How to Sample in Surveys

How much is enough in your sample? What is the difference between a research question and a survey question? By exploring the answers to these questions, this book shows readers how to specify inclusion and exclusion criteria in a sample, select the appropriate probability and non-probability sampling methods, understand the sources of error in sampling, and calculate the response rate. New to this edition is coverage of sample size and power so that the reader can better understand the logic in determining the sample size to detect a difference if one exists. Filled with checklists and guidelines, this book will enable readers to select and use the most appropriate sampling methods for their survey.

"Fink provides detailed descriptions of inclusion/exclusion criteria, the logic in estimating standard errors and sample size determination, and the sources of sampling errors."

—Gerald Albaum, book review in Journal of Marketing Research

How to select and use the most appropriate sampling methods for a survey is the focus of this book. It covers a range of sampling techniques including: simple random sampling, stratified random sampling, systematic sampling, cluster sampling, convenience sampling, snowball sampling,; quota sampling, and focus groups. The book also describes in detail: inclusion and exclusion criteria, the logic in estimating standard errors and sample size determinations, the sources of error in sampling, and how to calculate response rates.

Arlene Fink (Ph.D.) is Professor of Medicine and Public Health at the University of California, Los Angeles and President of the Langley Research Institute. Her main interests include evaluation and survey research and the conduct of research literature reviews as well as the evaluation of their quality. Dr. Fink has conducted many research studies in medicine, public health and education. She is on the faculty of UCLA's Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars Program and its Health Services Research Center and is on the Advisory Board of the University of Southern California's Minority Research Center. She is also a consultant to the American Society for Bioethics, the International Society for Clinical Bioethics, and L'institut de Promotion del la Prévention Secondaire en Addictologie (IPPSA) Paris, France. Professor Fink has lectured extensively in the United States and internationally and is the author of over 100 peer-reviewed articles and 15 textbooks.