An important hallmark of rigorous research in Health Professions Education (HPE) research is the use of theory. There are many ways to use theory in qualitative research, and so being a savvy user of theory in such research can be a difficult goal for researchers to obtain. Therefore, this AMEE Guide aims to assist (novice) HPE researchers in navigating theory-use in qualitative research by: (a) articulating what theory is; (b) describing why researchers use theory in a research project; (c) describing how to select a theory to inform a study; (d) adressing when theory can be incorporated into a qualitative study's design; (e) and defining what a theoretical framework is and illustrating how to construct one. Each of these elements is illustrated with an example to help readers follow the implications of their decisions. Then, to support understanding, we present a fictional case and illustrate how two different theories can be applied to inform research addressing the case. We highlight how the two theories identify different research problems, and we highlight how each theory brings different aspects of the case into focus as central to the study, while simultaneously diminishing other aspects.
Stalmeijer et al. (2026) studied this question.