Judgment sampling

Techniques > Research > Sampling > Judgment sampling

Use | Method | Example | Discussion | See also

Use

Use when you want a quick sample and you believe you are able to select a sufficiently representative sample for your purposes.

Method

Use your own judgment to select what seems like an appropriate sample.

Example

A TV researcher wants a quick sample of opinions about a political announcement. They stop what seems like a reasonable cross-section of people in the street to get their views.

Discussion

This method is highly liable to bias and error as the researcher makes inexpert judgment and selection. You probably have be experienced in research methods before you can make a fair judgment about the right sample.

Judgment sampling is often a last-resort method that may be used when there is no time to do a proper study.

In qualitative research, it is common and can be appropriate as the researcher explores anthropological situations where the discovery of meaning can benefit from an intuitive approach.

For the purist, anything that is not probability sampling may be considered as judgment sampling.

Judgment sampling is a form of non-probability sampling.