A presentation on the construction of theoretical and conceptual frameworks.

1. “I had hard time to make this framework”:
Constructing theoretical and conceptual
frameworks in Ph.D theses
Dr. OMER HASSAN ALI MAHFOODH
omer@usm.my
omer197435@gmail.com
https://www.slideshare.net/omer1974/presentations
School of Languages, Literacies and Translation
Universiti Sains Malaysia
27 December 2019
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2. •This presentation is based on a research
project I have been doing on the academic
writing practices in the Malaysian context.
•I would like to share some of my findings here
and I hope they can be useful for you.
•If you have any comment or feedback, please
send to me through:
• omer@usm.my
• omer197435@gmail.com
• https://www.slideshare.net/omer1974/presentations
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3. Topics
1. Key figures in Ph.D theses
2. Theoretical/conceptual frameworks
i. Location in a Ph.D thesis
ii. Construction and visualization
3. Summary
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4. Key figures in Ph.D theses
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5. •A group of people with their leader lost their
way in the forest. One of them asked the
leader where they were going. The leader
answered, “To the deepest, darkest part of
the forest so that we can all find our way out
together”.
•The doctoral research for a postgraduate
student is often experienced in almost the
same manner.
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6. • Disciplinary variations in the culture of research
and academic writing are widely acknowledged.
• These variations permit users a certain leeway
and opportunities for innovation.
• Similar to dancing, in academic research there are
established patterns that can form the basis of
variations and creativity.
• We need to understand the research process
using the wheel metaphor
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7. • DOING
• FEEDBACK
• WRITING• READING
(Related studies,
theories,
research
methodology,
analysis of data)
(thesis,
research
articles)
(Proposal
defense, pilot
study,
data/corpus
collection, data
analysis, viva)
(Self, proposal
defenses,
supervisors,
workshops,
assessors,
examiners)
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8. • A Ph.D thesis is your product.
• The customers are the readers:
1. Supervisors,
2. Proposal assessors,
3. Viva examiners,
4. Other Ph.D students, and
5. Others (parents, those interested in the
findings)
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9. Ph.D
student
9
Ph.D
Thesis
Supervisors
Assessors
of the
proposal
Examiners
of the
thesis
Various cognitive,
affective, psychological,
social and sociocultural
factors
Content
Design
Presentation

10. •When examiners receive the PhD thesis, the first
thing they may do is to go through it quickly
before they start reading and evaluating it.
•We almost do the same when we pick up a book
in the library or the bookshop.
•When going through the thesis in this way,
examiners intend to have the first impression.
•What attracts their attention in this situation is the
table of contents, format, design, tables, and
FIGURES.
•Sometimes examiners can notice the number of
chapters, paragraphs and the overall look of the
thesis.
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11. •Well-designed figures (visual representations)
can catch the eyes of the readers/examiners.
•They present complex information in concise
visual forms.
•When a figure is done successfully and
purposefully, it can reveal concepts and ideas
more clearly and efficiently.
•Are there key figures in the thesis that may do
this in an effective way?
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12. • The most important key figures or frameworks
(visual representations) that are common among
Ph.D theses in humanities and social sciences
are:
1. Theoretical Framework
2. Conceptual Framework
3. Research Procedures
4. Procedures of Data Collection
5. Data Analysis Procedures.
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13. • Among various debates on the practice of doing
and writing Ph.D research, there is unresolved
debate on theoretical and conceptual
frameworks.
• Ph.D students may be confused and live in a
frustrated situation when they think or work on
the theoretical and/or conceptual frameworks.
• As a result of this debate and frustration, a Ph.D
student may raise several questions such as:
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14. 1. What does theoretical framework refer to?
2. What does conceptual framework refer to?
3. What are the differences between these two
frameworks?
4. Which textbooks can help me to understand
these two frameworks?
5. How can we draw them?
6. Should I have both of them in my thesis?
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15. 7. Is one of these frameworks in my thesis
enough?
8. If I do not have a theoretical framework in
my thesis, is it a big problem?
9. Will the proposal assessors ask me about
these frameworks?
10.Should I expect questions from the
examiners on these frameworks?
11.How can I answer such questions?
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16. Location of Theoretical/Conceptual
Frameworks in PhD Theses
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17. Chapter
One
Chapter
Two
Chapter
Three
Category 1 ------------ ------------ ---------
Category 2 CF TF
Category 3 CF
Category 4 CF
Category 5 TF + CF
Category 6 TF + CF
Category 7 TF + CF
Category 8 TF
Category 9 TF
Category 10 TF
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18. Construction and visualization of
theoretical/conceptual framework
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19. •Construct (v):
•to build something or put together different parts
to form something whole; construction of
arguments
•Visualize (v):
•to imagine or remember someone or something
by forming a picture in your mind.
•I borrowed “visualise” from Mathematics to show
that both theoretical and conceptual frameworks
are constructed and visualized.
•Data visualization can be represented in
formation of graphs, maps, animation or any
graphical means.
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20. • While ‘construction’ can refer to putting parts
together to form something in written form,
‘visualize’ means putting these parts in form of flow
chart/figure.
• Meanings of ‘framework’
1. An essential supporting structure of a building,
vehicle, or object.
2. A basic structure underlying a system, concept,
or text.
3. a supporting structure around which something
can be built.
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21. •Thus, I believe that the theoretical and
conceptual frameworks are constructed and
visualized.
•When we talk about the construction, we talk
about the explanation of the theories and
concepts in text.
•The visualization part is done through a
diagram, figure or flow chart.
•The following definitions are my own definitions
and I hope they make things clear to Ph.D
students and other researchers.
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22. •Thus, the theoretical framework refers to the
visual representation of how various theories
are interrelated and used to inform the design
of the study.
•The conceptual framework refers to the
visual representation of how various important
concepts in the research are interrelated and
connected to both the research objectives and
course of actions in the research.
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23. • Making a visual representation of the theoretical
framework can involve the following steps:
1. Explaining the the theories that have informed the
research design and formulation of the research
objectives of the study
2. Show exactly what aspects/concepts/constructs
were taken from each theory.
3. Connect these aspects/concepts/constructs to the
research objectives of the study.
4. Put each theory in a shape such as a rectangle
with dotted lines.
5. Use various types of arrows and lines to connect
between the shapes (constructs and theories).
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24. •The following is just a suggested visualization
of how a theoretical framework may be
visualized.
•It is not necessary that all theoretical
frameworks must follow this patterns.
•Please refer to the summary (some findings
of my research) of this presentation; it will
help you to know more about both the
conceptual and theoretical frameworks.
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25. 25
TheoryOne
TheoryTwo The title of the study or a
shortened version of it
Concept
One
Concept
Two
Concept
Three
Concept
Four

