ABSTRACT
Researchers draw samples from populations, measure the relevant elements or characteristics of that sample, and infer that the sample measurements also apply to the population. Sample measurements are statistics; population measurements are parameters. Researchers acquire sample statistics to estimate a larger population’s unknown parameters. This chapter begins with a discussion of some fundamental concepts in sampling. This is followed by a comparative description of several types of samples, the meaning of bias and error in sampling, sample distributions and concepts of sample size. It concludes with a review of several statistical procedures relating to sampling.
