Population - in sampling, the term means the total group included in the sample.

Simple Random sampling with this method, individuals are randomly selected from a list of the population and every single individual has an equal chance of selection.

Advantages:

• Easy and quick to do
• Doesn't take much planning
• Sample will be completely random

Disadvantages:

• Won’t accurately represent the population that you are sampling
• Because the sample is completetly random its hard to control whether there is sample bais

Systematic sampling - at the start of this method you pick the increment that you want to go up in, once you have this decided you randomly pick a starting point and go up the amount you have picked. Selecting the people that it has landed on.

Advantages:

• Easy and quick to do

Disadvantages:

• Won’t accurately represent the population that you are sampling
• Can lead to skewed sample depending on how you order the list that you are using

Quota/Stratified sampling - this involves splitting the population into subgroups according to their distribution in the real world. For example if there are 54% men in the UK and you have a group of 100 to test, you would have 54 men in that group.

Advantages:

• Gives an accurate representation of the population you are sampling

Disadvantages:

• Take a long time and lots of planning to do

Convenience sampling - this involves using the people who come to hand most easily to be questioned.

Advantages:

• Easy and cheap to do

Disadvantages:

• You could end up with a skewed sample depending on where you are sampling

Cluster/multistage sampling - with this method you randomly select subgroups of the population in several stages.

Advantages:

• Won't’ take that long and much to organise

Disadvantages:

• Every cluster has the potential to overlap another one