MARK 302 Lecture Notes - Lecture 12: Central Limit Theorem, Point Estimation, Interval Estimation
27 Jan 2017
School
Department
Course
Professor
Document Summary
The process of determining sample size for probability samples involves financial, statistical, and managerial issues. As a general rule, the larger the sample is, the smaller the sampling error and the margin of error, which is a confidence interval around the sample statistic within which the population parameter is expected to be. Budget available: the sample size of the project is often determined indirectly by the budget available. Financial constraints challenge the researcher to develop research designs that will generate data of adequate quality for decision making purposes at low cost. This budget available approach forces the researcher to explore alternative data collection approaches and to carefully consider the value of information in relation to its cost. Rule of thumb: sample sizes are sometimes based on nothing more than pass experiences whereby the justification for the specified sample size may boil down to a gut feeling that a particular sample size is necessary or appropriate.
