Frameworks for Creating Formal Conceptual Definitions

A conceptual definition represents the shared knowledge among researchers of an abstract entity that can be used in theoretical predictions.

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Before delving into Miller (2023) and the seven steps, it is important to understand what a conceptual definition is.

"A formal conceptual definition is a clear, concise verbalization of an abstract concept used for empirical testing" (Wacker, 2004).

According to Chaffee (1991), concept explanation involves logical, creative and empirical procedures in which a concept is defined in scientific research. "Concepts are our way of organizing and clarifying what we observe" (Chaffee, 1991). Furthermore, a concept represents a recurrent pattern.

Exploring the 7 Steps (Miller, 2023)

1. Identify a formal conceptual definition that represents the key characteristics of a concept.

2. Organize the conceptual definitions chronologically and record key terms.

3. Record similar concepts to determine the boundaries of the definition, which will help distinguish the definition from related ideas.

4. Evaluate the state of the conceptual definitions. This is important to reduce ambiguity.

5. Present an existing, modified or new conceptual definition based on your research and evaluation.

6. Validate the conceptual definition.

7. Refine and be ready to present the new formal conceptual definition.

These steps provide a good outline for defining a concept; however, it is important not to rely only on this process. A good usage of these steps would be to combine them with another process (Chaffee's Concept Explication) and with information learned in your own research. In my approach to concept explication, I will use these steps as a framework, along with Chaffee's sequence, to ensure my conceptual definition is clear, representational and useful in empirical testing.

Concept Explication (Chaffee)

Chaffee's conceptual explication is not a step-by-step, but a sequence that researchers can refer to when studying a concept.

First, begin by identifying a focal concept, similar to Miller's first step. Then, the researcher should undergo a literary analysis and a meaning analysis of the concept. The meaning analysis should note the empirical definition, operational procedures, and evaluation of the operational definition based on univariate research. All of this falls into a review of the tentative definition.

Most notably, Chaffee's process is a circle, representing that it rarely ends after one study.

Important Implications of Creating Conceptual Definitions

In an evaluation, it is important to consider the vagueness and ambiguity of your definition. Miller (2023) states that ambiguity may be reduced if the researcher defines a few key terms within the definition to clarify the meaning of the words in relation to the concept--but only if it is necessary. In Steps 1 and 2, it is important that the key characteristics and terms are clearly connected to the concept.

When defining a concept, researchers should not explain it based on what it is meant to predict in that particular instance. Miller (2023) stresses that the usefulness of a concept correlates with its contribution to theoretical predictions; however, the definition is meant to represent the concept, not its contribution.

A conceptual definition should not be defined simply by listing examples of it. According to Chaffee (1991), media scholars and researchers conceptually define mass media by just listing examples of traditional and digital media. However, this is time-bound because the media is constantly evolving. In Step 2, organizing conceptual definitions chronologically outlines the historical development of the concept to avoid time-bound limitations.

References

Chaffee, S. H. (1991). Explication.

Miller, S. (2023). A Framework for Evaluating and Creating Formal Conceptual Definitions: A Concept Explication Approach for Scale Developers. SAGE

Wacker, J. G. (2004). A theory of formal conceptual definitions: Developing theory-building measurement instruments. Journal of Operations Management, 22, 629–50.