Unlocking Valuable Insights With Theoretical Research  

Suppose you have conducted a survey and have all the data ready to analyze. But what of the responses you got is not really quantitative? This is when theoretical research can come in handy.  

Research begins with analyzing data closely and understanding your target audience. In this sense, a theory is vital for any research, as it gives your research an objective. Also, theory explains how certain things work or why people feel the way they do.  

It helps you define conceptual models, structures, and explanations for your consumer’s behavior based on theory.   

Curious about how to conduct theory-based research? Buckle up and explore everything related to theoretical study and some stunning examples.  

What Is Theoretical Research?  

Precisely put, theory-based research is understanding and analyzing a set of assumptions and beliefs shared by your target audience. In short, it treats your target audience as subjects and helps you understand the subject better.  

Professionals like writers, sociologists, historians, chemists, ad biologists conduct this research to form new ideas about existing beliefs.  

It answers the most fundamental question about people: what they want and why they want that. For instance, in an attempt to understand the world around them, a researcher conducts theory-based research by forming a hypothetical assumption. This will help them develop new ideas.  

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Different Methods For Conducting Theoretical Research 

When it comes to conducting theory-based research, you have two primary options:  

• Scientific Methods 
• Social Science Methods  

Here’s an explanation of both of them.  

Scientific Method 

Scientific methods of conducting theory-based research include the following pointers:  

Hypothesis: A hypothesis is an assumption crafted into words, which will help the researcher see how and what to see.  

Observation: The primary way to conduct research is to understand and define different research areas.  

Experimentation: The hypothesis formed is tested to see whether the formed assumption is valid.  

Theory: A theory is created when researchers believe that the hypothesis formed is of higher profitability.  

Conclusions: The conclusion includes the final parting words and the analysis gathered from theoretical research.  

Social Science Methods  

In theory-based research, you can make use of polls, statistics, and documentation through the use of social science methods.  

Polls: Polls are generally used to gather data using a topic-specific questionnaire. When conducting a poll, no changes are instilled in the environment to get the most accurate results.  

Documentation: Though this step can be a little time taking, this allows a researcher to gather loads of information for a specific topic. This involves researchers visiting libraries or browsing the Internet to look at existing bibliographies.  

Documentations enable researchers to find the current evidence for their research topic. Additionally, it gives the researcher an idea of whether or not the topic they are researching has already been studied.  

Statistic Analysis: Statistical analysis can be a great way to start if you are keen on observing and understanding random events using numbers.  

It requires a lot of knowledge and research and is based on probability. As a result, the documentation-based data may be less accurate than the data.  

RELATED: Using Spearman's Rank Coefficient Technique To Analyze Survey Data 

Theoretical Research Examples 

Now that you know about the different methods of conducting theory-based research, let’s take a look at some examples.  

Example 1: Identifying the Benefits Of Hemp 

The Hemp plant’s active components are extracted and tested on people to find out if the ingredients are safe to be prescribed as a medicine or not.  

Example 2: Linguistic Research   

Researchers can conduct a study to find out how many people speak Mandarin in a specific school. Surveys can be used to determine the number of native speakers and speakers who use mandarin as their second language.  

RELATED: 6 Common Potential Traps in Market Research 

Things To Know Before Conducting A Theoretical Research  

To form a theoretical framework, you must have a clear understanding of the following:  

Theory  

Before you announce a phenomenon validated or disapproved, it is vital to have a solid theory backing your opinion. The theory will help the researcher decipher why things are a certain way ad help you understand the basis of specific consumer actions.  

Framework 

A framework is essential before you begin researching or writing your thesis, especially for the theoretical part. You can enhance your investigation and provide solid evidence for your assumptions.  

Research  

While researching, you must carefully consider all specific problems related to your assumption. This will help you get an idea of many perspectives and sum out if your hypothesis is valid or not.  

Benefits Of Theory-Based Research  

Theoretical research involves the study of abstract principles, concepts, and theories without necessarily conducting experiments or collecting empirical data.  

Here are some of the benefits of theoretical research: 

Advance knowledge 

Theoretical research helps to advance knowledge in a particular field by developing new theories or refining existing ones. This can help develop a deeper understanding of the subject matter, which can be helpful for practitioners and researchers alike. 

Generate hypotheses 

This research can generate new hypotheses that can be tested through empirical research. This can lead to the developing of new research questions, which can help expand the existing knowledge base. 

Identify research gaps 

It can help to identify gaps in current knowledge and suggest avenues for further research. This can guide future research efforts and ensure that research is focused on areas that are most likely to produce meaningful results. 

Provide a framework 

It can provide a framework for understanding complex phenomena. This can help to organize knowledge and make it more accessible to researchers and practitioners. 

Develop practical applications 

Theory research can lead to the development of practical applications that can be used to solve real-world problems. For example, theories developed in physics have led to the development of new technologies, such as semiconductors, lasers, and superconductors. 

Encourage critical thinking 

Theory research can encourage critical thinking by challenging existing assumptions and encouraging the development of new ideas. This can promote intellectual curiosity and innovation.