LESSON 4

SELECTING SAMPLES

MR. KWADWO BOATENG PREMPEH

SENIOR LECTURER (FINANCE)
DEPARTMENT OF ACCOUNTANCY, STU
prempeh.boateng@stu.edu.gh
2

SAMPLING
We want to know about We have these to work with
these
POPULATIO Selection SAMPL
N E
 POPULATION

IT REFERS TO THE AGGREGATE OF ALL THE

ELEMENTS, SHARING SOME COMMON SET OF
CHARACTERISTICS, THAT COMPRISES THE
UNIVERSE FOR THE PURPOSE OF THE
RESEARCH PROBLEM.
 CENSUS
IT REFERS TO A COMPLETE
ENUMERATION (COUNTING) OF THE
ELEMENTS OF A POPULATION OR
STUDY OBJECTS
 SAMPLE

IT REFERS TO A SUBGROUP OF THE

ELEMENTS OF THE POPULATION
SELECTED FOR PARTICIPATION IN
THE STUDY.
THE SAMPLING DESIGN PROCESS
Define the target population

Determine the sampling frame.

Select a sampling technique(s)

Determine the Sample Size

Execute the Sampling Process

 TARGET POPULATION

IT IS THE COLLECTION OF ELEMENTS

OR OBJECTS THAT POSSESS THE
INFORMATION SOUGHT BY THE
RESEARCHER AND ABOUT WHICH
INFERENCES ARE TO BE MADE.
 ELEMENT

IT REFERS TO THE OBJECTS THAT

POSSESS THE INFORMATION SOUGHT
BY THE RESEARCHER AND ABOUT
WHICH REFERENCES ARE TO BE
MADE.
 SAMPLING FRAME

IT IS A REPRESENTATION OF THE ELEMENTS

OF THE TARGET POPULATION. IT CONSISTS
OF A LIST OR SET OF DIRECTIONS FOR
IDENTIFYING THE TARGET POPULATION
 SAMPLE SIZE

IT REFERS TO THE NUMBER OF

ELEMENTS TO BE INCLUDED IN A
STUDY.
 THE NEED TO SAMPLE

SAMPLING PROVIDES A VALID ALTERNATIVE TO A CENSUS WHEN:

• IT WOULD BE IMPRACTICABLE FOR YOU TO SURVEY THE ENTIRE
POPULATION;
• YOUR BUDGET CONSTRAINTS PREVENT YOU FROM SURVEYING THE
ENTIRE POPULATION;
• YOUR TIME CONSTRAINTS PREVENT YOU FROM SURVEYING THE
ENTIRE POPULATION;
• YOU HAVE COLLECTED ALL THE DATA BUT NEED THE RESULTS
QUICKLY.
 SAMPLING TECHNIQUES

SAMPLING TECHNIQUES

Non-probability Probability

Convenience Sampling Judgmental Sampling Quota Sampling Snowball Sampling

Simple Random Sampling Systematic Sampling Stratified Sampling Cluster Sampling Other Sampling Techniques

Proportionate Disproportionate
 NONPROBABILITY SAMPLING

• IT REFERS TO SAMPLING TECHNIQUES THAT DO

NOT USE CHANCE SELECTION PROCEDURES.

• RATHER, THEY RELY ON THE PERSONAL

JUDGEMENT OF THE RESEARCHER.
 PROBABILITY SAMPLING

IT IS A SAMPLING PROCEDURE IN
WHICH EACH ELEMENT OF THE
POPULATION HAS A FIXED
PROBABILISTIC CHANCE OF BEING
SELECTED FOR THE SAMPLE
 NONPROBABILITY SAMPLING

CONVENIENCE SAMPLING
THIS ATTEMPTS TO OBTAIN A SAMPLE OF
CONVENIENT ELEMENTS. THE SELECTION OF
SAMPLING UNITS IS LEFT PRIMARILY TO THE
INTERVIEWER OR THE RESEARCHER.
 JUDGEMENTAL SAMPLING

THIS IS A FORM OF CONVENIENCE SAMPLING

IN WHICH THE POPULATION ELEMENTS ARE
PURPOSELY SELECTED BASED ON THE
JUDGEMENT OF THE RESEARCHER
 QUOTA SAMPLING

THIS IS A TWO-STAGE RESTRICTED JUDGEMENTAL

SAMPLING. THE FIRST STAGE CONSISTS OF
DEVELOPING CONTROL CATEGORIES OR QUOTAS
OF POPULATION ELEMENTS. IN THE SECOND STAGE,
SAMPLE ELEMENTS ARE SELECTED BASED ON
CONVENIENCE OR JUDGEMENT
 SNOWBALL SAMPLING

IN THIS TYPE OF NONPROBABILITY SAMPLING TECHNIQUE,

AN INITIAL GROUP OF RESPONDENTS IS SELECTED
RANDOMLY. SUBSEQUENT RESPONDENTS ARE SELECTED
BASED ON THE REFERRALS OR INFORMATION PROVIDED BY
THE INITIAL RESPONDENTS. THIS PROCESS MAY BE CARRIED
OUT IN WAVES BY OBTAINING REFERRALS FROM REFERRALS
 PROBABILITY SAMPLING

•SIMPLE RANDOM SAMPLING

THIS IS A PROBABILITY SAMPLING TECHNIQUE IN WHICH EACH
ELEMENTS IN THE POPULATION HAS A KNOWN AND EQUAL
PROBABILITY OF SELECTION. EVERY ELEMENT IS SELECTED
INDEPENDENTLY OF EVERY OTHER ELEMENT AND THE SAMPLE
IS DRAWN BY A RANDOM PROCEDURE FROM A SAMPLING FRAME
 SYSTEMATIC SAMPLING

USING THIS TECHNIQUE, THE SAMPLE IS

CHOSEN BY SELECTING A RANDOM STARTING
POINT AND THEN PICKING EVERY ITH
ELEMENT IN SUCCESSION FROM THE
SAMPLING FRAME
 STRATIFIED SAMPLING

THIS SAMPLING TECHNIQUE USES A TWO-STEP

PROCESS TO PARTITION THE POPULATION
INTO SUBPOPULATIONS, OR STRATA.
ELEMENTS ARE SELECTED FROM EACH
STRATUM BY A RANDOM PROCEDURE.
 CLUSTER SAMPLING

IN THIS APPROACH, FIRST, THE TARGET POPULATION IS DIVIDED INTO MUTUALLY

EXCLUSIVE AND COLLECTIVELY EXHAUSTIVE SUBPOPULATIONS CALLED
CLUSTERS.

THEN, A RANDOM SAMPLE OF CLUSTERS IS SELECTED BASED ON A PROBABILITY

SAMPLING TECHNIQUE SUCH AS SIMPLE RANDOM SAMPLING.

FOR EACH SELECTED CLUSTER, EITHER ALL THE ELEMENTS ARE INCLUDED IN THE
SAMPLE OR A SAMPLE OF ELEMENTS IS DRAWN PROBABILISTICALLY.
END