PRACTICAL-3
Sample and Sampling Techniques
Reference; Ronak Gangwal, 2019
Sample
Sample is representative of population.
It may be remembered that “larger the sample size, the more accurate our inference about
the population would be”.
Sampling
Sampling is a method that allows us to get information about the
population based on the statistics from a subset of the population
(sample), without having to investigate every individual.
The above diagram perfectly illustrates what sampling is.
Example: We want to find the average height of all adult males in Karachi. The population
of Karachi is pproximately 2 crore and males would be roughly around 1 crore (these are
general assumptions for this example so don’t take them at face value!). As you can
imagine, it is nearly impossible to find the average height of all males in Karachi.
It’s also not possible to reach every male so we can’t really analyze the entire population.
So what can we do instead? We can take multiple samples and calculate the average
height of individuals in the selected samples.
But then we arrive at another question – how can we take a sample? Should we take a
random sample? Or do we have to ask the experts?
Let’s say we go to a basketball court and take the average height of all the professional
basketball players as our sample. This will not be considered a good sample because
generally, a basketball player is taller than an average male and it will give us a bad
estimate of the average male’s height.
Here’s a potential solution – find random people in random situations where our sample
would not be skewed based on heights.
Why do we need Sampling
Sampling is done to draw conclusions about populations from samples, and it enables us to
determine a population’s characteristics by directly observing only a portion (or sample) of
the population.
Selecting a sample requires less time than selecting every item in a population
Sample selection is a cost-efficient method
Analysis of the sample is less cumbersome and more practical than an analysis of
the entire population
Different Types of Sampling Techniques
A: Probability Sampling
In probability sampling, every element of the population has an equal chance of being
selected. Probability sampling gives us the best chance to create a sample that is truly
representative of the population.
B: Non-Probability Sampling
In non-probability sampling, all elements do not have an equal chance of being selected.
Consequently, there is a significant risk of ending up with a non-representative sample
which does not produce generalizable results.
A: Types of Probability Sampling
A (1): Simple Random Sampling
In this type of probability sampling, every individual is chosen entirely by chance and each
member of the population has an equal chance of being selected.
Simple random sampling reduces selection bias.
One big advantage of this technique is that it is the most direct method of probability
sampling.
A (2): Systematic Sampling
In this type of sampling, the first individual is selected randomly and others are selected
using a fixed ‘sampling interval’. Let’s take a simple example to understand this.
Say our population size is x and we have to select a sample size of n. Then, the next
individual that we will select would be x/nth intervals away from the first individual. We can
select the rest in the same way.
Suppose, we began with person number 3, and we want a sample size of 5. So, the next
individual that we will select would be at an interval of (20/5) = 4 from the 3rd person, i.e. 7
(3+4), and so on.
3, 3+4=7, 7+4=11, 11+4=15, 15+4=19 = 3, 7, 11, 15, 19
Systematic sampling is more convenient than simple random sampling. However, it might
also lead to bias if there is an underlying pattern in which we are selecting items from the
population (though the chances of that happening are quite rare).
A (3): Stratified Sampling
In this type of sampling, we divide the population into subgroups (called strata) based on
different traits like gender, category, etc. And then we select the sample(s) from these
subgroups:
Here, we first divided our population into subgroups based on different colors of red, yellow,
green and blue. Then, from each color, we selected an individual in the proportion of their
numbers in the population.
We use this type of sampling when we want representation from all the subgroups of
the population. However, stratified sampling requires proper knowledge of the
characteristics of the population.
A (4): Cluster Sampling
In a clustered sample, we use the subgroups of the population as the sampling unit rather
than individuals. The population is divided into subgroups, known as clusters, and a whole
cluster is randomly selected to be included in the study:
In the above example, we have divided our population into 5 clusters. Each cluster consists
of 4 individuals and we have taken the 4th cluster in our sample. We can include more
clusters as per our sample size.
This type of sampling is used when we focus on a specific region or area.
B: Types of Non-Probability Sampling
B (1): Convenience Sampling
This is perhaps the easiest method of sampling because individuals are selected based on
their availability and willingness to take part.
Here, let’s say individuals numbered 4, 7, 12, 15 and 20 want to be part of our sample, and
hence, we will include them in the sample.
Convenience sampling is prone to significant bias, because the sample may not be the
representation of the specific characteristics such as religion or, say the gender, of the
population.
B (2): Quota Sampling
In this type of sampling, we choose items based on predetermined characteristics of the
population. Consider that we have to select individuals having a number in multiples of four
for our sample:
Therefore, the individuals numbered 4, 8, 12, 16, and 20 are already reserved for our
sample.
In quota sampling, the chosen sample might not be the best representation of the
characteristics of the population that weren’t considered.
B (3): Judgment Sampling
It is also known as selective sampling. It depends on the judgment of the experts when
choosing whom to ask to participate.
Suppose, our experts believe that people numbered 1, 7, 10, 15, and 19 should be
considered for our sample as they may help us to infer the population in a better way. As
you can imagine, quota sampling is also prone to bias by the experts and may not
necessarily be representative.
B (4): Snowball Sampling
Existing people are asked to nominate further people known to them so that the sample
increases in size like a rolling snowball. This method of sampling is effective when a
sampling frame is difficult to identify.
Here, we had randomly chosen person 1 for our sample, and then he/she recommended
person 6, and person 6 recommended person 11, and so on.
1->6->11->14->19
There is a significant risk of selection bias in snowball sampling, as the referenced
individuals will share common traits with the person who recommends them.