| biased sample | A sample that is not representative of the population it is supposed to represent.
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| cluster sampling | A sampling technique in which naturally occurring groups (such as students in an elementary school class) are randomly selected for inclusion in a sample.
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| face-to-face interview | Method of administering a questionnaire that involves face-to-face interaction with the participant. Two types are the structured and unstructured interview.
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| Internet survey | Survey conducted on the Internet, typically by having participants fill out a Web-based questionnaire. Such surveys are subject to potential respondent bias as only those having access to the Internet can respond.
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| mail survey | Method of administering a survey that involves mailing questionnaires to participants. Nonresponse bias may be a problem.
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| multistage sampling | A variant of cluster sampling in which naturally occurring groups of subjects are identified and randomly sampled. Individual subjects are then randomly sampled from the groups chosen.
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| nonresponse bias | A problem associated with survey research, caused by some participants not returning a questionnaire, resulting in a biased sample.
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| open-ended item | Questionnaire item that allows the subject to fill in a response rather than selecting a response from provided alternatives.
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| partially open-ended item | Questionnaire item that provides participants with response categories but includes an "other" response category with a space for participants to define the category.
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| proportionate sampling | A variation of stratified sampling in which the proportion of subjects sampled from each stratum is matched to the proportion of subjects in each stratum in the population.
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| representative sample | A sample of subjects in which the characteristics of the population are adequately represented.
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| restricted item | Questionnaire item that provides participants with response alternatives from which the participant selects an answer.
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| sampling error | The deviation between the characteristics of a sample and a population.
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| simple random sampling | A sampling technique in which every member of a population has an equal chance of being selected for a sample and in which the sampling is done on a purely random basis.
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| stratified sampling | A sampling technique designed to ensure a representative sample that involves dividing the population into segments (strata) and randomly sampling from each stratum.
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| systematic sampling | A sampling technique in which every kth element is sampled after a randomly determined start.
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| telephone survey | Method of conducting a survey that involves calling participants on the telephone and asking them questions from a prepared questionnaire.
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