Developing a Sample Plan

Quantitative Research
Faculty of Nursing
University of Jordan
17/11/2014
 Outline
Introduction.
Sampling Designs.
1. Non Probability Sampling:
1.1Convenience Sampling
1.2 Quota Sampling
1.3 Purposive Sampling
1.4 Network Sampling
1.5 Consecutive Sampling
1.6 Theoretical Sampling
 Outline
2. Probability (Random) Sampling
2.1 Simple Random Sampling
2.2 Stratified Random Sampling
2.3 Cluster Sampling
2.4 Systematic Sampling

3. Sample size in quantitative studies

4. Effective recruitment strategies
5. Critiquing sampling plan
6. Conclusion
 Objectives
By the end of this lecture you will be able to:
1. Define sampling ,target population, accessible population
,randomization and sampling plan.
2. Recognize different types of probability sampling.
3. Recognize different types of non-probability sampling.
4. Analyze the Process of sampling.
5. Discuss the factors that affecting sampling size.
6. Discuss the effective sampling strategies.
7. Know how to choose the appropriate sampling method for
your study.
8. Critique the sampling and sampling design in research
article.
 Introduction
Quantitative researchers seek to select samples that will
allow them to generalize their results to broader groups.

They therefore develop a sampling plan that specifics in

advance how study participants are to be selected and how
many to include.

Qualitative researchers are not concerned with issues of

generalizability but rather with a holistic understanding of
the phenomenon of interest.
(Polit & Beck, 2010)
 Population
A population is the entire aggregation of cases in which a
researcher is interested.

Populations are not restricted to human subjects. A

population might consist of hospital records, blood samples.

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Population
The accessible population is the aggregate of cases that
conform to the designated criteria and that are accessible as
a pool of subjects for a study.
The target population is the aggregate of cases about which
the researcher would like to make generalizations.
E.G :A target population might consist of all hypertensive
patients in Jordan, but the accessible population might
consist of all hypertensive patients who are members of a
particular health plan.
Researchers usually sample from an accessible population
and hope to generalize to a target population
(Polit & Beck, 2010)
 Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion (sampling) criteria is the criteria that specify

population characteristics.

Exclusion criteria: characteristics that can cause a person

or element to be excluded.

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Eligibility Criteria
The eligibility criteria may reect one or more of the
following issues:

Costs
Practical concerns
Peoples ability to participate in a study
Design considerations.

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Sampling
Sampling is the process of selecting a portion of the
population to represent the entire population.

A sample: is a subset of population elements.

An element: is the most basic unit about which information

is collected.

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Strata
A stratum is a mutually exclusive segment of a population,
established by one or more characteristics.
For example, suppose our population was all RNs currently
employed in Jordan. This population could be divided into
two strata based on gender.
Alternatively, we could specify three strata consisting of
nurses younger than 30 years of age, nurses aged 30 to 45
years, and nurses 46 years or older.
Strata are often used in the sample selection process to
enhance the samples representativeness.
(Burns & Grove, 2005)
 Sampling

A representative sample is one whose key characteristics

closely approximate those of the population.

If the sample is not representative, this will affect .

.

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 How to take representative Sample?

1. Obtaining the information from the population.

2. Make probability Sampling.

3. Using Strata.

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Sampling Bias
Sampling bias is the systematic over-representation or
under-representation of some segment of the population in
terms of a characteristic relevant to the research question.
Sampling bias usually occurs unconsciously.
e.g. : If we were studying nursing students and
systematically interviewed every 10th student who entered
the nursing library, the sample of students would be biased
in favor of library-goers, even if we are conscientious about
including every 10th entrant regardless of the persons
appearance, gender, or other traits.
(Polit & Beck, 2010)
 To Prevent Sampling Bias
One straightforward way to increase the generalizability
of a study is to select study participants from two or more
sites, such as from different hospitals, nursing homes,
communities, and so on.

Ideally, the two different sites would be sufficiently

divergent that broader representation of the population
would be obtained.

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Sampling Design
Probability Sampling: random selection of elements.

Non- probability sampling: every element doesnt have the

chance for inclusion.

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Non probability Sampling

Convenience Snowball Quota Purposive Consecutive

Sampling Sampling Sampling Sampling Sampling

Non probability sampling is less likely than probability

sampling to produce accurate and representative samples.

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Convenience Sampling
Convenience (accidental) sampling entails using the most
conveniently available people as study participants.

e.g. A Jordanian study investigated the incidence of

workplace violence recruited a convenience sample
consisted of hospital staff nurses from 4 public hospitals
(AbuAlRub & Al-Asmar, 2011).

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Snowball Sampling
Network sampling (chain sampling) is a variant of
convenience sampling. With this approach, early sample
members are asked to identify and refer other people who
meet the eligibility criteria.
It is used when the population is people with characteristics
who might be difficult to identify.
e.g. Snowball sampling was used in an American study
conducted to identify possible barriers and challenges
experienced in recruiting Chinese American adolescents to
an AIDS related study (Lee, Salman, & Wang, 2009).
(Polit & Beck, 2010)
 Evaluation of convenience sampling
Available subjects might be atypical of the population of
interest with regard to critical variables.

