The document outlines the 5 main steps in the sampling process: 1. Identify the target population that researchers want to generalize findings to. 2. Select a sampling frame which is a list of the population units to sample from. 3. Specify the sampling technique as either probability/random or non-probability/non-random. 4. Determine an appropriate sample size based on factors like time, cost and desired accuracy. 5. Execute the sampling plan by implementing the selection of the specific sample units.

1. STEPS IN SAMPLING PROCESS

2. 1. Identify the Target population
• Target population refers to the group of individuals or objects to which
researchers are interested in generalizing their findings.
• The target population is the group of individuals or objects, from which the
sample might be taken.
• A well - defined population reduces the probability of including the participants
who all are not suitable for the research objective.

3. 2. Select a sampling frame
• While selecting sample units from the population, it is
sometimes desirable to choose a list of the
population from which the researcher select units.
• Sampling frame is the group of individuals or objects
from which researcher will draw his/her sample.
• It is the list of all units in a study population from
which the sample is taken.

4. 3. Specify the sampling technique
• Sampling can be done through probability (random selection) or non-
probability (non-random) technique.
• Now, if the sampling frame is approximately the same as the target
population, random selection may be used to select sample.
• On the other hand, if the sampling frame does not really represent the target
population, the researcher may choose non-random selection which can give
at least an idea about the population in his nearby area.

5. 4. Determine the sample size
• The sample size is simply the number of units in the sample.
• Sample size determination depends on many factors such as time, cost,
facility. In general, larger samples are better, but they also require more
resources.
• larger sample sizes reduce sampling error but at a decreasing rate. Several
statistical formulas are available for determining sample size.

6. 5. Execute the sampling plan
• Once population, sampling frame, sampling
technique and sample size are identified,
researcher can use all that information to
choose his/her sample.
• This is the final step in the sampling process,
where the actual selection of the sample
elements is carried out.
• This step involves implementing the sampling
plan to select the sampling plan to select a
sample required for the survey.