26. • The construction and visualization of the theoretical
and/or the conceptual framework do not occur in one
night.
• Draw the figure (visual representation) and keep it at
your desk.
• Come back to the figure you have drawn and modify
it, if needed.
• Keep modifying it whenever you think there is a need
based on the progress of your research, comments
from supervisors, comments from the assessors of
the proposal, and changes in your research
(objectives, theories and methodology).
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27. Summary
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28. • The two terms have been used interchangeably
in several theses in linguistics, applied
linguistics, English language teaching,
education, writing, reading, and discourse
studies.
• A Ph.D thesis may have both the theoretical and
conceptual frameworks in terms of visual
representation.
• The theoretical and conceptual frameworks refer
to visual representations that are created by the
student and not found in previous studies.
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29. • These two frameworks can appear in Chapter
One, Chapter Two, or Chapter Three. However,
they are placed in Chapter Two in most of the
Ph.D theses.
• In some theses, only the conceptual framework
appears in Chapter One, while the theoretical
framework is placed in Chapter Two.
• When assessors and examiners ask about these
two frameworks mostly they refer to the visual
representations.
• The decision to have both frameworks or one of
them depends on several factors such as:
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30. 1. The field of the study
2. The context of the study (school, university &
country)
3. Number of variables/factors the study intends
to focus on
4. Supervisors’ beliefs
5. Students’ beliefs
6. Comments from assessors of the PhD
proposal
7. Comments from the examiners of the thesis
8. Examiners in charge of checking corrections
after viva.
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31. • A clear explanation of the theoretical background
is indispensable (theories that have informed the
design of the study). It must be written carefully
and revised several times in order to show how
research objectives are supported by the
theories.
• The theoretical background can be accompanied
by a theoretical framework (a visual
representation) that should effectively put
theories in shapes and utilize various types of
arrows and lines innovatively to show how
various theories are interrelated.
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32. •A theoretical framework can be used to reveal
how various concepts are interrelated. Here, you
may NOT need a conceptual framework.
•If you want to add a conceptual framework, you
have to show how various concepts in the thesis
are interrelated and how they are connected to
research objectives/questions.
• If you do not want to have a theoretical and/or
conceptual framework (visual representation), you
must be ready to answer questions from
assessors and examiners concerning this.
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33. • You must understand that the theoretical and
conceptual frameworks are thesis-specific.
• You need to create them yourself based on your
understanding of your research and the major
theories and concepts in it.
• The creation of these frameworks is done over
time and you need to keep modifying them based
on the progress and development of your
research.
• Changes in the research design, the statement of
the problem, research question, and theories
used in the study may involve modifications to
these two frameworks.
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34. • This is the end of my presentation and in the future I
will be happy to focus on some other aspects of the
Ph.D research or to present another detailed
presentation on the theoretical and conceptual
frameworks.
• To access my presentation and research articles,
please refer to my accounts on:
• https://www.linkedin.com/feed/?trk=guest_homepag
e-basic_sign-in-submit
• https://www.slideshare.net/omer1974
• https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=IgfB4xkA
AAAJ&hl=en
• https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaQIgtVVx3z3
Wzqb3mpO0-g
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35. THANK YOU
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