Finding the optimal sample population can be essential for numerous distinct dimensions from gathering, for instance, a voting intention in an election to evaluating the quality of machinery in an organization. Finding the sample which effectively depicts a population can assist decrease expenses and time while at the same time offering conclusions that can be applied to the whole population. Selecting a sample, techniques from statistics can be utilized. This aspect enables quantitative measures of personal confidence in the samples. For instance, in determining certain populations' voting intentions, the confidence level is usually 95%. To achieve the confidence level, this means that if a person calculates the interval 100 times, 95 of them could entail the true value of p for a given sample size n (Lane & Hennes, 2018). The general formula for determining the optimal sample size is:
If the sample size is too big to study, one can adjust the outcome by either reducing the confidence level or increasing the error margin.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
There are numerous data collection methods. The major one is the utilization of survey. It has its unique advantages and disadvantages. Its advantages are that it has the ability to represent a large population. As compared to other data collection methods, the survey can provide extra data near the larger population's actual attributes. The method is also subject to excellent statistical significance. Due to the large population, it is early to find statistically significant outcomes. In the long run, it provides accurate results (Rice et al., 2017). The main disadvantage of the survey is that it has an inflexible design. The survey utilized by the researcher from the start cannot be altered during data gathering procedures. The method is also not applicable when there are controversial issues. This aspect is because participants cannot give accurate answers making it hard to recall information.
References
Lane, S. P., & Hennes, E. P. (2018). Power struggles: Estimating sample size for multilevel relationships research. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships , 35 (1), 7-31. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0265407517710342
Rice, S., Winter, S. R., Doherty, S., & Milner, M. (2017). Advantages and disadvantages of using internet-based survey methods in aviation-related research. Journal of Aviation Technology and Engineering , 7 (1), 5. https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/jate/vol7/iss1/5/