Population

• Sum total of all elements under consideration

• Referred to as parameters of the study
• E.g. All nurses in a certain hospital
All persons in a district suffering from diarrhea
All stars in the sky
All cars that will pass SLEX
Factors That Affect Selection of Population
1. Objective of research
To determine relationship between socio-economic status
& diarrhea the researcher should decide on place, time,
persons with diarrhea to establish population frame

If desired population frame is patients with chronic

systemic disease from 2015 to 2020 in a certain hospital, the
researcher should determine the hospital which would give
the best information, place & time.
2. Nature of research
• If historical - no need for a popn
• If descriptive – selection of popn depends on the study
Case study – needs a sample more than a popn
Case control study – 2 groups of patients needed (those
who have the disease & those who are healthy
• If experimental – selection of popn depends on variables
involved; 2 samples are derived from 2 popn
frames: exptl & C groups
3. Variables to be measured
• If popn does not have the Vs needed in the study, it is not
selected

4. Inferences to be made
• Researcher chooses a representative sample from a finite
popn

5. Availability of data
Sample
• A part of popn
• Can be derived from a popn of people,
records, objects, situations
Sampling
• A process of drawing a small portion of popn
Slovin’s Formula – used for determining sample size
n = _____N_____ n = sample size
(1 + Ne2) N = popn size
e = desired margin of error
What sample size can be derived from a popn size of 1000
using 5% margin of error?
n = ____1000_____ = 286
(1 + 1000 (.05)2

Solve:
Given a popn size of 500, derive a sample size of 100 using
0.05 margin of error .
Sampling Techniques
• Methods of deriving samples from either probability or
non-probability samples
Simple random
• Used when characteristics of popn are homogenous
• Samples are selected thru the use of table of random
numbers
a. Random sample with replacement
b. Random sample without
replacement
Systematic sampling with a random start
• Used when characteristics of popn are heterogenous
• Individuals are selected from a popn list by taking
individuals at specified intervals
Stratified sampling
• Individuals are selected from a popn identified subgroups
based on some pre-determined characteristics (eg, by
diagnosis) that correlates with the study
Cluster sampling
Accidental or convenience sampling
• Based on convenience of researcher
• Networking/snowballing – study subjects provide names of
other individuals who meet study criteria
Purposive or judgment sampling
• Deliberate sampling
• Selecting sample which in
the researcher’s judgment is a
representative one
(a biased sample)