Chapter VI
Sampling Distribution
Rocila P. Bendillo
Mathematics and Natural Sciences Department
College of Computing
Pangasinan State University - Urdaneta
1st Semester A.Y. 2023-2024
Rocila P. Bendillo (PSU Urdaneta) Quantitative Methods 1st Semester A.Y. 2023-2024 1 / 29
Outline
1 Sampling Methods
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Outline
1 Sampling Methods
2 Sampling Error
Rocila P. Bendillo (PSU Urdaneta) Quantitative Methods 1st Semester A.Y. 2023-2024 2 / 29
Outline
1 Sampling Methods
2 Sampling Error
3 Sampling Distribution of the Sample Mean
Rocila P. Bendillo (PSU Urdaneta) Quantitative Methods 1st Semester A.Y. 2023-2024 2 / 29
Outline
1 Sampling Methods
2 Sampling Error
3 Sampling Distribution of the Sample Mean
Rocila P. Bendillo (PSU Urdaneta) Quantitative Methods 1st Semester A.Y. 2023-2024 2 / 29
Sampling Methods
Sampling Method
To draw valid conclusions from your results, you have to carefully decide
how you will select a sample that is representative of the group as a whole.
This is called a sampling method.
Types of Sampling Methods
1 Probability Sampling - involves random selection, allowing you to
make strong statistical inferences about the whole group.
2 Non-probability Sampling - involves non-random selection based on
convenience or other criteria, allowing you to easily collect data.
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Sampling Methods
1. Probability Sampling Method
Probability sampling means that every member of the population has a
chance of being selected. It is mainly used in quantitative research. If you want
to produce results that are representative of the whole population, probability
sampling techniques are the most valid choice.
Four (4) Types of Probability Sample
1 Simple Random Sampling
2 Systematic Sampling
3 Stratified Sampling
4 Cluster Sampling
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Probability Sampling
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Probability Sampling
1. Simple Random Sampling
In a simple random sample, every member of the population has an equal chance
of being selected. Your sampling frame should include the whole population.
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Probability Sampling
2. Systematic Sampling
Systematic sampling is similar to simple random sampling, but it is usually
slightly easier to conduct. Every member of the population is listed with a
number, but instead of randomly generating numbers, individuals are chosen at
regular intervals.
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Probability Sampling
3. Stratified Sampling
Stratified sampling involves dividing the population into subpopulations that may
differ in important ways. It allows you draw more precise conclusions by ensuring
that every subgroup is properly represented in the sample.
To use this sampling method, you divide the population into subgroups (called
strata) based on the relevant characteristic (e.g., gender identity, age range,
income bracket, job role).
Based on the overall proportions of the population, you calculate how many
people should be sampled from each subgroup. Then you use random or
systematic sampling to select a sample from each subgroup.
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Probability Sampling
4. Cluster Sampling
Cluster sampling also involves dividing the population into subgroups, but each
subgroup should have similar characteristics to the whole sample. Instead of
sampling individuals from each subgroup, you randomly select entire subgroups.
If it is practically possible, you might include every individual from each sampled
cluster. If the clusters themselves are large, you can also sample individuals from
within each cluster using one of the techniques above. This is called multistage
sampling.
This method is good for dealing with large and dispersed populations, but
there is more risk of error in the sample, as there could be substantial differences
between clusters. It’s difficult to guarantee that the sampled clusters are really
representative of the whole population.
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Sampling Methods
2. Non-probability Sampling Method
In a non-probability sample, individuals are selected based on non-random criteria,
and not every individual has a chance of being included. This type of sample is
easier and cheaper to access, but it has a higher risk of sampling bias.
Non-probability sampling techniques are often used in exploratory and
qualitative research. In these types of research, the aim is not to test a
hypothesis about a broad population, but to develop an initial understanding of a
small or under-researched population.
Four (4) Types of Probability Sample
1 Convenience Sampling
2 Purposive Sampling
3 Snowball Sampling
4 Quota Sampling
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Non-probability Sampling
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Non-probability Sampling
1. Convenience Sampling
A convenience sample simply includes the individuals who happen to be most
accessible to the researcher.
This is an easy and inexpensive way to gather initial data, but there is no way
to tell if the sample is representative of the population, so it can’t produce
generalizable results. Convenience samples are at risk for both sampling bias and
selection bias.
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Non-probability Sampling
2. Purposive Sampling
This type of sampling, also known as judgement sampling, involves the
researcher using their expertise to select a sample that is most useful to the
purposes of the research.
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Non-probability Sampling
3. Snowball Sampling
If the population is hard to access, snowball sampling can be used to recruit
participants via other participants. The number of people you have access to
“snowballs” as you get in contact with more people. The downside here is also
representativeness, as you have no way of knowing how representative your
sample is due to the reliance on participants recruiting others. This can lead to
sampling bias.
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Non-probability Sampling
4. Quota Sampling
Quota sampling relies on the non-random selection of a predetermined number or
proportion of units. This is called a quota.
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Sampling Error
Sampling Error
The sampling error is the difference between a sample statistic and its
corresponding population parameter.
1 µ − x̄
2 σ−s
3 σ2 − s 2
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Sampling Distribution of the Sample Mean
Sampling Distribution of the Sample Mean
The sampling distribution of the sample mean is a probability
distribution consisting of all possible sample means of a given sample size
selected from a population.
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Sampling Distribution of the Sample Mean
Steps in Constructing a Sampling Distribution of the Sample Mean
1 Compute the population mean of the given data of the population.
2 Select a sample size for the samples of the given population.
3 Find the number of samples that can be formed considering the given
sample size. You can use the combination formula to do this.
4 List down all the possible combinations or samples and compute their
sample means.
