For his research methods class project, Hiro is studying the effect of pet ownership on stress levels. Although a lot of research has been done on dog and cat owners, not much is known about other pets so Hiro decides to study bird owners. Which of the following would demonstrate a snowball sampling technique?
A)He contacts the Twitter followers of Dr. Oiseau, a famous biologist who studies birds.
B)He recruits bird owners by e-mailing members of the National Bird Owners Association and asking for participants.
C)His participants are all the people who have purchased birds at his local pet store in the past 6 months.
D)He asks bird owners to give him the names of other bird owners.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Snowball sampling is a technique whereby you ask participants to give you the names of other people they know that fit the criteria for the study. In this scenario, Hiro is asking bird owners to give him the names of other bird owners, which is an example of snowball sampling. The other choices do not involve a snowball sampling technique. Choice A involves using a famous biologist's Twitter followers, choice B involves e-mailing members of an association, and choice C involves using a local pet store's customer database.

For His Research Methods Class Project, Hiro Is Studying the Effect