The phrase "advanced the theory" is correct and usable in written English.
You can use it when discussing the development or progression of a particular theory in a scholarly or academic context.
Example: "The researcher advanced the theory by providing new evidence that supported the initial claims."
Alternatives: "developed the theory" or "furthered the theory."
Torres advanced the theory after the game that his recent goalscoring had coincided with a drop in his form.
Experts in microbiology have advanced the theory that the culprit is a scientist, technician or contractor who gained expertise in anthrax from working in a military laboratory.
The economist Arthur Laffer advanced the theory that cuts could even be self-financing, because they could generate enough economic activity to increase revenue.
His work, for example, advanced the theory of the Russian zoologist Aleksandr O. Kovalevsky that marine organisms called tunicates were chordates.
Instead, the S.E.C. advanced the theory that Mr. Cuban's purported agreement not to sell his shares was enough to establish the requisite duty.
His best-known work, Körperbau und Charakter (1921; Physique and Character), advanced the theory that certain mental disorders were more common among people of specific physical types.
The professor, who received a doctorate in juridical science at Yale University in 1940, advanced the theories of Frederick Jackson Turner, who postulated that democracy followed the frontier.
What's more, judging by the first four episodes, they advance the theory — fact?
Everybody ought to be advancing the theory that we want programs to work.
After World War II, General Mills, Inc., accepted a contract from the U.S. Office of Naval Research to advance the theory of ballooning.
The bigger point, though, is that Ince's position does advance the theory that footballers just don't care as much about England these days.
