Research Methods in Social Relations-An Introduction to Sampling

Abstract

To provide an introduction to procedures that can be used to increase the external validity of a piece of research. In this chapter we give a nontechnical introduction to sampling: We show how the process of selecting a sample from a population affects the degree to which generalizations to the population can be confidently made. This chapter is not a manual of sampling procedures, nor does it review the statistical theory that underlies much of what we know about sampling. Rather the goal is to provide a sufficient introduction to the topic so that you can appreciate the considerations involved in sampling. In Chapter 8 we discuss a kind of research, called participant observation, in which we study people in their natural settings so we can more confidently reach conclusions about those settings and conditions that we are most interested in..