HOW TO MAKE A
CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
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A conceptual framework in research is used to
understand a research problem and guide the
development and analysis of the research. It serves as a
roadmap to conceptualize and structure the work by
providing an outline that connects different ideas,
concepts, and theories within the field of study.
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● Made up of varied figures:
lines, circles, boxes, and
other marks or symbols
representing your concepts
on these varied features of
your research—research
question, review of related
literature, research
methodology, and
variables,
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● a conceptual framework
looks like a map showing
the main features of a plan
or project plus the
relationship between or
among the features or
variables in the research.
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● Through the proper
connection of lines and
pointing of arrows to boxes
and other codes
symbolizing your concepts
about the research, the
readers are able to
visualize a comprehensive
picture of your study.
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Before you prepare your conceptual framework, you
need to do the following things:
CHOOSE YOUR TOPIC
Choose a topic that you consider can be
comprehensively achieved within the resources that you
have and within the time you are allotted.
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MAKE YOUR RESEARCH QUESTION
Research question has to be specific. The exact aspects
of who, what, where, how, and why have to be clearly
laid out.
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MAKE YOUR RESEARCH QUESTION
Research question has to be specific. The exact aspects
of who, what, where, how, and why have to be clearly
laid out.
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MAKE YOUR RESEARCH QUESTION
The research question is a clear and arguable question
which is where your research will revolve. A reason why
the research question is an essential part of your
conceptual framework and your overall research, this is
what puts the focus and path of your study.
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CONDUCT A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE
The purpose of having a literature review is to let you
and your readers know about the existing ideas and
information there are on your chosen topic; and as well
as the weak and strong points of it.
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CONDUCT A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE
When doing the review of literature, you should
remember it should be: connected to the topic;
synthesize the results of the publications you’ve read;
and recognize the areas where there is a lack of
information or insufficient evidence to prove the claim.
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CONDUCT A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE
By having a review of literature, this narrows down what
you will be putting in your conceptual framework..
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CHOOSE YOUR VARIABLES
Identify and pinpoint the variable/s that has been
discussed in the publications you’ve studied and try to
make a connection or decipher how they are linked.
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CHOOSE YOUR VARIABLES
It is important that you only choose the most important
variables as not all of them will be significant; as you
must have read much scientific literature, you should
be able to discern the important ones by this point.
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CHOOSE YOUR VARIABLES
And when creating a conceptual framework, it would
be best not to choose too many variables, since
putting too many in a conceptual framework will be
confusing.
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CHOOSE YOUR VARIABLES
Though, it is also not a good idea to choose too few
variables or else your study might be too simple. As also
mentioned in the previous step, you have to find the right
level of intricacy in your study that will fit within your
resources and time allocation..
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CHOOSE YOUR RELATIONSHIPS
Now that you have chosen your variables, you have to
choose how these variables are related to one another.
Given that you have already read much literature on your
topic, you should already be able to define how each of
your variables is connected to one another.
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CHOOSE YOUR RELATIONSHIPS
This is especially important to note as this will largely
impact how your conceptual framework will look like once
you start making the diagram.
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CREATE THE CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
Now that you have achieved all the previous steps, the
final step is to illustrate the diagram.
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CREATE THE CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
How you illustrate the diagram will differ on a case to
case basis, but generally, variable names have to be laid
out clearly and put into rectangles, variables have to be
connected with lines and arrows, and the arrowheads will
differ depending on the nature of the relationships.
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Single head arrows are for relationships that are one-directional
(i.e. A affects B and B does not affect A)
Double-headed arrows are for relationships that are 2 directional
(i.e. A affects B and B also affects A).
Lines do not have to be limited to connecting only 2 variables (i.e.
A and B). Some relationships can be between more variables (i.e.
A affects B and also C)
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CREATE THE CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
How you illustrate the diagram will differ on a case to
case basis, but generally, variable names have to be laid
out clearly and put into rectangles, variables have to be
connected with lines and arrows, and the arrowheads will
differ depending on the nature of the relationships.
Learn about it!
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