We argue that broad, simple generalizations, not specifically linked to con
tingencies, will rarely approach truth in ecology and evolutionary biology.
This is because most interesting phenomena have multiple, interacting caus
es. Instead of looking for single universal theories to explain the great d
iversity of natural systems, we suggest that it would be profitable to deve
lop general explanatory 'frameworks'. A framework should clearly specify fo
cal levels. The process or pattern that we wish to study defines our level
of focus. The set of potential and actual states at the focal level interac
ts with conditions at the contiguous lower and upper levels of organization
, through sets of many-to-one and one-to-many connections. The number of in
itiating conditions and their permutations at the lower level define the po
tential states at the focal level, whereas the actual state is constrained
by the upper-level boundary conditions. The most useful generalizations are
explanatory frameworks, which are road maps to solutions, rather than solu
tions themselves. Such frameworks outline what is understood about boundary
conditions and initiating conditions so that an investigator can pick and
choose what is required to effectively understand a specific event or situa
tion. We discuss these relationships in terms of examples involving sex rat
io and mating behavior, competitive hierarchies, insect life-histories and
the evolution of sex.