D-Lab Workshop on Basic Sampling

These files to download or print are Microsoft Word files, unless otherwise indicated.

Introduction to Sampling

• Outline

  • Outline of the Workshop Presentation

  ---

  Basic Concepts and Handouts for Each Topic

  1. Basic sampling concepts

     • Population of interest
     • Survey population
     • Frames and coverage error
     • Probability samples
     • Sampling error
     • Non-response error

  2. Basic methods for selecting samples

     • Prepare the sampling frame (and deal with frame problems)

     • Simple random sampling (SRS)
       A page of random numbers (Excel file)
       Page from UCB phone directory (PDF file)
       Problems for sampling from directories || (Answers)

     • Systematic sampling
       Problems for systematic selection from a list || (Answers)

     • Probability proportional to size (PPS)
       Problems for PPS selection -- computer version || (Answers)
       PPS Selection Exercise || (Answers)

  3. Cluster sampling

     • How to evaluate different cluster sizes || (Answers)

  4. Stratification

     • Problem statements -- stratification || (Answers)

  5. Sample Size Calculation

     • 95% confidence intervals for percentages (Excel file)

     • Sample size worksheet || (Answers)
     • Field outcome report for a survey (Excel file)

  6. Sampling Rare Populations

     • Screening
     • Oversampling
     • Specialized lists
     • Snowball sampling
     • Respondent-driven sampling (RDS)
       (See article below on RDS difficulties)

  ---

• Additional Resources

  • Suggested format for describing a sample design

  • Sampling and Weighting Reports available to view (Web pages)
    (Note the comments on each sample.)

  • Useful article on difficulties using Respondent-Driven Sampling (Web page)
    (from Survey Practice, an online journal)

  • Piazza chapter on "Fundamentals of Applied Sampling" (PDF file)
    (Draft of Chapter 5 in the Handbook of Survey Research, 2nd edition, edited by Peter V. Marsden and James D. Wright. Bingley, U.K.: Emerald Group Publishing, 2010.)

  ---

  This file is located at 'http://sda.berkeley.edu/dlab/sampling'

  ---