It is the weakest form of sampling and the most commonly

used.

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Quota Sampling
A quota sample is one in which the researcher identies
population strata and determines how many participants are
needed from each stratum.
e.g.:
Strata Population Convenience Quota Sample
Sample
Male 100 (20%) 5 (5%) 20 (20%)

Female 400 (80%) 95 (95%) 80 (80%)

Total 500 (100%) 100 (100%) 100 (100%)

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Quota Sampling Example
A study conducted to assess the risk factors of obesity in
terms of body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference in
the UK Armed Forces, recruited a quota sample from all UK
services, of 2,448 men and 311 women aged 17-55 years
(Sundin, Fear, Wessely, & Rona, 2011).
 Purposive Sampling
Judgmental sampling is based on the belief that
researchers knowledge about the population can be used to
hand-pick sample members.
Newly developed instruments can be effectively pretested
and evaluated with a purposive sample of diverse types of
people.
Purposive sampling is often used when researchers want a
sample of experts, as in the case of a needs assessment using
the key informant approach or in Delphi survey.
It is frequently used in qualitative studies.
(Polit & Beck, 2010)
 Example of Purposive Sampling

Purposive sampling was used in a Delphi study to develop a

tool to identify risk behaviors of patients in emergency
departments. Sample included 11 expert academics and
clinicians nurses (Wilkes, Luck, Jackson, & Mohan, 2010).
 Consecutive Sampling
Involves recruiting all of people from an accessible
population who meet the eligibility criteria over a specific
time interval or for a specified sample size.

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Example of Consecutive Sampling
A study was conducted to compare the patients' own
assessments of their acuity to the triage nurse's assessment,
as well as describe patient satisfaction and levels of anxiety.
A consecutive sample was recruited that consisted of 72
patients in the emergency department in a teaching hospital
in Sweden (Ekwall, 2010).
Evaluation of Using Non-probability
Sampling
Convenient and economic

Rarely representative of the population. When every

element in the population does not have a chance of
being included in the sample.

Threaten the generalizability.

Strict convenience sampling without explicit efforts to

enhance representativeness, should avoided.
(Polit & Beck, 2010)
 Probability Sampling
Random sampling involves a selection process in which
each element in the population has an equal, independent
chance of being selected.

Remember: random sampling VS. random assignment.

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Randomization
Computerized recourses are available for free on internet to
help with randomization. Such as website:

www.randomizer.org
http://www.socialpsychology.org/randomizer.htm?randbox=s
m-blue&agree=Yes
 Useful Websites
The following websites were valid at time of publication.

Research randomizer http://www.randomizer.org

Research randomizer http://www.random.org

Social research methods: http://www.socialresearchmethods.net/kb/sampling.php

Sampling

Software for sampling http://www.samplingplans.com/software.htm?src=overture

plans
 Probability Sampling

Simple Stratified Multistage Systematic

Random Random Cluster Sampling
Sampling Sampling Sampling

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Simple Random Sampling
Sampling frame: a table of random numbers or computer-
generated list of random numbers would then be used to
draw a sampling the desired.

There is no guarantee that a randomly drawn sample will be

representative.

The probability of selecting a deviant sample decreases as

the size of the sample increases.

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Example of Simple Random Sampling

Pai and Lee investigated the risk factors and mental health
consequences of physical and psychological violence for
clinical nurses working in healthcare settings in Taiwan.
Participants were recruited from the membership of the
Taiwan Nurses Association (TNA) who came from all
geographical regions of Taiwan. A questionnaire was
mailed to 700 registered nurses who were randomly
selected from the TNA registry (Pai & Lee, 2011).
 Stratied Random Sampling
In stratied random sampling, the population is rst divided
into two or more strata.
The aim of stratied sampling is to enhance
representativeness.
Stratied sampling designs subdivide the population into
homogeneous subsets from which an appropriate number of
elements are selected at random.
Stratifying attributes must be known in advance before
random selection.
(Polit & Beck, 2010)
Proportionate Stratified Sampling
Disproportionate Stratified Sampling
Example of Stratied Random Sampling
A study conducted to assess the incidence, magnitude,
consequences and possible risk factors for workplace
violence against nurses and physicians working in public
Palestinian hospitals. A proportionate stratified random
sample was recruited. The targeted 5 Palestinian hospitals
represented strata. The sample size from each stratum was
proportional to its size in the study population, and within
that the number of physicians and nurses were also
proportionally calculated. This resulted in a sample of 271,
composed of 84 physicians (31%) and 187 nurses (69%)
(Kitaneh & Hamdan, 2012).
 Evaluation of Stratied Random Sampling

Stratied random sampling enables researchers to sharpen

the precision and representativeness of the nal sample.

It is impossible to recruit a stratified random sample if

information on the critical variables is unavailable.

Furthermore, a stratied sample requires even more labor

and effort than simple random sampling

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Cluster Sampling
It is successive random sampling of units (groups, clusters).
The first unit is large grouping (clusters).

Clusters can be selected either by simple or stratified

methods.

It is performed by successive stages (Multistage sampling).

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Cluster Sampling
It is possible to combine probability and non-probability
sampling.

