clear structure and consistent approach throughout the study that maintains consistency and enhances the reliability of the research study (Nyirenda et al., 2020).
References
Erikson, F. (2011). Chapter 3: A history of qualitative inquiry in social and educational research. In N. K. Denzin, & Y. S. Lincoln, The SAGE handbook of qualitative research (4th ed., pp. 43-58). Sage Publications.
Nyirenda, L., Kumar, M. B., Theobald, S., Sarker, M., Simwinga, M., Kumwenda, M., . . . Taegtmeyer, M. (2020). Using research networks to generate trustworthy qualitative public health research findings from multiple contexts. BMC Medical Research Methodology, 20(1), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12874-019-0895-5
Ravitch, S. M., & Carl, N. M. (2019). Qualitative Research: Bridging the Conceptual, Theoretical, and Methodological (2nd ed.). SAGE Publications, Inc.
Rougas, S., Berry, A., Bierer, S., Blanchard, R. D., Cianciolo, A. T., Colbert-Getz, J. M., . . . Teal, C. R. (2022). Applying conceptual and theoretical frameworks to health professions education research: An introductory workshop. MedEdPORTAL, 18. https://doi.org/10.15766/mep_2374-8265.11286
EPHRAIM
Ravitch & Carl (2021) shared three key understandings related to the role of formal theory in research design. First, the authors surmised that theory is central to developing qualitative studies in formative, summative ways, and when analyzing data in relationship to the selected theory to amplify the inquiry (Ravitch & Carl, 2021). I would like to use constructivism and interpretivism to analyze my topic. Secondly, according to Ravitch & Carl (2021), theory helps to situate a study within ongoing conversations and existing theories and findings in relevant fields. The authors noted, thirdly, that theory helps to add multiple levels of understanding about a phenomenon and the context in which it occurs; the role of theoretical framework—is focusing on a study, exploring and explaining relevant meanings and ideas; it helps to reveal the strengths and challenges of a study; it helps to highlight how theory plays a theoretical, conceptual, as well as methodological implications in a study. Lastly, theory guides all aspects of a research study (Ravitch & Carl, 2021).
According to Ravitch & Carl (2021), conceptual framework serves as an integrative ecosystem that helps researchers intentionally bring all aspects of a study together through an explicatory process that connects, overlaps, shapes, and contextualizes a researcher’s study of a phenomena in a setting (Ravitch & Carl, 2021). The authors posited that as a qualitative researcher, it is vital to understand what a conceptual framework is, what its component parts are and how they interact, and how it is used to guide high-quality, rigorous qualitative research (Ravitch & Carl, 2021). The authors noted that a conceptual framework consists of multiple parts and serves a variety of intersecting and ongoing functions for researchers embarking on and engaging in research and the scholarship it produces; it includes multiple components that intersect, inform, and influence each other; it creates a bridge between the context, theory, and the way the study is structured in relation to all of these contextualizing and mediating influences (Ravitch & Carl, 2021). A conceptual framework, per the authors, is a means of explaining why a topic is important practically and theoretically as well as detailing how the choice of qualitative methods will answer my research questions. My research question will provide a synthesis of qualitative study that investigates the meaning of lived experiences for a target population of young males (18 – 35) with unemployment exacerbated by dual diagnosis in Baltimore City, Maryland. The positionality of this study topic will consider personal experience in behavioral dual diagnosis and challenges in vocational rehabilitation will be reflected ontologically.
Cleaver & Ballantyne (2014) presented a study that sought to illuminate how a small sample of music teachers engaged both theoretically and practically with constructivist views of learning. This study utilized a qualitative approach that incorporated staged, informal interviews with invited teacher participants. According to the authors, the research design contributed to the trustworthiness of representation and the transactional processes between participants and researchers (Cleaver & Ballantyne, 2014). The article examined individual cases of constructivism as personal epistemology and perceptions of constructivism in practice. Cleaver & Ballantyne (2014) noted that constructivism illuminated the meanings, understandings, complex inter-relationships, and points of contention of participants which characterized this theory. It was incorporated in the study and described as authentic, “real life” issues that provided pre-service teachers and those working in pre-service teacher education with important points of entry into the dialogue as the study attempted to address and socially construct meanings about the theory/practice divide (Cleaver & Ballantyne, 2014).
This example of theoretical framework: “constructivist teaching” is more about a way of being than an approach. It is genuinely seeing the participants as working side-by-side with thinking individuals whose ideas matter – in fact, whose ideas are central to the learning/teaching process in which researchers are engaged.
References
Ravitch, S. M., & Carl, N. M. (2021). Qualitative research: Bridging the conceptual,
theoretical, and methodological (2nd ed.) Sage Publications.
Cleaver, D., & Ballantyne, J. (2014). Teachers’ views of constructivist theory: A qualitive
study illuminating relationships between epistemological understanding and
music teaching practice. Links to an external site. International Journal of Music
Education, 32(2), 228-241.
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