theoretical frameworks???

[ACNP 2B S1S2RRR]

Hi, I am supposed to be identifying the theoretical framework of a research paper, but the theoretical framework is not listed. When reading a research article, if you can find the hypothesis of the study, then you can use this to figure out what the theory is, right? Well, what if the hypothesis is not listed? the closest that I am to a hypothesis is the purpose statement. If it is a preliminary study, does that mean that it's not based on a theoretical framework?

The purpose of this study is to "describe... and compare...." Thus, the variables being compared can be what's being compared, right? Also, could demographic information obtained from a survey be used as independent variables if they are examined and compared against one another? Aren't the independent and dependent variables of the study usually listed in the measurements/instruments section?

I am so lost! Thnx for trying to help me :) God Bless All!!!:redbeathe

[llg, PhD, RN]

1. Not all research articles discuss the theories that underlie the research. In fact, not all researchers consciously use a particular theoretical framework. So, if you are talking about a particular article that you picked from the literature yourself, it is possible that you pick such an article. If that's the case, you might want to find another article to discuss that is better-suited for your class assignment.

2. Some researchers will not claim to base their research on a particular theory, but actually do use theory (or multiple theories) as the basis for their definitions of terms, identification of concepts, predictions of relationships, etc. They just don't realize that they are using a theory as much as they are.

3. Yes, demographic variables can be used as indepent variables. It's very common for demographic variables to be used to form groups of people -- and those groups compared on some dependent variables.