Means of Obtaining Population Data and Sampling Methods for Public Health Research

This article discusses means of obtaining population data for public health research and suggests using a probability-based stratified sampling method for recruiting participants. It includes relevant survey questions and references for further reading.

STATISTICS FOR PUBLIC HEALTH
STUDENT ID:
[Pick the date]

PART A
There are various means of obtaining the population data which are identified below.
 Local NGO – A potential source of information could be an NGO based in the region
which deals with the specific health issue at hand. A key advantage of this is that the
lists thus available would be customised and all the subjects of the relevant population
would be identified and possibly some verification may also have been done. A
potential disadvantage is that this is more suited when the population is not very large
and not highly dispersed but concentrated (Flick, 2015). Also, this is readily available
only for specific causes and thus if no particular NGO is active in the region
specifically related to the cause, then the specific data may not be available (Hair et.
al., 2015).
 Local government – The population list can also be obtained from the relevant
department of the local government. A key advantage of this is that the underlying
data would be reliable and therefore usable. However, a key disadvantage of the data
is that it might not be customised to the specific requirement of a particular research
problem (Eriksson & Kovalainen, 2015).
 Existing literature – It might have been possible that some research may already have
been done on the same population or the same issue in the locality and hence data
may exist. A key advantage is that it can save time and money and could be quite
reliable and customised. However, the key issue is that it might be old (if publication
is not recent) and might also just cater to the specific requirements of the underlying
researcher (Hastie, Tibshirani & Friedman, 2016).
With regards to the sampling method deployed a probability based sampling method ought to
be deployed. The stratified sampling would be more useful considering that representation of
key demographic features is imperative for a representative sample and meaningful results
(Flick, 2015).
In order to recruit the participants, elements from the sample would be contacted and the
purpose and aspects elated to the research would be outlined so as obtain their informed
consent. Any risk and any precautions required would also be communicated. Additionally,
various modes of advertisement may be used particularly in collaboration with a local partner
(Hair et. al., 2015). The limitation of the given approach for recruiting participants is the
underlying time and cost involved in the process where the interested participants would have

to be provided the relevant information and informed consent obtained. Also, the participants
selected through this approach may not lead to a sample which is a faithful replica of
population especially if certain attributes are pivotal and need to match the population
(Hastie, Tibshirani & Friedman, 2016).
PART B
The relevant questions are as follows.
Question 1: Have you ever heard about the given service?
Answer: Yes or No (Tick that apply)
Question 2: Have you ever used the given service?
Answer: Yes or No (Tick that apply)
Question 3: Are you satisfied with the service experience?
Answer: Highly dissatisfied(1), Dissatisfied(2), Neutral(3), Satisfied(4), Highly Satisfied (5)
Question 4: What are the key issues that you have faced with regards to usage of this service?
Answer:
Question 5: What is your gender?
Answer: Male/ Female/Others (Choose one that apply)
Question 6: What is your age?
Answer: Below 20, 20-30 years, 30-40 years, 40-50 years, 50-60 years, 60+ (Choose one that
apply)
Question 7: How many years of full time education have you received?
A. (Specify the number of years)
Question 8: What is your current marital status?
Answer: Unmarried/Married/ Seperated/Divorced

Question 9: What is your annual taxable income in the latest tax filing?
Answer: Less than $25000/$25,001-$45,000/$45,001 to $ 65,000/$ 65,001 to $ 85,000/$
85,001 and above
Question 10: What are the reasons of non-usage of service by self (if applicable) or any
others (if you are aware of?
Answer:
References

Eriksson, P. & Kovalainen, A. (2015). Quantitative methods in business research (3rd ed.).
London: Sage Publications.
Flick, U. (2015). Introducing research methodology: A beginner's guide to doing a research
project (4th ed.). New York: Sage Publications.
Hair, J. F., Wolfinbarger, M., Money, A. H., Samouel, P., & Page, M. J. (2015). Essentials of
business research methods (2nd ed.). New York: Routledge.
Hastie, T., Tibshirani, R. & Friedman, J. (2016). The Elements of Statistical Learning (4th
ed.). New York: Springer Publications.