Describe the difference between a population and a sample.
What will be an ideal response?
A sample is the set of people who were selected from the population in an attempt to represent the whole population without having to involve the whole population, which is likely impossible to do. How well the sample represents the population of interest is a function of the sample size, the way in which the sample was chosen, how many people chosen actually chose to participate, and a few other factors that researchers must consider when conducting any type of research study.
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If you are pregnant and want to get a prenatal test to assess various aspects of your unborn child's well-being, which of the following should you avoid if you suffer from trypanophobia (or the fear of needles)?
a. amniocentesis b. standard ultrasound c. 4-D color ultrasound d. fetal cardiac monitoring
Your father, who is a high school English teacher, is having some difficulty reading. This is causing him considerable frustration
He has a pair of reading glasses, but loses them constantly because he is not really used to needing glasses. What is something that you could suggest to him that might be helpful? What type of surgery could he have? a. monovision correction b. cataracts c. binocular adjustment procedure d. retinal replacement
There is considerable variation in what researchers include in the factor of extraversion
Indicate whether the statement is true or false
In the featured article in class you learned which of the following about measuring child outcomes?
a. they are usually measured by naturalistic observation but tend to look very different depending on whether the observations are done at home or at school b. they are usually measured by laboratory testing but may not be accurate because tests of one thing (e.g., mood) often measure other things (e.g., concentration) c. they are usually measured by maternal report but may be biased because stressed mothers may rate their children's behavior more negatively d. they are usually measured by naturalistic observation but may be biased because children know an experimenter is watching