Breakout session by Isadore Newman, Shirley Freed, Paul Kaak, and Eileen White.

The dissertation has to be tied to a theoretical framework.

Eileen started her research with some basic theories that supported her work, but as the data emerged, she looked for other theoretical frameworks to address the needs/data. She had a theoretical framework for each major component of her dissertation.

A theme coming through the stories of Leadership graduates is that the theoretical framework evolves as the study changes as you read and do your research.

There is work that exists, for example some qualitative research, that isn’t tied to a theoretical framework.

Paul: You need to be reading in a way that you can find that again. You need to be linking theory to your topic of interest all along as you’re reading so it’s useful to you in two years when you’re writing your proposal. You’ll throw half of it out in the future. Also that you will find things in the bibliographies of the articles you read too.

Carol Bradfield shared how her advisor wouldn’t sign off her proposal until she had a theoretical framework for her study.

Methodological framework and theoretical framework.

Bob Paulson shared the Stages of Change Model by Prochaska and DiClemente.
To write as a scholar you have to make connections and show that you read the literature and that you are weaving the literature together. It’s easier to write chapter five if you have the theoretical framework – either the data supports the theory or it doesn’t.

Newman made a distinction between “theory” and “worldview”.

Qualitative perspective: Constructivist underlying philosophy – inductive.  World view: critical theory, grounded theory, feminist theory.

Quantitative perspective: Positivistic underlying assumptions – deductive. Theory as defined by Kuhn, Poper, Kerlinger, Nomological net.

You shouldn’t use theory and worldview interchangeably because it’ll be confusing.

A theory is made up of a set of nomological nets.

A theory is never totally right. It has a certain amount of support.

Principle: Research question in the context of the purpose should determine the method.

The purpose answers the question, “so what?” The purpose also comes from your worldview.

Examples of purpose. (A study isn’t going to do just one of these.)

• Explain and predict
• Add to the knowledge base – this one is a given for your study.
• Have a personal, social, institutional, or organizational impact
• Measure change
• Understand complex phenomena
• Test new ideas
• Generate new ideas
• Inform constituencies
• Examine the past
• Other

The theory is interwoven throughout all the chapters of the dissertation.

Newman says you can’t do quantitative research without the concepts of qualitative judgment. If you are a constructivist, you won’t generalize the study to other situations. If you a positivist, you are more likely to generalize.
Newman says, you can mix methods, but you can’t mix worldviews. You can’t mix philosophy.  It’s not the method that qualitative or quantitative. It’s the way you use the method.

It’s important to outline in chapter one where you are coming from, and then be consistent to that throughout the study.

Quite an entertaining conversation came around post-positivist, probabilist, and constructivist. I like listening to Newman as my brain is stretched.

Shirley said, you don’t have to put yourself in a box (constructivist, etc.), but you should know what you’re going to do and why you’re doing it.

Newman: If you have a framework you’re connected to, it’s easier to make connections to the literature. Then it’s scholarly. You don’t “talk” scholarly. But you write scholarly. You make a statement. You reference it. You support it.

Questions I have now:

• Is there a menu of theoretical frameworks? How do I find them? My understanding is that this will emerge through the reading.
• What are the theoretical frameworks of my topic – implementing technology change – videoconferencing – in K12 schools?
• What is the purpose for my research? What is the purpose for the research in the area of videoconferencing?
• What is your worldview and how does it affect your research? This is the beginning of the dissertation proposal. It allows you to defend your point of view, which is the beginning of your defense.

Handouts were:

• Draft The Role of Theory in Research by Newman, Newman and Bliss.
•  A Typology of Research Purposes and It’s Relationship to Mixed Methods. Chapter Six p. 167 in Handbook of mixed methods in social & behavioral research

Books Suggested:

• Theoretical Frameworks in Qualitative Research