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Evaluation of Cluster Sampling
Less accurate than simple or stratified random sampling.

More economical and practical than other types of

probability sampling, especially when population is large
and widely dispersed.

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Example of Cluster Sampling
A study was conducted among adolescents attending
schools in Kolkata, a city in India, to assess knowledge and
use of label information. After obtaining a list of schools, 2
schools from each of the 3 natural zones (South, Central,
and North) of Kolkata city were randomly selected
using cluster sampling. In each zone, 1 government and 1
private school were selected, for a total of 6 schools. The
government and private schools were selected to represent
different economic strata. All children in eighth grade (N =
316) were selected from each school (Saha, Vemula,
Mendu, & Gavaravarapu, 2013)
 Systematic Sampling
The selection of every kth case from a list or group, such as
every 10th person on a patient list or every 25th person. The
first element should be selected randomly.

The sampling interval is the standard distance between

elements chosen for the sample.
For instance, if we were seeking a sample of 100 from a
population of 20,000, then our sampling interval would be
as follows:
k = 20,000/ 100= 200
(Polit & Beck, 2010)
 Systematic Sampling
It involves far less work.

Problems would arise if the list were arranged in such a way

that a certain type of element is listed at intervals coinciding
with the sampling interval.

For instance, if every 10th nurse listed in a nursing personnel

roster were a head nurse and the sampling interval was 10,
then head nurses would either always or never be included in
the sample.
(Polit & Beck, 2010)
 Example of Systematic Sampling
An Australian study conducted to compare the personal
preferences of pregnant women, midwives and obstetricians
regarding a range of physical, psychosocial and
pharmacological methods of pain relief for childbirth.
Obstetricians were drawn systematically from the 661
doctors listed as practicing obstetrics on the Royal
Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and
Gynecologists website. The starting point was random
(Madden, Turnbull, Cyna, Adelson, & Wilkinson, 2013).
 Evaluation of Probability Sampling
The only viable method of obtaining representative
samples.

Allows researchers to estimate the magnitude of sampling

error.

Inconvenience and complex.

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Sampling Error
Differences between population values (such as the average
age of the population) and sample values (such as the
average age of the sample).

(Polit & Beck, 2010;

Burns & Grove, 2005).
 Sample Size in Quantitive Studies

You should use the largest sample possible.

Power analysis (Cohen, 1988) used to estimate sample size.

A large sample cant correct for a faulty sampling design.

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Sampling Error and Sample Size
A large sampling error means that the sample is not
providing a precise picture of the population, it is not
representative.

(Burns & Grove, 2005)

Sampling Error and Sample Size
Sampling Error and Sample Size

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Factors affecting sample size
1. Effect size.
2. Power.
3. Significance level
4. Two tailed statistical tests.
5. Homogeneity of the population.
6. Cooperation and attrition.
7. Sensitivity of the measures.
8. Subgroup analysis.
(Polit & Beck, 2010;
Burns & Grove, 2005).
Effect Size, Power and Significance Level
Homogeneity of the Population
 Implementing A Sampling Plan in
Quantitative Studies

1. Identify the population

2. Specify the eligibility criteria.
3. Specify the sampling plan: method and size
4. Recruit the sample

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Sample Recruitment

A screening instrument, which is a brief interview or form

that allows researchers to determine whether a prospective
subject meets all eligibility criteria for the study.

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Effective recruitment strategies
Factors that affect recruiting:
1. Face to face recruitment rather that telephone call , letters
and emails .
2. Subjects need for treatment.
3. The researcher approach must be pleasant, positive,
informative and not aggressive.
4. Gifts and monetary incentives to have substantial effect on
participation.
5. Sharing results
6. Convenience for participants: time and location.
(Polit &
7. Assurance of confidentiality will be maintained. Beck, 2010)
 Generalizing from Samples
Ideally, the sample is representative of the accessible
population, and the accessible population is representative
of the target population by using an appropriate sampling
plan.

Inferences about the generalizability can be enhanced by

comparing sample characteristics with population
characteristics.

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

Critiquing Sampling Plans

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Critiquing Sampling Plans
Studies should report:
1. Response rate.
2. Non response bias : differences between participants and
those who declined to participate (response bias). In
longitudinal studies , attrition bias should be reported.

(Polit & Beck, 2010)

 Conclusion
By using appropriate sampling plans, the sample is
representative of accessible population which
representative of the target population about which the
researcher wants to generalize research findings.
There are two main types of sampling plans, probability and
non-probability sampling which can be used either in
quantitative and qualitative studies.
In quantitative research, the sample size should be large
enough to identify relationships among variables or to
determine differences between groups.
Finally using effective recruitment strategies of study
subjects is crucial for success of any research study.
 References
Burns, N., Grove, S. (2005). The practice of Nursing
Research, Conduct, Critique, and Utilization (5th ed.).
Philadelphia: Elsevier.
Polit, D. Beck, C. (2003). Nursing Research: Principles and
Methods (7th ed.). Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams &
Wilkins.
Polit, D. Beck, C. (2010). Essentials of Nursing Research,
Appraising Evidence for Nursing Practice (7th ed.)
Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.