Sampling Error

Definition of Sampling Error

The Canada social science dictionary [1] provides the following meaning of Sampling Error: Any sample is only one of many samples which could have been drawn from a population. Consequently, a researcher may not get the same results with each sample (eg: the mean or average might vary). As the sample gets larger this variation is less drastic, and the sampling error is smaller. Social scientists have ways of calculating the sampling error and you can see this in the news many times when a reporter says: ‘a survey of this size is accurate within 3.5% 19 times out of 20’. For example, the 3.5% is the sampling error. 95 times of 100 times the mean would fall within +/- the mean or average reported.

Sampling Error: Resources

Notes and References

• Drislane, R., & Parkinson, G. (2016). (Concept of) Sampling Error. Online dictionary of the social sciences. Open University of Canada