A random selection of files from a student counseling center revealed the following reasons why college students seek services:
Mental health issues
25
Learning/school issues
15
Relationship issues
5
Other
5
What does it mean to say the files were randomly selected?
How would the researcher randomly select files? In other words, what does the process look like?
What is the probability that if we pulled another student file from the counseling center the student would fall in each of the following categories a) mental health issues, b) learning/school issues OR relationship issues, c) any category except other?
Would our probabilities and results be different if we used convenience sampling? Why or why not?
The only way to randomly select is to use a random number generator. Any other method is suspect.
Pr(mental)=25/(50) and so on.
To say that the files were randomly selected means that each file in the student counseling center has an equal chance of being selected. The selection process should not be biased and should be free from any deliberate or systematic pattern or influence.
To randomly select files, the researcher could use various methods. One common method is the use of computer-generated random numbers. The researcher would assign a unique number to each file and then use a random number generator to select a specific number of files from the total available. Another method could be using a randomization tool or conducting a lottery-like process to select the files. The key is to ensure that every file has an equal probability of being chosen.
To calculate the probability of selecting another student falling into each category:
a) Probability of selecting a student file with mental health issues = (Number of student files with mental health issues) / (Total number of student files)
= 25 / (25 + 15 + 5 + 5)
= 25 / 50
= 0.5 or 50%
b) Probability of selecting a student file with learning/school issues OR relationship issues = (Number of student files with learning/school issues or relationship issues) / (Total number of student files)
= (15 + 5) / (25 + 15 + 5 + 5)
= 20 / 50
= 0.4 or 40%
c) Probability of selecting a student file from any category except "Other" = (Number of student files in mental health, learning/school, and relationship categories) / (Total number of student files)
= (25 + 15 + 5) / (25 + 15 + 5 + 5)
= 45 / 50
= 0.9 or 90%
If convenience sampling were used instead of random sampling, the probabilities and results would potentially be different. Convenience sampling involves selecting participants based on their ease of availability or proximity to the researcher, meaning the sample would be based on convenience rather than being representative of the population. As a result, the distribution of reasons why college students seek services may deviate from what is expected in the population, leading to biased probabilities and different results.