Based on what you learned in the readings, define the terms “sample” and “population” and describe some of the advantages and disadvantages of using a sample compared to a population. Support your reasoning with examples.
A researcher is studying the effects of caffeine on exam scores of college students. In this study: What would be the population and sample of this research? Extrapolate your views of the advantages and disadvantages of samples and populations to this example.
Why would the researcher want to use a sample or a population in this study?
Week 1 Discussion: “Sample” and “Population”
The sample is the particular group of people from which the investigator can collect data. The population comprises the elements from measurable characteristics or data set like standard deviation and mean called parameter. Sampling has several advantages compared to population like inadequate bias and simplicity. A sample is a part of any specific population. Sample surveys decrease costs both in the context of staffing requirements and monetary terms. During the study of a small sample size, the investigator can attain more comprehensive and detailed information (Majid, 2018, p.3). Moreover, sampling is the only applicable method when a finite population is available for study. Disadvantages of using a sample instead of the population are the difficulty of accessing a large population, costs, time, and the presence of bias under some circumstances. The sampling method requires sound judgment that can include biasedness. Moreover, inappropriate choice of sampling technique causes the entire procedure to become dysfunctional. Also, it is difficult to choose a proper sample size. For instance, the population is eight million individuals residing in New York and the sample refers to the 10,000 people selected at random from the population of New York City.
In this study, the population considered is college students. The sample includes two categories of students-those who use caffeine and students who do not use caffeine. Using population has advantages in that findings would represent the population. Aggregating information about the population would be very time-consuming, requiring more money and effort. Contrarily, using samples has the advantage of making proper estimates about a population with reduced money, effort, and time. In this example, there are no specific disadvantages to using a sample (statisticssolutions.com, 2022).
In this study, the researcher would prefer using a sample to reduce costs which would otherwise be too expensive to survey college students who intake coffee before exams.
References
Majid, U. (2018). Research fundamentals: Study design, population, and sample size. Undergraduate research in natural and clinical science and technology journal, 2, 1-7. Retrieved from: https://www.urncst.com/index.php/urncst/article/download/16/7
statisticssolutions.com, 2022, sample and population, Retrieved from: https://www.statisticssolutions.com/what-is-the-difference-between-population-and-sample/. [Retrieved from: 24.3.2022]