5 Identify the common sample means and make a tally with regards to
the number of times each sample mean appeared from the list of
sample means.
6 Construct a table with columns: sample mean, number of sample
means (tally), and the probability of each sample mean in the
distribution. To compute the probability, simply divide the number of
sample means (tally) to the total number of samples.
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Sampling Distribution of the Sample Mean
Example:
Tartus Industries has seven production employees (considered the population).
The hourly earnings of each employee are given in the table below.
1 What is the population mean?
2 What is the sampling distribution of the sample mean for samples of size 2?
3 What is the mean of the sampling distribution?
4 What observations can be made about the population and the sampling
distribution?
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Sampling Distribution of the Sample Mean
1. What is the population mean?
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Sampling Distribution of the Sample Mean
1. What is the population mean?
Solution:
Σx
µ=
N
$7 + $7 + $8 + $8 + $7 + $8 + $9
=
7
= 7.71
The population mean is $7.71.
Sampling Distribution of the Sample Mean
1. What is the population mean?
Solution:
Σx
µ=
N
$7 + $7 + $8 + $8 + $7 + $8 + $9
=
7
= 7.71
The population mean is $7.71.
Rocila P. Bendillo (PSU Urdaneta) Quantitative Methods 1st Semester A.Y. 2023-2024 20 / 29
Sampling Distribution of the Sample Mean
2. What is the sampling distribution of the sample mean for samples of size 2?
Solution:
To arrive at the sampling distribution of the sample mean, you need to select all
possible samples of 2 without replacement from the population using the
combination formula, and then compute the mean of each sample. There are 21
possible samples.
n!
n Cr =
r !(n − r )!
Note that n = 7 and r = 2, hence
7!
7 C2 = = 21.
2!(7 − 2)!
Thus, there are a total of 21 samples with sample size of 2 (2 employees per
sample).
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Sampling Distribution of the Sample Mean
The table below shows all the possible samples.
In order to construct a sampling distribution of the sample means, you need to
make a tally or count how many times the sample means appeared in the list.
Sample Mean Number of Means Probability
3
$7.00 3 21
= 0.1429
9
$7.50 9 21
= 0.4285
6
$8.00 6 21
= 0.2857
3
$8.50 3 21
= 0.1429
Total 21 1
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Sampling Distribution of the Sample Mean
3. What is the mean of the sampling distribution?
Solution:
The mean of the sampling distribution, is found by
sum of all sample means $7.00 + $7.50 + ... + $8.50 $162
µx̄ = = = = $7.71.
total number of samples 21 21
Population Distribution and Sampling Distribution
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Sampling Distribution of the Sample Mean
4. What observations can be made about the population and the sampling
distribution?
Answer:
The following observations can be made about the population and the sampling
distribution.
a. The mean of the distribution of the sample mean ($7.71) is equal to the
mean of the population.
b. The spread in the distribution of the sample mean is less than the spread in
the population values.
c. As the size of the sample is increased, the spread of the distribution of the
sample mean becomes smaller.
d. The shape of the sampling distribution of the sample mean and the shape of
the frequency distribution of the population values are different. The
distribution of the sample mean tends to be more bell-shaped and to
approximate the normal probability distribution.
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Learning Activity 1
A. True or False.
1 We can expect some difference between sample statistics and the
corresponding population parameters. This difference is called the sampling
error.
2 If 40 samples of size 21 were selected from a population of 22,493, we would
expect the mean of the sample means and the population mean to be close
but not exactly equal.
3 A sampling distribution of the means is a probability distribution consisting
of all possible sample means of a given sample size selected from a
population.
4 If the sampling distribution of the sample means approximates a normal
distribution, then the population is normally distributed.
5 The mean of all possible sample means is equal to the population mean.
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Learning Activity 2
B. Answer the following problems.
1 A population consists of the following five values: 3, 8, 11, 13, and16. From
this population, there are 10 different samples of size 3. The means of the 10
samples of size 3 are: 7.33, 8, 9, 9, 10, 10.67, 10.67, 11.67, 12.33, and 13.33.
a. Construct a table for the sampling distribution.
b. Compute the mean of the distribution of the sample means and the
population mean.
c. What is true about mean of the distribution of the sample means and
the population mean?
2 A research firm wants to compute an interval estimate with 90% confidence
for the mean time to complete an employment test. Assuming a population
standard deviation of three hours, what is the required sample size if the
error should be less than a half hour?
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Summary
1 The sampling error is the difference between a sample statistic and its
corresponding population parameter.
2 The sampling distribution of the sample mean is a probability distribution
consisting of all possible sample means of a given sample size selected from a
population.
3 Steps in Constructing a Sampling Distribution of the Sample mean
1 Compute the population mean of the given data of the population.
2 Select a sample size for the samples of the given population.
3 Find the number of samples that can be formed considering the given
sample size. You can use the combination formula to do this.
4 List down all the possible combinations or samples and compute their
sample means.
5 Identify the common sample means and make a tally with regards to
the number of times each sample mean appeared from the list of
sample means.
6 Construct a table with columns: sample mean, number of sample
means (tally), and the probability of each sample mean in the
distribution. To compute the probability, simply divide the number of
sample means (tally) to the total number of samples.
Rocila P. Bendillo (PSU Urdaneta) Quantitative Methods 1st Semester A.Y. 2023-2024 27 / 29
References
1 Lind, Marchal and Wathen (2013). Basic Statistics for Business and
Economics. McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
2 Villamoran, [Link], Adela J. et al (2010).
[Link]: TCS Publishing House
3 Frany, et al (2010). Fundamentals of Probability and Statistics for
Engineering. South Triangle, Quezon City: C&E Publishing Inc.
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Thank you for listening! :>
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