Discussion

1. Taking a sample from the population of concern rather than going for a census saves time and
costs therefore providing desired results in a matter of a short period of time. Because if we conducted
a survey to a whole population and there is a chance of the product or service being disliked by the
people, the entire product/service and more often than not, the entire company would be destroyed.

What is the target population? Individuals, institutions, or entities that are the object of investigation
and to whom a survey or research's scope is entitled to.

What would you use for a frame? Population list, map, directory, or other source used to represent the
population such as individuals and institutions that are major stakeholders to Shell or premiere
companies

Which of the four types of random sampling discussed in the chapter would you use? Simple random
sampling, stratified random sampling, systematic random sampling, and cluster (or area) random
sampling.

Could you use a combination of two or more of the types (two-stage sampling)? If so, how? Yes. When
a cluster becomes too large to handle, a second cluster is drawn from that one. For example; it would be
very large cluster if the whole Malé City is taken as a cluster because it has three separate islands where
people lives. So if two-stage sampling is to be used, the researcher needs to take clusters of blocks from
all three islands and then to select households from these clusters.

2. It appears that at least one of the research companies hired by Shell used some stratification in
their sampling. What are some of the variables on which they are stratified? If you were truly interested
in ascertaining opinions from a variety of segments of the population with regard to opinions on
“premiere” companies or about Shell, what strata might make sense? Name at least five and justify why
you would include them.

Some of the variables in which Shell’s sample was identified includes youths, minorities, residents in
neighborhoods near Shell plants, legislators, academics, and present and past employees.

If I were to understand the opinions of the people about premier companies, I would also include
environmental organizations, farmers, the company’s consumers, non-governmental organizations, and
lawmakers. Because, these are major stakeholders to every organization. The status of a premiere
company is often believed to be a cause for a declining environment if its activities are deemed to
damage the environment. Therefore, it’s vital to identify which factors the environmental organizations
would want to improve for premier companies. As mentioned here, each segment holds some level of
importance as a direct or even indirect stakeholder, their opinions would play a major role in getting the
desired results for the survey about the opinions of the larger population in general.