A conceptual definition is an element of the scientific research process, in which a specific concept is defined as a measurable occurrence. It is mostly used in fields of philosophy, psychology, and communication studies. This is especially important when conducting a content analysis. Research is often described as an active, diligent, and systematic process of inquiry aimed at discovering, interpreting and revising facts. ... Look up Process in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Process (lat. ... The Philosopher (detail), by Rembrandt Philosophy is a study that includes various diverse subfields such as aesthetics, epistemology, ethics, logic, and metaphysics. ... Psychology (ancient Greek: psyche = soul or mind, logos/-ology = study of) is an academic and applied field involving the study of the mind and behavior, both human and (less frequently) nonhuman. ... Communication studies is the academic discipline that studies communication; subdisciplines include animal communication, argumentation, speech communication, rhetoric, communication theory, group communication, information theory, intercultural communication, interpersonal communication, intrapersonal communication, marketing, organizational communication, persuasion, propaganda, public affairs, public relations and telecommunication. ...

Examples of ideas that are often conceptually defined include intelligence, knowledge, tolerance, and preference.

Following the establishment of a conceptual definition, the researcher must use an operational definition to indicate how the abstract concept will be measured. An operational definition of a quantity is the description of a specific process, or set of validation tests, accessible to more persons than the definer (i. ...